Florida Health Grades

Attached links to two articles which made me feel ashamed being a Floridian. Why do our elected officials wage their ideological battles on the back of those in need. Its clear to me who will loose: our children and the most needy in our state.

* "Florida Official sends back $1M " http://www.healthnewsflorida.org/index.cfm/go/public.articleView/article/21614 reporting that state Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty said Tuesday he will forfeit a $1 million federal grant that was supposed to go toward beefing up oversight of health-insurance rates.McCarty's disclosed the decision to give up the $1 million grant during the conference call and also sent a letter Tuesday to a top federal health official. The Office of Insurance Regulation was awarded the grant last year to hire workers and upgrade technology. McCarty gave a brief explanation for his decision, saying he was concerned about intrusiveness of the federal government. He also pointed to a Pensacola judge's ruling. He did not give any indication whether Gov. Rick Scott influenced the move, though Scott said earlier in the day that the state will not spend much time or money carrying out the law until court challenges are resolved. Tuesday's decision was not the first time Florida has foregone federal funding that could help carry out the law. The state did not apply last year for money in what is known as the "Consumer Assistance Program" --- which is designed to help people with insurance decisions and information. Goodhue said that program could have provided $2 million to Florida, which was one of about 15 states that did not receive a grant. It also is unclear whether the state Agency for Health Care Administration will apply for a newly available grant to prepare for creating a health-insurance exchange, which would provide a sort of marketplace where consumers could shop for coverage. AHCA did not respond to repeated questions during the past two weeks from Health News Florida about whether it would apply for the exchange grant. Late Tuesday afternoon, AHCA referred all questions about the federal health law to the governor's office, which did not return a phone call.
* "Uninsured kids propel Florida's low health care rating" http://jacksonville.com/news/florida/2011-02-02/story/uninsured-kids-propel-floridas-low-health-care-ratin. It's a good thing for Texas, Arizona, Mississippi and Nevada.
Without those states' abysmal child health systems, Florida's would rank last in the nation, according to a new analysis Read the complete study http://news.jacksonville.com/documents/020111scorecard.pdf compiled by the Washington-based Commonwealth Fund. Still, at 47th overall, the Sunshine State's efforts to ensure that children receive timely, effective health care fall far short of the national standard. The group's report card included all 50 states as well as the District of Columbia. Individual state scores were based on 20 health indicators. They include a state's insurance coverage rates, typical premium costs to families, the percentage of children who see a regular doctor, infant mortality rates and childhood obesity statistics. Insurance rates depended not only on geography but also race: Florida's uninsured rate of more than 20 percent among black children was the highest in the country, according to the report. Florida's low ranking was driven by its high rate of uninsured children, said Cathy Schoen, one of the report's authors. The state's 17.8 percent was second only to Texas, with 18 percent. Both states could dramatically lower their uninsured rates if they raised the maximum a family could earn to be eligible for Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program, Schoen said. Both cap incomes at up to 200 percent of the federal poverty level, or $44,100 for a family of four. How Florida's children rank vs. nation
50th - Percentage of insured children
51st - Percentage of children with a preventive dental visit in past year
15th - Percentage of young children receiving all doses of six key vaccines
35th - Percentage of children aged 10-17 overweight or obese
32nd - Infant mortality rate
0 - Rankings among 20 indicators in which Florida is in top 5

Yours

Bernd