Minnesota will have to spend $178 million over the next 18 months if Congress fails to reauthorize a federal health insurance program that covers 125,000 children in the state, according to the budget forecast released Tuesday.
Minnesota has essentially exhausted its funds from the Children's Health Insurance Program, known as CHIP, after Congress let the program's funding lapse in September.
For the most part, families will not lose coverage in Minnesota, although that is scheduled to happen in some other states. Minnesota used CHIP money to supplement funding for eligible children in the state's Medicaid program; the 125,000 affected children will keep their Medicaid coverage but the state will lose the federal CHIP funding that paid part of the cost.
"There are budget consequences because Minnesota is picking up more costs because of congressional inaction," said Emily Piper, Minnesota's Human Services commissioner.
While $178 million is a modest sum compared to the almost $5 billion Minnesota pays for its Medicaid program, several politicians noted Tuesday that the state's projected $188 million budget deficit would almost disappear if not for the lost CHIP money.
Several Republican state lawmakers expressed hope that the federal CHIP money would be reinstated.
"We have assurances from Congress that we will get reimbursed for that," Minnesota House Speaker Kurt Daudt, R-Crown, said at a news conference Tuesday.
Piper said Congress might be forced into action as more states notify families that they are losing their health insurance.
