In a pointed rebuke of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, U.S. Representative Kathy Castor has gone public with accusations that the state leader is unlawfully denying thousands of children their health coverage rights. According to a recent statement from Castor, DeSantis and his administration have actively stripped 22,576 Florida children of their KidCare insurance since the start of the year, apparently flouting federal law requirements that were designed to provide continuous health coverage to minors.

Federal law now mandates that once children qualify for Medicaid or the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), also known as KidCare in Florida, they are entitled to maintain that coverage for an entire year, this reform, which went into effect January 1, 2024, intends to alleviate familial financial pressures and bureaucratic hassles yet despite this, Castor claims that the DeSantis administration is booting children off the rolls for nonpayment of premiums amidst this federally-protected period. Castor's bold announcement comes amid further controversy as Florida is the only state choosing to defy this new regulation; this while the state simultaneously wages a legal battle against the Biden administration seeking to invalidate the children's 12-month insurance protection rule.

Castor's statement not only called out what she sees as a transgression on DeSantis's part but also highlighted the plight of families impacted by the state's actions. "Yet, Governor DeSantis does not seem to care about violating the law or taking care of Florida’s kids. His Administration has disenrolled 22,576 children from KidCare since January 1, 2024, for failing to pay premiums despite explicit instructions to the contrary. Florida is the only state in the country that is brazenly disregarding the new federal protection for children. I have been contacted by parents whose sick children have been dropped from KidCare and can’t receive the timely health services they need. This should not be happening," Castor told the press in her release, airing grievances from constituents who have shared stories of their sick and vulnerable children being unceremoniously cut from KidCare, subsequently losing access to vital healthcare services.

The stakes are notably high, given that barring the DeSantis administration's current policy, an expansion of KidCare was projected to extend coverage to an additional 165,000 Florida children living up to 300% of the federal poverty threshold over the next five years, but thus far, families awaiting this relief are met instead with a looming uncertainty about their children's health insurance statuses as the administration attempts to grapple with the new federal guidelines. In her conclusion, Representative Castor admonished the administration, “The Governor and his administration are trying to twist the narrative but don’t believe them: they are violating the law and harming children and families.”