Last week, my three kids grabbed their backpacks and headed off for another school year. Like thousands of other families across the state, we filled their backpacks with new notebooks, pencils, scissors and the many other school supplies they need for a successful school year.

Our family is fortunate because our kids also carried with them something else that will make a huge difference in their school success. Our kids have health insurance.

We all know that uninsured children often do not get treatment for childhood illnesses such as sore throats, earaches, and asthma. They go without health services when they need them because their parents cannot afford to pay for treatments. Not surprisingly, kids without health coverage are 25 percent more likely to miss school than insured children. If they are not in school, they won’t succeed.

And even if a child makes it to school regularly, the lack of insurance gets in the way of learning. One in five uninsured kids has a vision problem that keeps them from seeing the blackboard. Thousands of childhood mental health issues go undetected each year. Uninsured children don’t participate in sports and other school activities because of the fear of injury.

In short, if a child’s back-to-school supplies do not include health coverage, there is a good chance they won’t reach their potential in school. That is simply wrong.

Unfortunately, that is the reality for too many Minnesota families. Eighty-five thousand Minnesotans under 18 do not have health insurance. The majority of those kids have a parent who is working.

So what can we do about it? First, the Minnesota Legislature did act in the last two years to extend coverage to nearly 40,000 more Minnesota kids by 2011. We need to make sure we do not back away from those commitments.

Second, many uninsured children currently qualify for help in getting health care. We need to work with parents to get their kids covered and continue to eliminate the government-imposed red tape that present obstacles to families seeking help.

Third, we must make a commitment as Minnesotans that every child should be able to see a doctor or a nurse when necessary and do what it takes as a state to make sure that happens.

Next fall, let’s make sure every child returns to school for another year with everything they need to succeed.

Rep. Paul Thissen, DFL-Minneapolis, is the chairman of the Health and Human Services Policy Committee.