At a time when children's health care coverage is the focus of much national attention, children who grow up in divorced, never-married, or separated families are at a greater risk than other children of not having health care coverage. Children without coverage have substantially less access to critical health care services, which are essential for their well-being and productivity.
Although the child support enforcement program has been increasingly successful in obtaining health care coverage for children, changes in the labor market, family structure, health care delivery systems, and social welfare policy require new approaches to ensure that children obtain appropriate coverage-public and/or private.
Recognizing the complexity of the issues involved and the willingness of interested parties to work together, Congress directed the joint establishment of the Medical Child Support Working Group by the Secretaries of Health and Human Services and Labor. The charge of the Working Group, which is comprised of thirty members who represent the broad range of interested and affected parties, was to submit a report to Secretary Shalala and Secretary Herman identifying the impediments to the effective enforcement of medical child support, and recommending solutions to these impediments. The Working Group's Report is an important step in our efforts to increase health care coverage for these children.
The recommendations contained in this Report establish a new model for the medical support enforcement system that puts the needs of children first. The goal in implementing this new model is to increase the number of children with private health care coverage and, for children who cannot obtain appropriate private coverage, to increase their enrollment in publicly-funded health care coverage.
We appreciate the commitment of the members of the Working Group in their efforts to ensure that children in this nation are not without health care coverage merely because their parents do not reside together, and we look forward to working with our partners to make this new vision of medical support a reality.
David Gray Ross
Commissioner,Office of Child Support Enforcement, Administration for Children
and Families, HHS
Robert J. Doyle
Director of Regulations & Interpretations, Pension & Welfare Benefits
Administration, DOL
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Last updated: 11/17/00