In a statement, U.S. Senators Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and
Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Congressman Tony Cárdenas (D-Calif.) announced the introduction of:
The
"At-Risk Youth Medicaid Protection Act of 2014."
The legislation: "ensures youths who spend time in the juvenile justice system receive the
health care they need once they leave. According to research by the
National Conference of State Legislatures, the
vast majority of young people who enter the juvenile justice system
suffer from at least one form of mental illness. Additionally, many are
impacted by multiple disorders that inhibit their ability to function in
society once they have served their time. These
young people – many of whom come from impoverished backgrounds –
desperately need treatment for serious mental illnesses and other health
care issues once they leave the juvenile justice system," the release said.
"Despite these staggering statistics, states oftentimes terminate
health coverage for young people in the juvenile justice system. This
lack of coverage can last even after they are released from custody,
prohibiting them from being able
to receive treatment for serious illnesses that can impact others in
their community. For example, many states simply fail to restore an
eligible young person’s enrollment once they are released from the
juvenile justice system. This causes serious gaps in
coverage that prevent these children from receiving timely and
much-needed health care," the statement said,
The At-Risk Youth Medicaid Protection Act of 2014 "would solve
this problem by prohibiting states from terminating an eligible child’s
Medicaid coverage while in custody. Under this legislation, states would
be also be required
to ensure that an eligible young person is enrolled in Medicaid once he
or she is released from the juvenile justice system. This will allow
juveniles to remain covered throughout their time in the juvenile
justice system and immediately afterwards," the release said.
“There’s no reason for these kids to be denied their basic right to health care,” Murphy said, also in the release.
“Preventing them from getting critical care stunts their development,
impacts their community, and might cause them to end up in the system
again. I’m proud to introduce the
At-Risk Youth Medicaid Protection Act to make sure we give these kids the help they need and ultimately prevent future instances of youth incarceration.”
Editor's note: All information in this post was contributed. Click one of the buttons below to share it.
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