Study reports growing number of uninsured children in Minn.

A new study finds that the number of Minnesota children without health insurance grew by nearly 12,000 between 2008 and 2010.

Georgetown University's Health Policy Institute found that Minnesota, which has consistently ranked in the top five states when it comes to insuring children, saw the most significant increase in uninsured children in the country. The study found overall that about 84,000 children in Minnesota don't have health insurance.

One reason for this may be that the recession caused many parents to lose their jobs and their employer based insurance, said Amy Crawford, director of the Children's Defense Fund of Minnesota.

"Our hope with this report being released today is that it provides a sense of urgency about the fact that more kids are falling between the cracks," Crawford said.

Minnesota's ranking bucks the national trend which showed more children getting health insurance. Crawford said the state has taken some steps to reduce the rate of uninsured children in Minnesota but they haven't taken effect yet.

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