CSBA ‘All In’ effort to help kids get health insurance
November 2013
CSBA is among a number of “anchor partners” collaborating with the Children’s Partnership’s All In Campaign to spread the word to families who may be eligible to buy insurance from the state’s new insurance exchange, Covered California.
Covered California began registering applicants for the new government program Oct. 1. As CSBA Senior Director for Policy and Programs Teri Burns wrote on the CSBA blog Oct. 8, “Schools and school leaders can play an important role helping families, children and employees get information—and get covered.”
Some 200 school board members, child care providers and staff at school-based health centers and after-school programs participated in the All In Campaign’s “virtual rally” online last month. Now archived online, the event highlighted effective school-oriented strategies for reaching uninsured students and families, offered useful resources such as the campaign’s toolkit for school leaders and families—available in both English and Spanish—and answered questions about Covered California, the state’s insurance exchange under the federal Affordable Care Act.
As Burns wrote, “When our children have health insurance, they are more likely to get shots to prevent disease, get treatment for chronic problems like ear infections and asthma, stay out of the emergency room, and miss fewer days of school. And healthier children also mean a healthier workplace at school.”
Burns, who’s also a board member in Sacramento’s Natomas Unified School District, also authored the January 2012 CSBA governance brief, “Health Policy: Implications of Covered California for School Boards, Districts and Personnel,” explaining how the federal health care law affects California school districts and county offices of education as employers.
The Children’s Partnership website includes guidance that’s particularly relevant to school district governance teams. The Game Plan for School Leaders, posted on the All In Web page, offers specific strategies for educating school staff about the enrollment rules for Covered California so that employees who work closely with children and parents can help families apply for health insurance. The All In Campaign also produced educational and promotional materials about the new federal health insurance program, which can be downloaded without charge so that schools can distribute them to students and their parents. All In leaders recommend that governance teams spread the word about the new insurance benefits by inviting families to attend school-sponsored “enrollment nights” and post information about Covered California on school and district websites. School leaders can also increase their reach by building partnerships with community organizations that share an interest in promoting the health and well-being of the children they serve.