A move to expand access to health insurance for more low-income Florida kids has been on hold for years as a lawsuit between the state and federal governments moves through the courts.
The situation was a major topic of discussion for state senators during a Tuesday meeting of the Senate Health Policy Committee.
Florida KidCare is a state and federally funded health insurance program for children from low-income families. In 2023, lawmakers passed a bill to expand access to include families at 300% of the national poverty level -- or those who make about 90 thousand dollars for a family of four.
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But the measure is on hold as a lawsuit between the DeSantis administration and the federal government moves forward. Florida is suing over a Biden-administration rule that would have allowed kids to stay on KidCare for up to a year even if their parents missed premium payments.
During a Senate Health Policy Committee meeting, Stuart Republican Senator Gayle Harrell said to those presenting information that it seems like the dispute has kept children from getting healthcare.
"We are essentially being held hostage on implementation of raising the eligibility level to 300% under the waiver because of this lawsuit," she said.
Brian Meyer of the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration told the committee he hopes to make progress in talks with the Trump administration about the hold up in the coming months.
"Regardless of the administration, we're hopeful that we can get to a place you know, with the current administration, that that will enable implementation of the program," he said.
The change would make about 42,000 more Florida children eligible for KidCare. About 8.5 percent of children in the state last year did not have health insurance. That's the fifth worst rate out of all fifty states and D.C.
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