Posted July 20, 2011 at 12:12pm

CQ Healthbeat News
July 19, 2011
By: Melissa Attias

With Republicans and Democrats still at odds over changes to health care entitlements, two advocacy groups warned Tuesday that cuts to Medicaid would threaten a critical source of insurance for millions of Latino children and their families.

The National Council of La Raza (NCLR), a Latino civil rights organization, and Families USA, a consumer advocacy group, released a report that found that in 2009, nearly half of all Hispanics under age 18 were covered by either Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). Of those children, the vast majority (82.9 percent) lived in households with earnings below 200 percent of the federal poverty level.

The report also found that Medicaid cuts would disproportionately affect Latinos of all ages in comparison to non-Hispanic whites. While 26.5 percent of Latinos were covered by Medicaid or CHIP in 2009, 10.7 percent of non-Hispanic whites were enrolled in those programs.

"Private health coverage, obtained through the workplace or purchased directly from an insurance company, is often unattainable for these Latino families, and the problem has only deepened as the nation struggles with an economic recession," Ron Pollack, executive director of Families USA, said on a conference call. "Cutting Medicaid does much more than changing bottom lines in budget debates. It also cuts the health lifeline for millions of Americans who need it the most."

Members of the congressional Black, Hispanic and Asian Pacific Americans caucuses have scheduled a joint news conference Wednesday to address this issue.

Without access to Medicaid, the report cautioned that the uninsured rate among Hispanics - already at approximately 32 percent - would continue to grow. The report also said that Medicaid enrollees are more likely to access health care, report better physical and mental health, and incur less medical debt than low-income, uninsured individuals, according to a recent study.

As the budget negotiations continue, both groups announced on the conference call that they would hold a national "call-in day" on Wednesday to lobby against making cuts to Medicaid. Participants will be able to call their members of Congress and use a Twitter petition tool that connects them with the Twitter accounts of elected officials.

"We are deeply troubled by the direction of the budget conversations right now...and how it’s thrown lots of issues into the mix, including Medicaid cuts, really frivolously," said Eric Rodriguez, vice president of NCLR’s Office of Research, Advocacy and Legislation. "This is an issue that is very near to our community."

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