Article: Deadline today for health plan/ Applications for child assistance soar after state caps program because of budget shortfall

Low-income families seeking health insurance for their kids have only one day - today - to apply for Child Health Plan Plus, a program being capped because of state budget cuts.

The plan provides primary health care - checkups, lab work and prescriptions - to kids who aren't eligible for Medicaid but whose families can't afford private insurance. Enrollment statewide averages between 53,000-56,000 children a month, said Rhonda Bentz, communications director for the state Department of Health Care Policy and Financing, which administers the program. The cap will not affect children already enrolled.

Plans to cap the program starting Nov. 1 were announced earlier this month. Since then, ...

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