The HUSKY program: an opportunity to insure Connecticut's children

Uninsured children in Connecticut represent a diverse group, and insuring them is a monumental task. In August 1997, President Clinton signed into law the Children's Health Insurance Program, which provides $47 billion in funds to states over the next 10 years to insure the nation's low-income children. Connecticut has been a leader in modeling the federal Children's Health Insurance Program into action. Connecticut's version of the program, Healthcare for UninSured Kids and Youth, (HUSKY), was enacted over the summer, and, to date, has enrolled over 4,000 children in the program. Connecticut's HUSKY program provides a timely opportunity for the state, as well as community health centers and other primary-care facilities, to reach those uninsured children in Connecticut's communities and move the children into the HUSKY program. In order to achieve this goal, innovative outreach strategies need to be designed that utilize cultural and community resources to locate and insure these children.