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WHEELING -- A Wheeling mother and social advocate says working parents facing the elimination of the Children's Health Insurance Program next year may have to leave their jobs so their children continue to have insurance coverage through Medicaid.
Amy Jo Hutchison, a northern region organizer for Our Children, Our Future -- a grassroots organization seeking to end child poverty -- will speak to senators in Washington today to urge them to reauthorize the C.H.I.P. program before it expires Feb. 28. The event has been authorized by First Focus, a bipartisan children's advocacy organization.
Hutchison said she plans to share with the senators her story about C.H.I.P.'s importance and will bring with her the stories of many working parents in West Virginia. She will be accompanied by her daughters, Grace and Makayla.
Hutchison describes herself as a working mother who went back to college at age 45, obtained a bachelor's degree and did what is expected of her to be a productive citizen.
"If the C.H.I.P. program is not reauthorized, there are going to be many parents who won't be able to ensure children and can't afford the private marketplace," she said. "Some of us will have to quit jobs so that our kids can get Medicaid. That is the exact opposite of what parents on C.H.I.P. want. There are working families who can't afford insurance. That's why the C.H.I.P. program was created."
Hutchison explained the program "fills in the gaps" for parents who don't qualify for Medicaid assistance, but find traditional insurance options unaffordable.
The C.H.I.P. program is income-based.
In her job, Hutchison speaks to working parents in a 20-county region in northern West Virginia, and she said they have "some pretty heavy stories."
Hutchison said one mother told her of her child who is a Type 1 diabetic, and the cost of insulin without insurance comes to $3,000 a month.
The mother told Hutchison her family could use their income tax refund to pay the medical bill for a month, but beyond that they would have issues.
Another mother has a son with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder. In addition to medication, C.H.I.P. pays for needed counseling.
The mother is looking to leave her job to receive Medicaid benefits, according to Hutchison.
"It's the only way to give him the life he deserves," Hutchison said.