Mobilizing the Community: The Florida KidCare Open Enrollment Communications Campaign

Florida ranks 3rd with the highest number of uninsured children. This disproportion of uninsured children is largely the result of literacy and language barriers; multiple programs, documentation requirements; compromised outreach funding, and a limited enrollment period. On November 29, 2004, the Florida Healthy Kids Corporation announced a one-month health insurance enrollment period for the month of January 2005 for Florida's children after being closed for the prior 18 months, giving communities only 30 days to notify families. This presentation details The Florida KidCare Open Enrollment Communications Campaign, a comprehensive and coordinated response to inform families of this brief opportunity to enroll their children in health insurance programs through the creation of coalitions between community partners, government agencies and child advocacy groups. Telephone conferences and workshops were used to galvanize advocates; these groups then used a variety of outreach methods to inform the community. This campaign resulted in over 96,000 applications, almost 5 times any previous monthly enrollment. Additionally, most advocacy groups reported the campaign provided them with needed technical assistance and resources. Additional outreach is necessary to ensure that parents understand the application process and children can receive health coverage. Florida has subsequently moved to a continuous, enrollment system with limited outreach, hopefully eliminating future crisis responses and improving the enrollment of children in health care. This campaign was proven to be effective in increasing enrollment and can be used by communities in the quest to ensure that more children receive proper insurance and healthcare.