
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, October 12, 1993                   TAG: 9310120050
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-5   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WASHINGTON                                LENGTH: Medium

HEALTH PLAN GAP: DISABLED KIDS

The White House is trying to fill a hole in its proposed health care plan that could leave 7 million poor and disabled children who now get Medicaid with less coverage, an administration official said Monday.

"There's no way this is going to happen," said White House health care spokesman Kevin Anderson. "Under no circumstances will we leave people worse off than they are today."

At issue is the way President Clinton's health care plan would cover speech and physical therapy, hearing aids, special education services and other benefits to some Medicaid recipients under age 21.

Those extra services would still be available to children receiving cash assistance under government programs such as Aid to Families with Dependent Children.

But millions of other children who are not on welfare but get Medicaid would be covered by only the standard package of benefits being proposed by Clinton. The standard package doesn't cover those special benefits.

Medicaid covers about 20 million children; about 7 million of them would be affected by the discrepancy, because they don't get cash aid.

Those on welfare would still get the extra benefits, because their parents can sign up for them at the welfare office. People who don't get cash assistance simply would be put into the overall health care system, and no bureaucracy is set up to make sure those 7 million children get the extra benefits.

Kathleen McGinley of the Association for Retarded Citizens said that in general, Americans would probably be better off under the Clinton plan.

"The concern is that there could be a gap," she said. "You could have access to this basic package, but you could lose some benefits that are really, really important to kids with disabilities."

According to a Washington Post poll published today, public approval of the health plan has shrunk from 56 to 51 percent while disapproval grew from 24 to 39 percent since Clinton's speech to Congress on it Sept. 22.

by CNB