IMPORTANT: Look for your child’s Medicaid or CHIP renewal in the mail, complete it and mail it back immediately. They may be covered even if you’re not! Go to Medicaid.gov/renewals to find contact information for your state Medicaid office.

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Connect Families to Health Coverage In 2024

It’s a new year and the perfect time to explore new ways to connect families in your community with free or low-cost health insurance through Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP)! There are plenty of chances throughout the year to help families understand why health coverage is important – and to educate them on the benefits of getting their child covered through Medicaid or CHIP.

The Connecting Kids to Coverage National Campaign conducts several major initiatives throughout the year, and we have a variety of corresponding outreach materials in various languages as you plan out your efforts, including:

  • February – National Children’s Dental Health Month. The Campaign has a dedicated Oral Health initiative page for social copy, videos, and print materials to encourage families to take advantage of dental health services available through Medicaid and CHIP. Find more information about the upcoming oral health webinar below!
  • May – Mental Health Awareness Month. Although mental health is important year-round, May is dedicated to spreading awareness of the mental and behavioral health services covered through Medicaid and CHIP. The Campaign has videos, webinars, social copy, and more to help spread the word about services available for mental and behavioral health.
  • July - August – Back-to-School Season. Back-to-School (BTS) season is a great time to connect with families about enrolling in care, since many kids need routine physicals and updated vaccinations as they head back to the classroom and to participate in extracurricular activities. There are several resources available for BTS outreach including a toolkit, PSA scripts, social images, and newsletter templates.
  • October - February – Cold and Flu Season. During cold and flu season the Campaign shares several resources like posters, social media, text messages, and newsletter templates. The Campaign also promotes vaccines to prevent kids and teens from serious illnesses like COVID-19 and to protect pregnant individuals and babies against Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV).

The Campaign’s Outreach Tool Library features resources for other important topics like rural and minority health, maternal health, vision care, and youth sports.

Because enrollment in Medicaid and CHIP is open year-round, families don’t have to worry about meeting a specific deadline to enroll in health coverage. Incorporating national observances and highlighting different Medicaid and CHIP coverage benefits helps remind parents that their children or teens can access health care all year round. 

During the unwinding of the Medicaid continuous enrollment requirement it is more important than ever to remind families that coverage needs to be renewed annually. Make sure those in your community know to keep an eye out for their child’s Medicaid or CHIP renewal in the mail and that it should be completed and returned as soon as possible.

Together, we can make 2024 another great year for connecting kids, teens, families and pregnant individuals to important health care.

Tune in to our Upcoming Oral Health Webinar

Register for our upcoming oral health webinar, Medicaid and CHIP: Dental Coverage Provides Families with Peace of Mind scheduled for Wednesday, February 14 at 3 p.m. ET. The Campaign invites you to attend the webinar focused exploring the peace of mind that parents and caregivers can have knowing that comprehensive dental health services – including regular dental check-ups, fillings, x-rays, and fluoride treatments – are covered through Medicaid and CHIP. Register today!

Get Social in 2024

Is your organization looking for content to share on social media or tips on how to optimize your current posts? The Campaign has multiple resources available for organizations looking to add to their current social media strategy and help organizations get started on the right foot. 

Partners and Grantees can check out this Social Media Toolkit  from the Campaign, which includes best practices for a variety of social media platforms, tips on how to evaluate your performance on social media, and directions on how to customize posts to fit your organization. The Outreach Tool Library also has suggested social copy and images in English and Spanish for a variety of yearly initiatives like Oral Health, Mental Health, Back-to-School, Vaccinations, and more.

Final Call for Flu Vaccine

It is still important for those that haven’t been vaccinated against flu to get a vaccine as soon as they can, considering flu can still be contracted in the spring. Connect with your community this winter with specific outreach materials from the Campaign focused on getting vaccinated against flu and check out vaccines.gov for information on finding vaccines in your area.

Remember – everyone 6 months and older should get a flu vaccine every year, especially those at higher risk. According to the CDC, flu vaccine not only reduces the chance of getting sick with flu but can also reduce the severity of a flu infection, reduce severe complications like hospitalization associated with flu, and can even protect communities from the flu spreading.

To learn more about vaccine outreach or find resources like digital videos, social images and copy, and sample text messages, visit InsureKidsNow.gov.

Upcoming Observances 

  • Maternal Health Awareness Day (January 23)
  • National Children’s Dental Health Month (February)
  • American Heart Month (February)
  • Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month (February)
  • Give Kids A Smile Day (February 2)
  • National Toothache Day (February 9)
  • Valentine’s Day (February 14)

Stay Connected with the Campaign

  • Share our Campaign materials. Our ever-growing, Outreach Tool Library features a variety of targeted resources to use in your outreach and enrollment efforts, available in multiple formats and languages.
  • Contact us. To get more involved with the Campaign, contact us via email at  ConnectingKids@cms.hhs.gov.
  • Follow the Campaign on X (formally Twitter). Remember to re-tweet or share our messages from @IKNGov with your social network and be sure to use our #Enroll365 and #KidsEnroll hashtags in your posts.

Subscribe to the “Campaign Notes” eNewsletter 

The Connecting Kids to Coverage National Campaign eNewsletter “Campaign Notes” is distributed throughout the year and provides updates on Campaign activities. If a friend or colleague forwarded this email to you, we invite you to sign up to receive this eNewsletter directly to your inbox.