[StBernard] La health official optimistic feds will approve insurance program

[Westley Annis]

La health official optimistic feds will approve insurance program
1/26/2008, 4:00 p.m. CST
The Associated Press    

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - Louisiana's health secretary said federal officials
who'd balked at former Gov. Kathleen Blanco's plan to expand health
insurance for children now appear open to a similar plan being put forth by
Gov. Bobby Jindal.

State health secretary Alan Levine, who with Jindal met with U.S. Health
Secretary Michael Leavitt and another official Friday in Washington, D.C.,
said he's optimistic the state will win approval. He said federal health
officials offered ideas for making the program more likely to gain approval,
and said he planned to meet with his staff Monday to begin work on the
changes.

"We want to come up with something that's approvable in the next two to
three weeks," Levine said.

Jindal, a former Republican congressman, worked with Blanco, a Democrat, in
recent months to push for the state program expansion. He promised to push
the issue once he became governor; that happened Jan. 14.

Currently, the program covers children in homes where the family income is
up to twice the federal poverty level, or about $40,000 for a family of
four. The state wants to extend coverage to children whose families make up
to 2 1/2 times the federal poverty level, or $50,000 a year for a family of
four.

Federal officials have raised concerns about the fiscal effect and the
potential to move children from private policies to government insurance.
Levine said federal officials Friday seemed to want Louisiana to use some
health care dollars to buy private insurance.