1-1     By:  Coleman (Senate Sponsor - Ellis)                 H.C.R. No. 96
 1-2           (In the Senate - Received from the House April 19, 1999;
 1-3     April 20, 1999, read first time and referred to Committee on Human
 1-4     Services; May 12, 1999, reported favorably by the following vote:
 1-5     Yeas 4, Nays 0; May 12, 1999, sent to printer.)
 1-6                         HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
 1-7     Directing the Texas Health and Human Services Commission to
 1-8     maximize federal funding for outreach activities related to
 1-9     children's health insurance.
1-10           WHEREAS, Access to health care services is vital to the
1-11     long-term health, welfare, happiness and success of Texas children;
1-12     and
1-13           WHEREAS, Many of the children in Texas face significant
1-14     barriers to accessing health care services, as evidenced by recent
1-15     studies showing that almost one and one-half million, or one out of
1-16     every five, Texas children lack health insurance; and
1-17           WHEREAS, As many as one million of these children may
1-18     currently be eligible for health insurance through the state
1-19     Medicaid program or prospectively be eligible for the new state
1-20     Childrens' Health Insurance Program; and
1-21           WHEREAS, Without diligent efforts by the state to seek out
1-22     and enroll eligible children in state programs and link ineligible
1-23     but still needy children to private insurers, these children may
1-24     not access health insurance and therefore never reach their full
1-25     potential as adults; and
1-26           WHEREAS, The federal government has made available
1-27     approximately $27.5 million in matching funds for the purpose of
1-28     outreach activities and has offered these funds at an enhanced
1-29     matching rate; and
1-30           WHEREAS, The federal statute that created this pool of funds
1-31     specifies that the funds may only be accessed during the first
1-32     twelve quarters that the state receives Temporary Assistance to
1-33     Needy Families funds and that the state currently is in its tenth
1-34     quarter receiving Temporary Assistance to Needy Families funds;
1-35     now, therefore, be it
1-36           RESOLVED, That the 76th Texas Legislature and the State of
1-37     Texas hereby direct the Texas Health and Human Services Commission,
1-38     in conjunction with the appropriate health and human services state
1-39     agencies, to maximize the amount of Texas' federal receipts from
1-40     this new funding source as soon as possible; and, be it further
1-41           RESOLVED, that the Texas Health and Human Services Commission
1-42     utilize these funds to implement targeted and culturally
1-43     appropriate community-based outreach programs, develop educational
1-44     programs relating to current or future beneficiaries, simplify
1-45     eligibility and enrollment processes, train eligibility workers,
1-46     providers and the community on available resources, update
1-47     eligibility systems, and target individuals at risk of losing
1-48     Medicaid benefits due to welfare reform.
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