The Scribners, who were covered through their employers for most of their 16-year marriage, had ventured out on their own to start a medical software company. When they applied for health insurance through a major carrier, however, they were denied because Kari and their three boys - ages 9, 11 and 13 - all suffered from asthma. Their illnesses developed after the family lived in a California home contaminated with mold.

The Scribners turned to the state Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) for help, which for two years paid for the boys' medical treatment.

It is a story she hopes will resonate among lawmakers who will decide at the federal level this year whether to reauthorize CHIP, and at the state level, whether to infuse it with $4.2 million in general funds to reopen enrollment and cover an additional 10,000 children.

After meticulously documenting improvement in their conditions, the Scribners were finally able to convince a major carrier to take them. Kari cried so hard when she called Russ to deliver the good news that he thought one of their children had died.

"It was a big deal," Kari said. "You don't think it's a big deal until it's you."

At Primary Children's Medical Center Thursday, health officials and four U.S. senators - via a satellite broadcast from George Washington University - rallied support for CHIP as part of a town hall meeting focusing on the critical need for children's health coverage.

CHIP, together with Medicaid, covers one in three children in the country, said Utah Sen. Orin Hatch, an original co-sponsor of CHIP.

Still, uninsured children in Utah grew by 30 percent between 2001 and 2005, according to a report by Voices for Utah Children. By the time Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. delivers his State of the State address later this month, the report states, CHIP enrollment will have been closed for nearly five months - and will likely remain closed until July 1.

"We have gone a long way toward meeting that goal [of providing health insurance to children] but we're clearly not there yet," Hatch said.

Even if the Legislature approves Huntsman's proposed $4.2 million in general funds, another potential problem looms. About 20 percent of CHIP's budget comes from Utah's share of the federal tobacco settlement, which could be impacted by litigation surrounding the settlement. Last year, Utah received a reduced payment of $3 million.

While CHIP expires at the end of September, Congress will have to act much sooner since some states will tap out of CHIP money early in the year, Montana Sen. Max Baucus said during the satellite broadcast. Baucus hopes to get the reauthorization bill to the floor as early as this spring.

In the last 20 years, the nation has seen an epidemic of obesity, asthma, autism and other problems among its children, said Edward Clark, medical director at Primary Children's Medical Center.

"Health care and access to health care is largely determined by health insurance," he said. "The Medicaid program, the CHIP program - which narrowed the gap - and other programs like kids' health programs are going to be essential to the future of our nation."

lrosetta@sltrib.com