In an effort to provide uninsured children with health care, California and states across the nation have focused on locating uninsured children and enrolling them in Medicaid and their state children's health insurance program. This report provides a comprehensive examination of California's efforts and offers strategies for keeping children covered in the state's insurance programs, Medi-Cal and Healthy Families. Various sources of information about health insurance retention were consulted: community groups and health plans throughout California that assist families in enrolling and staying in Medi-Cal and Healthy Families, and other states' insurance program policies and experiences. Following an executive summary of the report, the report begins with an overview of Medi-Cal and Healthy Families enrollment and renewal processes. This part reviews and analyzes data available on retention in these programs to surmise the extent to which children are losing coverage. Based on interviews and a literature review, the report then identifies elements or target areas that affect children's continued enrollment: (1) coordinating among insurance programs; (2) simplifying the renewal process; (3) making premiums easier to pay; (4) communicating effectively with families; and (5) encouraging the use of services once insured. For each target area, the report highlights key findings and recommendations for policymakers to consider promising strategies to keep eligible children covered over time. The report also suggests elements for building a foundation for retention strategies--demonstration pilots, tracking, and research--to quantify and identify best practices for keeping children covered. The report's five appendices include 91 endnotes, a description of the study methodology, flowcharts of programs' processes for continuing coverage, and acknowledgments. (KB)