Alaska is one of 23 states to share $296.5 million in federal payments for encouraging low-income families to enroll their children in public health programs. The bonuses were announced Wednesday. They are the government’s way of rewarding states that streamline eligibility for Medicaid, the federal-state health program for the poor.  The Denali KidCare office carries out the streamlining and simplification of enrollment policies in Alaska. The State has made several improvements to streamline children’s healthcare enrollment recently, including not requiring parents to appear for face-to-face interviews, which can be difficult for working parents.
The state will get $5.66 million for its efforts to increase enrollment of children in public health programs. Â The money will go back into state public health programs. Â This is the third year that Alaska has received the performance bonus.
Daysha Eaton is a contributor with the Alaska Public Radio Network.
Daysha Eaton holds a B.A. from Evergreen State College, and a M.A. from the University of Southern California. Daysha got her start in radio at Seattle public radio stations, KPLU and KUOW. Before coming to KBBI, she was the News Director at KYUK in Bethel. She has also worked as the Southcentral Reporter for KSKA in Anchorage.
Daysha's work has appeared on NPR's "Morning Edition" and "All Things Considered", PRI's "The World" and "National Native News". She's happy to take assignments, and to get news tips, which are best sent via email.
Daysha became a journalist because she believes in the power of storytelling. Stories connect us and they help us make sense of our world. They shed light on injustice and they comfort us in troubled times. She got into public broadcasting because it seems to fulfill the intention of the 4th Estate and to most effectively apply the freedom of the press granted to us through the Constitution. She feels that public radio has a special way of moving people emotionally through sound, taking them to remote places, introducing them to people they would not otherwise meet and compelling them to think about issues they might ordinarily overlook.
