U.S. Federal and state education policies place considerable emphasis on assessing the effects that schools and teachers have on student test score performance. It is important for education policy makers to also consider other factors that can affect student achievement. This study finds that an exogenous school factor, discontinuous health…

This study examined the enrollment process for the State Childrens Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) and the outcomes of that process. Data were collected during spring and summer of 2000 through telephone interviews with state program officials from eight states selected based on a variety of demographic and programmatic variables; the states were…

The State Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) was designed in 1997 to support working families by providing affordable, quality health coverage for their children in an efficient, effective, and coordinated way. This report examines the progress made in implementing CHIP nationwide. Information sources included the following: (1) federal…

Although a national consensus has emerged regarding the importance of extending publicly-funded health insurance coverage to low-income children under the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) and Medicaid, substantial numbers of eligible children remain uninsured. This study examined whether extending insurance coverage to low-income…

This report describes the degree and nature of hardship among low-income and poor working and nonworking families in a nationally representative sample of kindergartners--the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study (Kindergarten Cohort). Five hardship indicators were examined: (1) lack of child health insurance; (2) child has not seen doctor at least…