1. State Coalition Meeting #15 Our gathering in Honolulu on 20 May 2004 will feature important updates: * Med-QUEST's New Renewal Processes * DHS Outreach and Assistance Project * Medicare Drug Program * Hawaii Rx Plus * QUEST and Medicaid for Pregnant Immigrants Location and time are on our calendar page. Note: Med-QUEST will organize a videoconference briefing for the Neighbor Islands on these topics at a later date. 2. Cover The Uninsured Week A significant number of Americans do not have health insurance including 8.5 million children. Cover the Uninsured Week from 10 to 17 May 2004 offers opportunities for people to learn more about health insurance issues and take appropriate action. National information is available at Cover The Uninsured Week and Hawaii activities are listed at CTUW Hawaii. To help improve health insurance policies locally, please visit The Hawaii Uninsured Project's web site for more information. 3. Medicaid and CHIP Can't Pick Up the Slack in Declining Employer-Covered Health Insurance for Children Children are the hardest hit by declines in health insurance coverage since 1999 according to data briefs from the Center for Economic and Policy Research. Low-wage working families--who are half as likely as other workers to have employer-provided health insurance--are turning in larger numbers to Medicaid to cover their children. However, Medicaid and CHIP are not enough to compensate for the loss of employer-provided health insurance. Young adults who are 18 to 25 years old are least likely to have employer-provided health insurance and health insurance as a dependent has fallen sharply during the economic contraction. The reports are available at Health Insurance Data Briefs. 4. Children's Defense Fund-Texas Advocates to Restore CHIP The Campaign to Restore CHIP, led by the Children's Defense Fund-Texas, held news conferences in six cities across the state in April calling for the full restoration of the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and speaking out about the local impact of the CHIP cuts. The news events marked the fourth anniversary of the Texas CHIP Program. Local elected officials and civic leaders participating included the Mayor of Houston, Texas State Senators and Representatives, County Judges, CEOs of the United Way, representatives of the Texas Medical Association, teachers' organizations, faith leaders, and others. In addition to calling for full restoration of benefits and eligibility, local leaders spoke out about the devastating impact the cuts are having in their communities. Since it began taking effect in September 2003, CHIP enrollment has dropped by 118,978 children statewide. In addition, Texas will lose over $500 million in federal matching funds by FY 2005.