BILLINGS, Mont. -- The number of Montana children without health coverage has gone up by 25%, according to a new report which said the increase came during stronger economic times.

The findings from the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families cover a three-year period, from 2016 to 2019.

Montana had an estimated 15,000 uninsured children last year, compared to 12,000 in 2016.

Xanna Burg, KIDS COUNT coordinator for Montana, said because the data is pre-pandemic, they don't know how many more families have lost coverage.

But she added there's real concern the number is growing.

"We do know that families are struggling," Burg emphasized. "You know people are losing their jobs and with it, the health insurance that came with those jobs."

The report cites constant changes to the Affordable Care Act and more red tape in various states as possible factors for rate spikes.

Montana has accepted a Medicaid expansion in recent years, but there have also been efforts to attach a work requirement for eligibility.

Joan Alker, executive director of the Georgetown Center for Children and Families, said while there have been attempts to dismantle the Affordable Care Act, including funding cuts for outreach and enrollment, that doesn't mean states shouldn't be doing all they can to help families qualify for assistance programs.

"States do have enormous power here," Alker explained. "However, they can't entirely outrun the federal context. We're going to have to see a renewed commitment at all levels of government, federal and state, to turn this situation around."

Meanwhile, Burg said one of the glaring concerns in Montana is that nearly 22% of American Indian children don't have coverage. She cites chronic underfunding of the Indian Health Service (IHS) program.

"The IHS has been severely underfunded for a long time," Burg contended. "It receives only half the amount per-person that Medicaid receives. "

Statewide, Montana's rate of uninsured children was more than 6% in 2019, higher than the national average of 5.7%.

Groups fighting for children's rights say they are disappointed Gov. Gavin Newsom's May budget revision did not include more money for the Hearing Aid Coverage for Children Program. Newsom proposed about $16 million, but advocates want lawmakers to bump it up another $5 million in the final budget.

Mike Odeh, senior director of health for the nonprofit Children Now, said hearing loss in babies and toddlers causes serious delays in speech and learning.

"It's a developmental issue, and it's not appropriate for kids to be sent to school without the appropriate supports like hearing aids," Odeh contended.

At a legislative hearing in 2019, experts testified only 1 in 10 children in California has hearing-aid coverage through a private health plan, and every month of delay in starting hearing aids correlates with decreased long-term language potential.

The state Department of Health Care Services estimates 7,000 low-income children in California need hearing aids, but only about 68 children are actually enrolled.

Odeh pointed out it is because the program only covers people who have no other insurance options.

"Some kids are getting rejected because they don't meet the income criteria," Odeh noted. "And so they would likely be eligible for MediCal, some are getting rejected because they have partial coverage that maybe provides a $500 benefit of coverage for hearing aids. But hearing aids are about $6,000 for kids and need to be replaced every three years."

Advocates argued with more money, the program could be expanded to help families who struggle with high copays and deductibles.

May is mental health awareness month. As part of that, groups in Idaho are using HOPE Week to help kids in crisis and reduce the state's worrying number of child suicides.

Jean Mutchie is president of the Idaho Resilience Project and a community health manager at Saint Luke's Health System. She said the project and Optum Idaho are teaming up to promote positive moments for kids, which can ease adverse experiences.

Mutchie said Optum Idaho is distributing 20,000 kites across the state - to gets them outside and playing.

"We're really focusing on kites, bikes and hikes," said Mutchie. "So really encouraging people to get outside with somebody else and engage in a positive activity."

HOPE stands for "Healthy Outcomes from Positive Experiences," and the theme for this year's HOPE week is "hope lives here."

Mutchie said there are a lot of ways to promote the mental well-being of children. She said connections with an adult who is not a family member can help protect their state of mind.

"And if you ask a lot of kids, they can't identify a trusted adult who's not part of their family," said Mutchie. "And so that one non-family member who is that trusted adult in a child's life can make an enormous difference. And data backs that up."

COVID-19 has taken a big toll, and is raising concerns about the number of Idaho children in crisis.

Recent surveys show as many as three quarters of respondents thought the pandemic had worsened mental health in the state, and a huge majority say addressing children's mental health is an especially urgent priority.

Mutchie said one key is that people should feel like they can ask for help.

"Really encourage people to seek help, destigmatize, understand that it's OK to not be OK and it's really OK to reach to somebody," said Mutchie. "And also encourage other people to start to build connection and support to really combat isolation and some of the lack of connect that we've faced during COVID."

The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255 takes calls twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.




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May is National Foster Care Month and Idaho is focused on bringing more foster parents into the fold.

It's always been difficult for states to recruit the number of foster parents they need to support children. But Julie Sevcik, project manager for the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare, said the pandemic has added another challenge.

She said the state relies on recruitment coordinators who can speak to potential applicants face-to-face, at in-person events, about the critical need for foster parents.

"Those two years of not being able to attend events, because they were canceled because of COVID," said Sevcik, "that did decrease our inquiry numbers quite a bit, as well as our new foster parents."

There were 1,5000 children in foster care in 2020, according to Idaho Department of Health and Welfare data. It also notes 65% of children are eventually reunited with their families.

Since there have been fewer foster parents over the years, Sevcik said her agency can struggle to identify the best matches for children with a smaller pool to choose from.

She said that presents other challenges as well, for parents who already are fostering children.

"We also will struggle to provide those foster families with a break in between their placements," said Sevcik. "To allow them the time that it takes to come back together again as a family and be prepared to accept another child in their home."

Sevcik said her agency provides resources for prospective foster parents, including a mentor with experience in this field, and training also is available.

She said it can be difficult work, but also rewarding for foster parents to see biological families make the changes they need to reunite with children.

"Foster parents are our absolute greatest asset," said Sevcik, "to being able to meet the needs of children who are unable to be safely managed in their own biological families. And we just appreciate everything that they do."