First it was the closure of Southeast Louisiana Hospital, shutting off mental health services to residents of the state’s most densely populated area, then there was the move to “partner” state hospitals across the state with private facilities, followed by an unsuccessful attempt to terminate Hospice care.
Now Gov. Bobby Jindal, in submitting his executive budget, has announced intentions to cease immunizing the state’s indigent children at parish health units throughout the state.
Instead, private pediatricians will take over the duties of immunizing children under the state’s Vaccines for Children (VFC) program.
Through the VFC program, vaccine is made available at no charge to enrolled public and private health care providers for eligible children, according to the Department of Health and Hospitals web page.
Children 18 years of age and younger who are Medicaid eligible, uninsured, American Indian or native Alaskan are eligible for VFC.
But even if the immunizations themselves remain free, pediatricians will probably charge for an office visit—particularly those who do not accept Medicaid patients.
The cuts to the program were included in the Executive Budget presented to the Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget on Feb. 22. “One of the items included (in the budget) was restructuring of the administration of the DHH Office of Public Health’s (OPH) Vaccines for Children program,” said a statement released by DHH on Wednesday.
“Under the proposed restructuring, children who received immunizations at parish health units would be transitioned to receive immunizations by their private pediatricians or health care providers, where 92 percent of children already receive their immunizations through the program,” the statement said.
The DHH web page indicated that parish health units provide only about 5 percent of all immunizations statewide.
“The DHH Office of Public Health recently sent pediatric immunizations providers a notice letting them know this was proposed as an element of the State’s fiscal year budget,” DHH’s statement said.
“The proposal is on the table,” a DHH spokesperson added.
“Providers administer the bulk of their childhood vaccines in July and August as part of back-to-school preparations, so OPH wanted providers to be aware of this proposed program restructuring in advance,” the statement released by DHH said.
The final budget for the upcoming fiscal year, which begins on July 1, 2013, will not be determined until the legislative session which begins on April 8, DHH said. “Until the legislature passes a final operating budget for FY-14, exact details of the elements involved will not be discernible,” the statement said.
Efforts to learn the administrative cost of the immunization program at the parish health units also were not immediately successful but federal VFC programs provide the vaccine to doctors and other providers at no costs.
Louisiana Voice 
It’s already happening in Region 4. So many essential pediatric services cut…but this has serious implications not only for children, but for the general population as well. He has put every one of us at risk!
Do pediatricians accept new patients who are uninsured?
Probably, if they pay up front.
I heard the morning news that Jindal is also recommending the elimination of the SENIOR RX PROGRAM, INDICATING that it IS A DUPLICATION OF SERVICES. I beg to differ. This program saves MILLIONS. Of dollars for senior citizens who cannot afford vital medications and who are unable to do the required paperwork. It employs a licensed pharmacist who assists with the completion of the detailed paperwork required by the drug companies and which must be authorized by a physician before they will give the medication. This paperwork must be completed every 90 days in order to continue receiving it. Each drug company has a different form . Can you imagine the necessary skill required to just get ONE medication? This pharmacist is a vital liason between doctors and drug companies. What a shame if this program is eliminated from the budget.
I am wondering what is his agenda? Is this the leader of the state we live in?
Are we sure we have someone representing us or have we given the guy free hand to sell this state down the river on the first barge passing by? I know to sell this state is not cheap. I hope the legislators wake up!
To answer your questions I offer:
1) ALEC
2) Unfortunately he is for three more long years
3) Yes
As you note we can only hope that this is the year the legislature will declare enough is enough.
Huh!! 👿 Yeah I get a “free” flu shot from my doc as part of my insurance coverage but then they slap a $25.00 “injection administration fee” on it that isn’t free. Next season I’ll go to one of the pharmacies to get it. Nothing against my doc but why should I pay for his nurse to give me a “skin pop” flu shot?
Because Fredster, your doctor has to pay his nurse to give you a “skin pop” flu shot. If you don’t like paying for it just get the flu!!!
Why doesnt he announce that if you’re poor he has declared war on you? Oh wait this is yet another way to steer money to possible campaign donors. Or maybe it’s a reward for all the cuts in the past.
Jindal is using Louisiana as a laboratory – elect him to higher office and expect to see him attempt to re-create the entire nation according to his warped idea of what the world should be. And his party will be more than willng to go along,
I do mission work in Third World countries and I see the street children – TODDLERS living in the street because parents can’t afford to feed athem and have no access to birth control. Adults and children who have no access to medical and dental care and who sometimes die for lack of what we can buy for pocket change at any drugstore.
Jindal is not funny any more. He is dangerous. His shoveling state dollars to his rich friends while our children, elderly and most at-risk citizens suffer, is truly sinful and utterlly immoral. The legislature had better start doing its job and stand up for the people who elected them, not rubberstamp this satanic agenda.
I’d start a campaign today but as a state employee who has not had a pay raise in five years, which also impacts retirement, I can’t afford to retire,
[…] Here’s a list of things being killed by his current budget “priorities”. I should actually use the phrase list of programs that will be eliminated that will kill people due to his current budget “priorities”. That’s a bit more appropriate. I would just like to add, please some one, help us! […]
EVERYONE WAS NOT BORN IN $$$$$$$$$$$$$$…WHAT IS HIS PROBLEM…WHY KEEP HURTING THE POOR AND DISABLED AND ELDERY 😦 …I HAVE NO LOVE FOR THIS FOOL 😦
Today we hear that people are SORRY they voted for Jindal, this leader of our state has had the same AGENDA since he worked with DHH in the Foster administration. We have to deal with the lesislators, they obviously like the seat they hold, call them, write them and let them hear our DISGUST as I know they see the same sellout in this state as we do.Put the Stop on Jindal by Stopping the leaders in congress and the DOE who supports Jindal.
Thanks for Louisiana Voice! The more pressure on our pathetic exuse for a governor, the better. He’s already sinking, let’s help the process!
The man is truly evil! He has surrounded himself with inexperienced (and ignorant) sycophants. Do any of those fools actually believe that families served by parish health units will jump at the chance to use a private practitioner to obtain needed inoculations? They obtain all their medical services at the health unit, for themselves as well as their children. Will they blithely trot off to do Bobby’s bidding? Doubtful. And failure to inoculate these children will result in increased exposure to these communicable diseases for the rest of the population. Doesn’t anyone who works for Piyush understand that?
In their world all the rich will have the inocculations and be immune so only the poor die.
[…] Yawn. Republicans still acting bat-s**t crazy? Nothing new there. Bobby Jindal is going to cease providing immunizations to poor kids at parish (county) health units? Well, that’s just little Bobby and his ALEC-based, Koch […]