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House adopts substitute to rebenchmark CHIP benefits to cover thousands more children without new spending
Summary
Lawmakers adopted a first substitute to House Bill 218 to change the benchmark for the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), projected to allow enrollment of roughly 3,000 additional children without increasing total program spending.
SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah House adopted a first substitute to House Bill 218 that changes how the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) benchmark is calculated, a move sponsors said will free up existing funds to enroll more children.
Representative (sponsor) explained the substitute would tie the CHIP benchmark to a commonly sold commercial HMO plan rather than the state employee plan, a change sponsors described as a modest benefits rebenchmark that preserves comprehensive coverage while reducing per‑enrollee costs (presentation and substitution discussion, SEG 1816–1831; SEG 1858–1868). The sponsor told colleagues that the program currently costs about $51 million annually and that roughly 24,000 eligible children were not enrolled; the substitute was projected to permit coverage for an additional 3,000–4,000 children without increasing overall appropriations (sponsor remarks, SEG 2019–2028; SEG 2021–2028).
Representative Musolt and others supported the substitute and noted the governor had requested a $4.2 million general fund infusion to enroll additional children, but the substitute was framed as a structural tweak that could yield near‑term coverage gains without an immediate appropriation (supporting remarks, SEG 1934–1946).
Members adopted the substitute and then voted to circle (set aside briefly for staff/advocate input and technical review) the substituted bill for further consideration later in the day; sponsors said a circling action would permit additional vetting with agency staff and advocates (procedural actions, SEG 2041–2087). No final appropriation change was enacted during the floor action; staff and appropriations committees retain authority over funding implementation.
Next steps: The substituted and circled bill will be returned to the floor or committee after the brief hold for review; any appropriation decisions would be addressed in the appropriations process. Lawmakers asked for additional stakeholder input and fiscal clarity before final passage.
