The state’s primary challenge to providing health insurance for children is making parents aware of its program. After that, it has to persuade them that the program is not just for the poor. Like many states, Maine concluded a couple of years ago that even if many people were forced to go without health care coverage and often without care, the state could at least ensure kids were covered, and urged the federal government to expand Medicaid – MaineCare here – to include them. It did, but thousands of children who qualify have not yet been signed up.

The Covering Kids and Families Coalition, some 200 groups around Maine, has been trying to let parents know about this low-cost, excellent insurance in a variety of ways. This week it begins its Back-to-School project to inform parents about this health bargain and remind those already signed up to re-enroll, which they must do annually. The signup sheet has been reduced to two pages and can be mailed in – in-person interviews no longer are required. The first step to providing better health care for uninsured children is similarly simple: call 1-800-965-7476 and ask for information about MaineCare coverage.

The coverage is based on income, but for children in a family of three the cut-off income is $30,500 annually and $36,800 for a family of four. Parents can qualify for coverage, too, although at lower income cut-offs. Most families pay no premium for this coverage, although some are responsible for premiums of between $5 and $40 a month.

The reason for the program is obvious: Health care costs have risen so far and fast during the last dozen years that millions of Americans cannot afford care without insurance but cannot afford the insurance either. The MaineCare program for children has expanded since its beginning and includes coverage for preventative care, emergency room visits, immunizations, hospital care, some vision and hearing, mental health and dental care – all the basics to give children a healthy beginning plus transportation for medical appointments.

The cost of covering children is relatively low and is clearly cost-effective. Not only does coverage give families a better way to obtain medical care for their children than through hospital emergency rooms, but, for instance, timely immunizations save about $14

for every $1 spent on shots. In addition, there are often-overlooked savings from avoiding lost school days for children or work time for parents who spend time at home with sick kids. That cost is considerable, according to a Florida study, which shows that students without insurance were 25 percent more likely to miss school than insured students. They are also 20 percent more likely to have untreated vision problems and much less likely to get treatment at all, especially for aliments such as ear infections and asthma.

The project to alert parents to this opportunity for their children, part of the Covering Kids and Families Campaign, is aimed at catching kids as they start the new school year in a few weeks. Parents need not wait that long. They can call the above number and quickly give their children a healthier chance to succeed in school and beyond.