My seven year old son was diagnosed yesterday with type 1 diabetes. Although my parents both have type 2 diabetes, I was extremely overwhelmed by the information. My son is currently uninsured. Even though I am a single parent, I still make too much money for state assistance, yet I can barely make ends meet. How do I find affordable health insurance for someone with the pre-diagnosed condition of type 1 diabetes? I am continuing to research on my own, but if you have any information or help that would benefit or assist in anyway, I would be most grateful.

Learning your child has a disease that will impact his health and many of his life functions for as long as he lives can be overwhelming. But, it sounds as if you are taking appropriate steps to assess his, and your, issues. The fundamental building block in keeping kids with diabetes healthy is access to good medical care and good health coverage to pay for that care. Most states participate in the government sponsored Child Health Insurance Plans. In New Mexico, NewMexKids provides no cost or low cost health coverage for children under 19 years old. If your household income is less than 185% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines, health care services are provided to your child at no cost. If your household income is between 185% and 235% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines, some of the health care services your child receives may require that you make a co-payment at the time each service is provided. Preventive services, such as Tot-to-Teen Health Checks and immunizations do not require a co-payment. The program pays for regular check-ups, doctor visits, dental visits, hospital care, prescriptions, glasses and hearing and vision exams. Other services may be covered, if they are medically necessary. Call the NewMexKids Hotline at 1-888-997-2583 for more information. If your family is not eligible for CHIP assistance, you should try to find employment that offers an employer sponsored group health insurance benefit. Although some say that jobs with health insurance pay less, health insurance to your family is now priceless. Many employer sponsored plans do not have waiting periods for pre-existing conditions. If you work as a sole proprietor, independent contractor or a solo-professional, many professional associations offer group health insurance as a member benefit. A resource for information about health insurance in your state is A Consumer�s Guide to Getting and Keeping Health Insurance in New Mexico from healthinsuranceinfo.net. This state-by-state guide produced by the Georgetown University School of Health Policy is a good starting point to understanding the types of health insurance options available in your state.

DSH