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Date: August 4, 2005
Contact: Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford
V: 847/742-5100 F:  847/742-6103
E-MAIL: _CoBNews@AOL.Com_ (mailto:CoBNews@AOL.Com) 
 

CHURCH OF THE BRETHREN NEWSLINE
August 4, 2005
 
Association of Brethren Caregivers encourages churches to promote Covering  
Kids and Families
 
August 4, 2005 (Elgin, IL) -- The Association of Brethren Caregivers (ABC)  
encourages congregations to disseminate information about the "Covering Kids 
and  Families" initiative, a national effort to help families receive
low-cost 
or  free health care coverage for children. 
 
The campaign is held during August and September as a back-to-school effort  
with the goals of enrolling eligible, uninsured children in Medicaid and
State 
 Children's Health Insurance Programs (SCHIP) and informing parents about 
these  available health care programs. Such programs cover doctor visits,  
hospitalizations, prescriptions, and more.
 
Covering Kids and Families is a national program funded by the Robert Woods  
Johnson Foundation. The organization reports that more than 8.4 million 
children  are uninsured in the US. At the same time, seven out of every ten 
uninsured  children are eligible for low-cost or free health care coverage
through 
Medicaid  or SCHIP, but are not enrolled, according to an Aug. 2 release from
the 
program. 
 
"Many people still do not know about the availability of these programs,  and

parents in working families might assume their children would not qualify.  
That is why we are all committed to publicizing 1(877) KIDS-NOW to let
parents  
know that help is available," said Sarah Shuptrine, national program director

of  Covering Kids and Families.
 
This is the second year that ABC has become a national partner of Covering  
Kids and Families, and has encouraged congregations to talk about the program

in  their church and communities. Materials are available at 
_www.coveringkidsandfamilies.org_ (http://www.coveringkidsandfamilies.org) .
 
The Church of the Brethren is a Christian denomination committed to  
continuing the work of Jesus peacefully and simply, and to living out its
faith  in 
community. The denomination is based in the Anabaptist and Pietist faith  
traditions and is one of the three Historic Peace Churches. It celebrates its
 300th 
anniversary in 2008. It counts about 130,000 members across the United	
States and Puerto Rico, and has missions and sister churches in Brazil, the  
Dominican Republic, Haiti, and Nigeria.
 
# # #
 
For more information contact:
 
Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford
Director of News Services
Church of the  Brethren General Board
1451 Dundee Ave.
Elgin, IL 60120
847-742-5100  ext. 260
_cbrumbaugh-cayford_gb@brethren.org_ 
(mailto:cbrumbaugh-cayford_gb@brethren.org) 
 
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The  Church of the Brethren Newsline is produced by Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford,

 director of news services for the Church of the Brethren General Board. 
Newsline  stories may be reprinted provided that Newsline is cited as the
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