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House passes bill extending Medicaid for youth leaving foster care to age 21
Summary
The Utah House approved HB288 to extend Medicaid eligibility for youth leaving foster care from 19 to 21, citing federal Chafee reimbursements and statistics on foster‑care outcomes; the measure passed unanimously and will go to the Senate.
The Utah House on Feb. 24 passed House Bill 288, a measure to extend Medicaid eligibility for youth leaving foster care from age 19 to 21.
Sponsor Representative Hogue said the change would align state policy with federal Chafee program reimbursement and cited studies and state data documenting challenges for former foster youth: roughly 4,000 youth were in Utah’s foster‑care system in 2005; about 55 percent of those who age out drop out of high school; about half are not regularly employed two to four years after leaving care; roughly 35 percent have been arrested for a felony or misdemeanor; about 43 percent have received public assistance; and he said the suicide rate among former foster youth is substantially higher than the general population. He described the bill’s state cost as about $450,000 and said federal matching funds could expand that to roughly $1.5 million in coverage.
Representative Mascaro endorsed the bill as prudent public‑health spending that could reduce future costs shifted to corrections, hospitals and emergency care. Hogue closed with a personal example of fostering a teenager who benefited from continued support after aging out of care.
The House reported the final vote as 70 yes, 0 no; the bill will be transmitted to the Senate for further consideration.
Because the transcript attributes statistical claims and the Chafee reference to legislators’ remarks, this article attributes those claims to the speakers quoted and does not assert causal findings beyond what they stated.
