California's health care program for children of the working poor has gotten a reprieve. Federal officials say they won't make a final decision on California's funding plan for the program until 2011.
California adopted a last-minute funding plan for the Healthy Families program in September. It includes a tax on insurance companies.
Earlier this week, federal officials said the tax might not meet their requirements. Officials now say they'll wait for at least a year and a half to make that decision.
Wilma Chan is with the non-profit group Children Now. She says Healthy Families could still be in jeopardy if state lawmakers make more cuts.
"We're hoping that they won't put this back on the table in January," Chan says. "We are hearing that perhaps children's coverage will be put on the chopping block again."
Healthy Families provides medical, dental, and vision coverage for nearly one million California children.
