July 11, 2020 Issue, Page 4 of 8

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Page 4 The Elk City News, Elk City, Oklahoma Saturday, July 11, 2020 Opinion Page SCOTUS ruling a victory for “ElkCituNews Serving Western Oklahoma since 1901 low-income kids, religious liberty What you need The Oklahoman the tax credit did not involve A nuling by the U.S. Su- spending state money and preme Court on a case out of thus didn’t breach the state’s religious schools, but many states, including Oklahoma, inserted the language in their as direct state aid. Spiking the Montana law, Hunter warned, would mean the end to know about Montana represents a heart- ening victory for school choice advocates, low-in- constitutional —_ prohibition against using public funds for religious purposes. Mon- constitutions. “A State need not sub- sidize private education,” of other states’ tax-credit scholarship programs. “This would risk harm- Medicaid in come students and religious liberty not just there but in tana’s Supreme Court dis- agreed and said the remedy Roberts wrote. “But once a ing students in those states, State decides to do so, it can- many of whom are low in- several other states, includ- was to scrap the scholarship not disqualify some private come or have disabilities. It Oklahoma ing Oklahoma. In a 5-4 ruling last week, program entirely. schools solely because they would also punish parents Roberts said the Mon- are religious.” the court’s conservative jus- tana court “invalidated the Oklahoma’s Legislature for exercising their religion in the use of a facially neu- By Joe Dorman tices, led by Chief Justice program pursuant to a state created the Equal Opportu- tral program,” he said. Even with the passage of State Question 802, many John Roberts, said Montana law provision that expressly nity Education Scholarship people do not fully understand the Medicaid system. I could not keep religious discriminates on the basis of Act in 2011 to allow creation It’s gratifying to see the Supreme Court allowed have focused this column on the information Oklaho- schools from taking part in religious status.” of tax-credit scholarships. mans need to help those who might qualify or want fur- these programs to continue. the state’s tax-credit scholar- The provision is gener- The program is capped at $5 ther information. ship program. ally referred to as a Blaine million annually; efforts to As Hunter noted following The Oklahoma Health Care Authority (QHCA) is the The program gives tax Amendment or no-aid raise that cap have failed. Tuesday’s ruling, “This de- state agency that administers Medicaid in Oklahoma. credits to companies or in- clause. These amendments In January, Oklahoma At- cision will ensure that school They are responsible for overseeing all aspects of who dividuals who donate to a grew from anti-Catholic torney General Mike Hunter choice programs nationwide qualifies and who receives the benefit of insurance cover- scholarship program; schol- bigotry in the 19th century. joined 17 other attorneys continue to provide families age through this program. The state Medicaid program is arships can be used by stu- Rep. James Blaine, a Repub- general in a brief urging the and their children with the called SoonerCare. This provides health coverage that is dents at private schools, lican from Maine, fought Supreme Court to uphold opportunity to seek a quality jointly funded by the federal and state governments. This which often are tied to reli- unsuccessfully for a federal Montana’s law, Hunter not- education of their choosing program helps pay some or all medical bills for many gious institutions. constitutional amendment ed at the time that providing religious or otherwise.” people who qualify under state law. A lower-court judge said banning public support for tax credits is not the same Well said. To qualify for SoonerCare, a person must reside in Oklahoma and be a U‘S. citizen or fall into a qualified American schools must reopen. status. Most immigrants who arrived after Aug. 22, 1996, cannot qualify for the program for five years. The most crucial criterion for SoonerCare is that clients must meet Are you listening, New York? financial income and resource standards. The following Oklahomans can apply and receive this assistance: adults with children under 19; children under 19; pregnant women; individuals 65 and older; individu- als who are blind or who have disabilities; women un- By Andrea Gabor, Bloom- ties. They avoid mandates, studies and the arts could quarter of all schools have der 65 in need of breast or cervical cancer treatment; and berg Opinion instead providing sugges- involve students safely, and no nursing staff at all to con- with SoonerPlan - men and women 19 and older with Online schooling has tions for everything from productively, researching lo- duct safety protocols and family planning needs. As of May 2020, there were 833,302 Oklahomans failed. American schools staggered-class schedule cal waterways, architecture health screenings. need to reopen in the fall. options to enable social and bird species on days To pay for these costs, enrolled in SoonerCare. In February, there were only It has now become obvi- distancing to strategies for when they are not in school. 785,366 Oklahomans enrolled in SoonerCare. The in- the federal government will ous that the steady diet of loading school buses safely The California guidelines have to provide extra fund- creased enrollment is due primarily to COVID-19 eco- online instruction put in (back-to-front during pickup also recommend a “system- ing to states that have seen nomic impact. Of those currently enrolled, 551,778 were place for the coronavirus and first-in, last-off for drop- atic cycle of assessments” of their tax revenues battered. children (66%), and 281,524 were adults who qualified pandemic not only has hurt off via California’s recom- student progress, but make under various conditions (34%), or roughly two-thirds of With the total number of kids academically and in- mendations) to the equip- no mention of standardized SoonerCare enrollees being children. students in school buildings creased absenteeism, but ment and hygiene protocols tests. Most states won ex- emptions from federal test- at any one time likely to be Under the financial provisions, the current Federal has contributed to anxiety to deter viral infections. By contrast, Florida, in the ing requirements last spring. down sharply in the fall, Poverty Level (FPL) household income limits are: for a single person, the annual income must be at or under and depression and_ prob- ably even aggravated health midst ofaCOVID-19 spike, Several states are gearing New York City, for example, $16,971; for two persons, the annual income is $22,930; for three persons, the annual income is $28,888; and or a problems such as obesity. is among the few states man- up to request waivers for could save a chunk of the “All policy considerations dating that all schools re- the 2020/2021 school year; $1.1 billion spent annually family of four, the annual income falls at $34,846. for the coming school year open daily for in-person in- these should be granted. on school busing, accord- These levels will increase in 2021 under the new con- should start with a goal struction - a directive that is Well-laid plans will re- ing to Leonie Haimson, a stitutional amendment to the following estimated levels under 138% of the FPL: Individual - $17,236; Family of having students physi- almost certainly impossible quire collaboration among public-school advocate and of two - $23,335; Family of three - $29,435; and Fam- cally present in school,” the to follow safely. district leaders, communi- budget watchdog. School ily of four - $35,535. Surprisingly, an estimated 59% of American Academy of Pedi- There are no perfect solu- ties and educators; distance- security could be reduced. currently uninsured Oklahomans will fall into these new atrics said in a June report. tions. Opening schools will learning options for high- Suspending standardized income levels and qualify for SoonerCare. A few states are starting entail some risks - though risk students and staff; and tests also could save money. Children have an elevated household FPL level of up to tackle the challenge of child-care centers _ that the flexibility to adapt if in- One of the few studies on to 210% due to coverage by the State Children’s Health balancing the proven dam- stayed open in New York fection rates spike. the subject estimated that the Insurance Program (SCHIP). Even with those elevated age inflicted by inadequate City when it was the nation’s Unfortunately, a lack of US. spent $1.7 billion on rates, an estimated 83,000 Oklahoma children are cur- internet technology and the pandemic epicenter, and leadership in some states such tests in 2012 - though rently without insurance coverage. deeper shortcomings of digi- school reopenings in Europe could hamper the ability of that estimate included nei- Just like other health insurance, there are health care tal learning against the un- more recently, suggest that schools to reopen safely. In ther the cost of numerous services that are covered. Coverage may include doctor certain risks of COVID-19 these can be kept very low, New York, in particular, bat- local testing mandates nor Visits, hospitalizations and prescriptions. However, some infection, California, New in part because children ap- tles among Cuomo, de Bla- the bureaucracies that ad- limitations apply to ensure that only medically neces- Jersey, Alabama and Louisi- pear to be less likely than sio and the New York State sary services are provided. There is no cost for those who ana are among several states adults to contract and spread Board of Regents, which is minister them, according to FairTest. meet the income guidelines; however, co-pays may apply that have published detailed the virus. appointed by the legislature, guidelines for enabling at The first priority should be Reopening schools safely have led to dithering. Recent to some services. People may ask about Medicare, and some confuse least some in-person instruc- to return small children, pre- history hangs heavily over is a moral imperative. Teach- the two programs. Medicare is a federal health insurance tion. K through third grade, to in- the decision-making; a de- ers are as essential as nurses program providing coverage mostly to individuals age Other states, notably New person instruction. lay in closing schools at the and grocery delivery work- 65 or older and some people with disabilities. If you are York, have lagged behind or, “Learning is social in peak of the pandemic prob- ers who have been on the on Medicare and you qualify for Medicaid, SoonerCare like Florida, are ignoring the young children; to deprive ably contributed to illness pandemic frontlines. School pays only the deductibles and a portion of the co-insur- realities of the health crisis. them of that is to deprive and death. districts need to collaborate ance when procedures are covered by Medicare. To ap- Although New York City them of learning,” said Carol In May, Cuomo wiped out with educators to develop ply for Medicare benefits, visit or call your local Social Mayor Bill de Blasio an- Burris, president of the Net- the benefits of $716.9 mil- local protocols that will re- Security Office. nounced a_ back-to-school work for Public Education lion in federal stimulus aid, assure both worried parents To learn more, go to http://www.okhea.org/ to see if plan before the July 4 week- and a former award-winning hitting poor school districts and teachers. And teach- you or your children qualify for this benefit if you cur- end, it was short on details New York principal. hardest. Soon thereafter, he ers’ union leaders - some of rently do not have health insurance. and clouded by political Older students also will announced a_ partnership whom have balked at return- Joe Dorman is the chief executive officer for the Okla- feuding. Gov. Andrew Cuo- need to meet in person. But with the Bill and Melinda ing to school during the pan- homa Institute for Child Advocacy. mo, in a long-running game by breaking classes into Gates Foundation to “rei- demic - need to be part of the of one-upmanship, disputed smaller cohorts, schools can magine” schools, but ex- solution. the mayor’s authority to act, create rotations for meeting, cluded current New York Andrea Gabor, a former but didn’t offer his own plan. say, two days per week in City educators and parents editor at Business Week and It’s past time to put aside person and two days work- from a planning committee. politics. States that are not ing on projects at home. The Regents are operating U.S. News & World Report, yet prepared should borrow A mixed schedule of in- their own reopening task is the Bloomberg chair of business journalism at Ba- Send your letter to the editor from other states. school and out-of-school force. California and New Jer- work would allow schools Nationwide, reopening ruch College of the City sey’s detailed blueprints, to experiment with hands-on schools safely will cost mon- University of New York and for example, recognize that projects that are now com- ey, requiring the purchase of the author of “After the Ed- to [email protected] each district must develop mon among both public and protective equipment and ucation Wars: How Smart its own plan based on local private progressive schools. increases in the number Schools Upend the Business needs and health-care reali- Instruction in science, social of school nurses. Today, a of Reform.”