Children's Hospitals Today - Fall 2017 - 3

CHA VOICES / CHECKING IN

BOARD OF TRUSTEES
Chair
Madeline Bell
The Childrenʼs Hospital of Philadelphia
Vice Chair/Chair Elect
Rick Merrill
Cook Children's Health Care System
Secretary
Sandra Fenwick
Boston Children's Hospital
Treasurer
Kimberly Cripe
Childrenʼs Hospital of Orange County
Board Members
Steve Allen, M.D.
Nationwide Children's Hospital
Michael Aubin, FACHE
Wolfson Children's Hospital
Robert I. Bonar Jr., Dr. H.A.
Children's Minnesota
Susan Distefano, RN, M.S.N.
Children's Memorial
Hermann Hospital
Paul A. King
C.S. Mott Children's Hospital
University of Michigan
John D. Nash, FACHE
Franciscan Children's
Kurt Newman, M.D.
Children's National Health System
Katy A. Welkie, MBA, RN
Primary Children's Hospital
Mark Wietecha
Childrenʼs Hospital Association

LEADERSHIP
President and CEO
Mark Wietecha
Chief Operating Officer
Amy Knight
Chief Financial Officer
Nancy Stahl
Vice President, Public Policy
Jim Kaufman, Ph.D.
Vice President, Member Relations,
Marketing and Communications
Michelle Lunbeck

We must stand up for kids
They belong at the front of the line.

T

his year, we engaged in a full-out legislative war over Medicaid's future,
the program sponsoring health care for
nearly 33 million children. The alphabet
soup of policy proposals ranging from
the AHCA to the BCRA and HCFA had one
thing in common: big cuts in funding for
children in Medicaid.
To make matters worse, large numbers of legislators in Washington were
unaware of the role of Medicaid in child
health, or they didn't step up and defend
children when their votes were counted.
How is it possible we have come to this
as a nation: cutting children's health care
when children are our future?
Our nation's investments in children's
health, particularly in their earliest years
of life when the foundations of their adult
health are set into place, have proven returns. But beyond economics and social
productivity, taking our best care of children is our sacred duty as human beings.
Each child is a promise, an opportunity to
deepen the compassion, creativity and love
in our families, our communities, our nation
and our world. We have no higher calling
than to look out for the next generation.
We know what children need; it's not a
complicated or expensive set of requirements. All children should receive:
 Health care coverage and access to
the full range of pediatric programs,
providers and support necessary to
ensure they grow up with a shot at a
healthy adult life
 Pediatric-appropriate benefits and
services because children's needs are
different from adult needs, and they
should be supported as the distinct
population they are

 Dedicated and accountable funding of
their programs, ensuring the money
legislators allocate for children's
health is spent on their needs and gets
the job done
A lot of work has been done in the field on
how we can improve child and family health
and well-being; we're not prioritizing the
programs and budget needed to make this
happen. As we look to the future, we must
shift our cultural priorities and put children
at the front of the line where they belong.
This is where our work lies in the coming
years-putting children first. We must
ensure society and legislative leaders serve
alongside us in this effort.
We've got work to do!

MARK WIETECHA
President and CEO
Children's Hospital Association
For more on investments in children and our future
economy, visit childrenshospitals.org/newimportance.

CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL S TODAY Fall 2017

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http://www.childrenshospitals.org/newimportance
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Children's Hospitals Today - Fall 2017
