COVER JACKSONVILLE CAMPAIGN OVERVIEW
Cover Jacksonville is a campaign designed to get families connected to affordable health coverage. In collaboration with its partners, Cover Jacksonville has created a community-wide network of enrollment locations where families can receive information and make personal appointments to meet with certified application counselors—at no cost—to ensure they are successful in completing their child’s insurance application the first time.
There are more than 17,000 uninsured children in Duval County (Jacksonville, Fla.). Many of these children qualify for low-cost health insurance through the Florida KidCare program, but are not enrolled because their parents are simply not aware. In July of 2014, the National League of Cities selected Jacksonville as one of only eight cities across the U.S. to receive a grant to address this problem. The Jacksonville Children’s Commission and City of Jacksonville are leading the charge to implement the Cover Jacksonville campaign to bridge the gap for the uninsured.
Cover Jacksonville’s key partners include the City of Jacksonville; Florida Blue; Florida Department of Children and Families; Florida Department of Health in Duval County; Northeast Florida Healthy Start Coalition; United Way of Northeast Florida’s 211 Helpline; The Players Center of Jacksonville; and Full Service Schools of Jacksonville.
GRANT AWARD
The Cities Expanding Health Access for Children and Families (CEHACF) Initiative will help cities implement comprehensive campaigns to enroll children and families in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and reduce the uninsured rate for children and families in each of the cities. Families with health insurance reduce emergency room visits, avoid crushing health care costs, and have healthier children who perform better in school.
“As a nation, we’ve made significant progress on enrolling eligible children in Medicaid and CHIP, but millions of children who qualify for coverage under these programs still need to sign up. Cities are vital partners in outreach and enrollment efforts,” said Cindy Mann, Deputy Administrator, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. “We applaud National League of Cities for its leadership and support.”
NLC’s Institute for Youth, Education and Families is coordinating the initiative as part of a multi-year effort, funded by The Atlantic Philanthropies, to increase access to health care for children and families.
The other seven cities selected include:
• Savannah, Georgia
• Garden City, Michigan
• New Bedford, Massachusetts
• Hattiesburg, Mississippi
• Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
• Providence, Rhode Island
• Dallas, Texas
“Each city chosen had a rigorous business plan that detailed a clear path forward to drive down the rate of the uninsured in their communities,” said Clarence Anthony, executive director of NLC. “Each city should be commended for the positive contributions they will make to their communities. There are clear benefits to the program with healthier kids meaning better high school and college completion rates and financial savings for the community.”
NLC will provide cities with customized assistance, access to best practices and national experts and opportunities for peer learning during the implementation process. Emphasis will be placed on cross-community collaboration among city agencies, school districts, hospitals and clinics and other community-based organizations.
The National League of Cities (NLC) is dedicated to helping city leaders build better communities. NLC is a resource and advocate for 19,000 cities, towns and villages, representing more than 218 million Americans.
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PARTNERS
