Essay on Children Population

Individuals who belong to vulnerable populations often suffer from health conditions whose outcome and effects are made worse by unnecessary inadequate healthcare. Children fit into the description of a vulnerable population because they have not the decision making capability and autonomy that is crucial in consenting, legally and ethically, to take part in research. Not only can children not comprehend and assume dangers involved in consenting to research, but there also exists unequal power between adults and children where children are denied a voice. Therefore, in the research setting, this young populations are at high risk of being taken advantage of. Also, children are exposed to increased health risks due to inadequate pediatric research and testing of treatment protocols within the pediatric population.

Also, especially among poor children, including homeless children, there are many cases of mental illness (Bassuk, Richard, & Tsertsvadze, 2015). Despite the fact there has been a significant reduction in child mortality, many children are still at high risk of sickness and death because of inadequate access to healthcare (Chung et al. For instance, around million children in the United States depend on the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) that covers children who belong to homes that are not considered poor enough to be eligible for Medicaid, but lack alternative forms of insurance. The CHIP program is a result of joint funding between the federal and state governments, and due to recent political wrangles in the US, the federal government could not agree on the funding of the program, leaving thousands of children without health insurance (Uberoi, Finegold, & Gee, 2016).

Many states are also proposing ending child insurance. Also, Clinton County, as well as the entire state of New York, has Child Health Plus, a health insurance plan for children, and offers an alternative in Children’s Medicaid, depending on a household’s income. These insurance plans offer children under the age of 19 with low cost or free coverage (Sommers et al. The state has multiple insurance providers across the state to avail both Child Health Plus and Medicaid to those who are in need of coverage. Also, residents of the county can apply for coverage for their children through the New York State of Health Marketplace, an online platform, which makes it convenient to apply for children’s coverage via fax or email.

The county also has nutrition programs that benefit the nutritional health of children including the New York Special Milk Program that supplies milk to children in schools, the New York Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children and the New York State Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. K. , & Tsertsvadze, A. The prevalence of mental illness in homeless children: A systematic review and meta-analysis.  Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 54(2), 86-96. Chung, E. S. Screening for social determinants of health among children and families living in poverty: a guide for clinicians.  Current problems in pediatric and adolescent health care, 46(5), 135-153. Jiang, Y. , Ekono, M. , & McDowell, A. M. Health reform and changes in health insurance coverage in 2014.  New England Journal of Medicine, 371(9), 867-874.