Boslaugh S, Fairbrother G, Dutton M, Hyson D M, Lobach K S
Department of Psychiatry, Montefiore Medical Center, Department of AIDS Mental Health, Fordham Plaza, Montefiore Medical Center, 111 East 210th Street, Bronx, NY 10467, USA.
J Urban Health. 1999 Sep;76(3):335-50. doi: 10.1007/BF02345672.
This study followed up on a summer 1997 advocacy project by the Children's Defense Fund--New York, which assisted families in New York City in enrolling their children in government-sponsored health insurance programs (Medicaid and Child Health Plus).
To determine how many participants from the 1997 project acquired insurance, to document their experiences during the application process, and to solicit their suggestions on improving the application process.
Guided telephone interviews in summer 1998 with all families from the 1997 program that could be located.
Fifty-five families from New York City that, with the assistance of the Children's Defense Fund--New York, applied for Medicaid or Child Health Plus in summer 1997.
Of the 55 families, 46 acquired insurance for their children at some point during the year. A number of families changed insurance status several times during the year, and some insured originally through government-sponsored programs later acquired private insurance. The families experienced many difficulties in dealing with the health insurance bureaucracies.
The process of applying for Medicaid and Child Health Plus is more difficult and time consuming than may be realized, and many families may go through the application repeatedly. Current efforts to decrease the number of uninsured children in the US must take into account the bureaucratic barriers faced by families that are eligible for these programs and must consider ways to make the application process less formidable.
本研究追踪了1997年夏天儿童保护基金纽约分会开展的一项倡导项目，该项目协助纽约市的家庭为其子女登记参加政府资助的医疗保险项目（医疗补助和儿童健康附加保险）。
确定1997年项目中有多少参与者获得了保险，记录他们在申请过程中的经历，并征求他们对改进申请流程的建议。
1998年夏天对所有能找到的参与1997年项目的家庭进行电话访谈。
来自纽约市的55个家庭，在儿童保护基金纽约分会的协助下，于1997年夏天申请了医疗补助或儿童健康附加保险。
在这55个家庭中，有46个家庭在这一年的某个时候为其子女获得了保险。一些家庭在这一年中多次变更保险状态，一些最初通过政府资助项目参保的家庭后来购买了私人保险。这些家庭在与医疗保险机构打交道时遇到了许多困难。
申请医疗补助和儿童健康附加保险的过程比人们意识到的更加困难和耗时，许多家庭可能要反复申请。美国目前为减少未参保儿童数量所做的努力必须考虑到符合这些项目条件的家庭所面临的官僚障碍，并且必须考虑如何使申请过程不那么令人生畏。
