The Amish begin raising money for children's insurance

Only Medicaid children will be covered.
AKRON (AP) -- Changes to a state-run program that provides health care for Amish children is forcing some in the community to begin raising money to replace the insurance.
The children will no longer be eligible for financial help from the Bureau for Children with Medical Handicaps unless they apply for Medicaid, the federal insurance program for the poor, aged and disabled.
Most Amish families won't accept help from Medicaid or any other government program created by the Social Security Act because of their religious beliefs and refusal to pay Social Security taxes. Amish typically keep their distance from outsiders and modern conveniences.
Charity fund
Amish bishops are starting a community charity fund to pay bills for the children who won't be covered by the state program anymore, said Morris Yoder, an Amish father from Millersburg, 65 miles south of Cleveland.
A committee overseeing the new Ohio Crippled Children's Fund is sending letters to about 25,000 Amish residents, asking for donations of at least $50 twice a year. "If we submit it to them, they'll pay their $50 and they won't question it," Yoder said.
The fund will cover bills of children with birth defects "so that the parents don't have to struggle the rest of their lives to pay for that," Yoder said.
About 600 Amish families use the program, according to the state health department. Yoder estimated about 500 Amish children, including his son and daughter, will lose coverage from the state.
The Bureau for Children with Medical Handicaps provides insurance for children born with birth defects and those with special health needs that include heart problems, cystic fibrosis and blood-clotting disorders.
Most Amish who need the coverage had enrolled with the bureau because they had supported it with property taxes and annual auctions.
The bureau estimates it will save about $2 million each year by requiring Amish children to get coverage from Medicaid instead of the state.
More help for others
The change, along with an increase in state funding approved by lawmakers earlier this year, will allow about 5,000 other families to get help. Before, thousands of families who earned too much to qualify for Medicaid were forced to pay as much as $40,000 annually before getting assistance.
Officials with the bureau are working with Amish families on the transition, said James Bryant, who heads the state program.
He also is looking into whether about $500,000 raised through Amish churches and auctions can be transferred to the new charity fund. "We are open to discussion," Bryant said.
The new Ohio Crippled Children's Fund is negotiating with Akron Children's Hospital and other hospitals for discounts.
Yoder has been talking about a billing plan with Steve Hopewell, a registered nurse in the Hemophilia Treatment Center at University Hospitals of Cleveland.
Hopewell said he is worried that Amish families will drop preventive care and have more costly health problems without the state insurance. "It's going to be worse, and they're going to end up in the hospital," he said.
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