ADVISORY/Health and Human Services, Business and Education Leaders Join Forces to Help Children Stay Healthy, Keep Learning.

News Editors

ADVISORY...for Tuesday (Dec. 3)

--(BUSINESS WIRE)

Launch Readied for Express Lane Eligibility Pilot Programs

As New Study Proves Link Between Health Care and Learning

WHAT: Tbe Coalition for Healthy Learning, a newly formed group of
      health and human services, business and education leaders, will
      announce the launch of an Express Lane Eligibility (ELE) pilot
      program in Los Angeles. ELE is a new initiative designed to
      increase the availability of health care for children, which has
      been shown to promote better learning.

      According to a recent study, enrollment in health insurance
      programs has been shown to increase student performance.
      However, hundreds of thousands of California children do not
      have health coverage, even though many of them qualify for
      publicly funded insurance programs. Next summer, California will
      implement ELE to help low-income children get the insurance they
      need and deserve, and in turn, help reach their full academic
      potential. The planning for ELE pilot programs is being
      announced to help school districts get ready for implementation
      next summer, just in time for the next school year.

      ELE makes it easier for low-income children who are enrolled in
      the school lunch program to get health coverage through
      California's Medi-Cal or Healthy Families programs. The program
      is unique because it targets families when enrolling their
      children in the school lunch program - the exact point where
      they are most receptive to information about health insurance
      benefits for which their children may qualify. ELE was enacted
      by the state legislature last fall and Governor Gray Davis
      approved a July 2003 implementation date in the final 2002-2003
      state budget.

WHEN: 9:30 a.m., Tuesday, December 3, 2002

WHERE: Christopher Dena Elementary School
       1314 S. Dacotah Street
       Los Angeles, CA 90023
       Thomas Guide p. 675-A1

        Parking available on school grounds, enter from Dacotah

WHO: Robert K. Ross, M. D., President and CEO, The California
     Endowment; Senator Gil Cedillo; Governor Roy Romer,
     Superintendent, LAUSD; Wayne Johnson, President, California
     Teachers Association; The Hon. Jose Huizar, Vice-President LAUSD
     Board of Education; Assemblymember Judy Chu; Assemblymember Mark
     Ridley-Thomas; Walter Zelman, Ph.D., President, California
     Association of Health Plans; Wendy Lazarus, Founder and
     President, The Children's Partnership

      All speakers will be available for interviews following the
                           press conference

BACKGROUND:

Nearly one million children ages 18 and under in California do not
have health insurance, according to the UCLA Center for Health Policy
Research. According to the Urban Institute, nearly 700,000 uninsured,
low-income children in California are already enrolled in the school
lunch program. Since the income rules for school lunch and the health
programs are similar, many of these children are potentially eligible
for Medi-Cal or Healthy Families, making school lunch an excellent
vehicle to easily sign up children for health insurance.

This coalition of health and human services, business and education
leaders is led by The California Endowment, a private, statewide
health foundation, and The Children's Partnership, a national
nonprofit children's research and advocacy group. The coalition is
dedicated to ensuring the funding and implementation of the Express
Lane Eligibility pilot programs.