Help with Health Coverage

Fabby Magdaleno of La Habra, California remembers when her husband called to tell her he was laid off from his job at an architectural firm. “I was devastated,” she recalled. “What were we going to do? We couldn’t go without insurance for our kids.”

For years, Fabby’s husband had worked two jobs so his wife could stay home to care for their two daughters. Eva, the younger of the two children, was born with craniosynostosis, a condition that causes skull sutures to fuse together.

After the layoff, the Magdalenos worried for two excruciatingly long months as their girls remained uninsured. Fabby had applied for Medi-Cal but was initially turned down as ineligible. But the family was eligible for coverage through Healthy Families, California’s Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). With Healthy Families coverage, Eva will be able to receive critical reconstructive surgery so that her eyes will track correctly, enabling her to read and even someday drive a car.

“I never thought we would need help with health coverage,” said Fabby Magdaleno at a 2010 event for ethnic media journalists, where she was invited to speak about the importance of Healthy Families for working, middle class families like hers. “I’m so thankful these programs exist.”

The economic downturn cost tens of thousands of working families, like the Magdelanos, their health insurance along with their jobs. However, even during an unprecedented period of budget deficits, California policymakers and regulators worked together with Packard Foundation Finish Line grantees to protect coverage for children.

Together, they ensured that nearly one million children remained covered by Healthy Families. They also expanded efforts to inform families who did not realize they were eligible for Medi-Cal (Medicaid’s name in California) and Healthy Families. And, they collaborated to support legislation that helped maintain seamless coverage for nearly 4.5 million California children, including 55,000 covered through county-based Children’s Health Initiatives and their Healthy Kids programs.