June 25, 2005 Shreveport Plays Host to Regional LaCHIP ConferenceNorthwest Louisiana has highest concentration of qualified children not yet enrolled

Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Jun 25, 2005 -

Baton Rouge --- Northwest Louisiana has more children who qualify for free health insurance but are not enrolled than any other part of the state. For this reason, the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals’ is hosting the Northwest Louisiana Children’s Health Insurance Program (LaCHIP) conference in Shreveport next Tuesday.

The conference is intended to give area residents, state agencies, medical personnel and other community stakeholders more information about LaCHIP. LDH recently commissioned a broad study of the uninsured in Louisiana, in which it was revealed that more than 15 percent of all children who live in Northwest Louisiana do not have health insurance. Approximately 18,000 of those children qualify for LaCHIP but are not yet enrolled, making Northwest Louisiana the region with the highest concentration of qualified children who have not signed up for LaCHIP.

Louisiana children up to the age of 19 can qualify for coverage under LaCHIP using higher income standards than those used for traditional Medicaid.  For example, a family of four now can earn about $3,230 a month after deductions and get health insurance for their children with no enrollment fees, no premiums, no co-payments and no deductibles.

The conference will take place at the Willis-Knighton Pierremont Hospital’s Second-floor auditorium, 8001 Youree Drive, Shreveport. The conference will begin at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, June 29, and last until 3 p.m. Registration will take place on-site, beginning at 8:30 a.m.

To R.S.V.P., or for more information, please contact Betty Stanley at 318-862-9906. For more complete LaCHIP income guidelines or to obtain an application/renewal form, visit the newly revised LaCHIP Web site at:www.lachip.org, or call toll-free, 1-877-2LaCHIP (252-2447).

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