Title: Health Insurance for Former Foster Youth Act
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Health Insurance for Former Foster Youth Act
This bill requires state Medicaid programs to expand coverage for former foster care youth. Specifically, state Medicaid programs must cover individuals who were in foster care at 14 years of age but who subsequently left foster care due to a kinship guardianship. In addition, states must provide such coverage regardless of whether individuals were enrolled in Medicaid while in foster care.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1797 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1797

    To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to ensure health 
         insurance coverage continuity for former foster youth.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           September 12, 2017

  Mr. Casey (for himself and Mr. Blumenthal) introduced the following 
  bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to ensure health 
         insurance coverage continuity for former foster youth.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Health Insurance for Former Foster 
Youth Act''.

SEC. 2. COVERAGE CONTINUITY FOR FORMER FOSTER CARE CHILDREN UP TO AGE 
              26.

    (a) In General.--Section 1902(a)(10)(A)(i)(IX) of the Social 
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396a(a)(10)(A)(i)(IX)) is amended--
            (1) in item (bb)--
                    (A) by striking ``are not described in or enrolled 
                under'' and inserting ``are not described in and are 
                not enrolled under''; and
                    (B) by striking the semicolon at the end and 
                inserting ``; and'';
            (2) in item (cc), by striking ``responsibility of the 
        State'' and all that follows through ``475(8)(B)(iii); and'' 
        and inserting ``responsibility of a State on the date of 
        attaining 18 years of age (or such higher age as such State has 
        elected under section 475(8)(B)(iii)), or who were in such care 
        on the date of attaining 14 years of age but subsequently left 
        such care to enter into a legal guardianship with a kinship 
        caregiver (without regard to whether kinship guardianship 
        payments are being made on behalf of the child under this 
        part)''; and
            (3) by striking item (dd).
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall take 
effect on the date of enactment of this Act.

SEC. 3. OUTREACH EFFORTS FOR ENROLLMENT OF FORMER FOSTER CHILDREN.

    Section 1902(a) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396a(a)) is 
amended--
            (1) in paragraph (82), by striking ``; and'' and inserting 
        a semicolon;
            (2) in paragraph (83), by striking the period at the end 
        and inserting ``; and''; and
            (3) by inserting after paragraph (83) the following new 
        paragraph:
            ``(84) not later than January 1, 2019, establish an 
        outreach and enrollment program, in coordination with the State 
        agency responsible for administering the State plan under part 
        E of title IV and any other appropriate or interested agencies, 
        designed to increase the enrollment of individuals who are 
        eligible for medical assistance under the State plan under 
        paragraph (10)(A)(i)(IX) in accordance with best practices 
        established by the Secretary.''.
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