About 128,000 children in Tennessee, or 1 in 8, have lost health insurance during the last two years, according to NPR.
The radio station interviewed Brett Kelman, a healthcare reporter for the Tennessean, about why fewer children, who were enrolled in the state's TennCare Medicaid program and another program called CoverKids, are covered.
"What the state of Tennessee has said is that, either their families are no longer eligible — most likely because they now make too much money — or they didn't properly respond to renewal paperwork that is sent out once a year to make sure they're still eligible. And if you don't return that paperwork, you are automatically disenrolled," he told NPR.
TennCare and CoverKids said the change comes after they began disenrolling members who were ineligible for the program after several years of being more lax about eligibility status, according to the report. After Mr. Kelman's reporting, Republican Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee said he will look into the two programs and ensure families who are eligible for the programs remain covered.