The General Assembly hereby finds that:
(1) All citizens of the Commonwealth should have access to affordable health care; and
(2) It is estimated by the Legislative Research Commission that one hundred twenty- five thousand (125,000) children in the Commonwealth have no health insurance coverage; and
(3) Of the estimated one hundred twenty-five thousand (125,000) uninsured children in the Commonwealth, ninety-one thousand two hundred fifty (91,250) fall at or below two hundred percent (200%) of the federal poverty level; and
(4) Uninsured children are of particular concern because of their need for preventative and primary care to develop into healthy adulthood; and
(5) Measures not taken now to provide care for uninsured children will result in higher human and financial costs due to the development of more severe conditions; and
(6) Eligible children in this Commonwealth should have access to cost-effective, primary health care programs if they or their parents are unable to afford it on their own; and
(7) It is in the interest of the citizens of the Commonwealth for the General Assembly to foster the development of a children’s health insurance program designed to provide basic services to eligible children at minimum cost.
Effective: April 2, 1998
History: Created 1998 Ky. Acts ch. 253, sec. 1, effective April 2, 1998.