WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. House and Senate leaders are meeting this month to work out differences between their separate versions of legislation that reauthorizes the 10-year-old Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). A new report from Families USA spells out how many additional children would be covered in each state under the House and Senate bills.
Originally approved by a Republican Congress and signed by a Democratic president, the new approved bill is expected to add between $35 and $50 billion over five years to provide health coverage for as many as 5 million of the nation’s estimated 9 million uninsured children.
This additional funding would lead to a substantial reduction in the number of uninsured children. As currently approved, the Senate bill would cut the nation’s rolls of uninsured children—estimated at more than 9 million—by about 4 million, a 44 percent drop. The House version, with a higher proposed funding level, would reduce the number of uninsured children by about 5 million, or 55 percent.
Federal legislators face a number of challenges in their efforts to renew and enhance CHIP, including trying to meet the September 30 expiration of the original program. A far greater challenge, however, has been posed by President Bush, who has repeatedly stated his intention to veto the new bill and whose Administration this month issued new guidelines that undercut the original flexibility given to states to implement the program.
“With the renewal of CHIP, we have an opportunity to build on one of the greatest legislative success stories in recent years,” Ron Pollack, Executive Director of Families USA, said today. “Leaders of both parties in Congress recognize the importance of making sure our children have access to quality health care that will enable them to develop into healthy and productive citizens.”
Pollack called attention to the fact that a presidential veto will not only halt the efforts to enroll more uninsured children in state health plans, but it will also throw millions of children already enrolled in CHIP out of the program.
“In the midst of what the nation has come to recognize as a crisis in our entire system of health care delivery, the President’s veto would be an astounding step backwards,” Pollack said. “It would repudiate the funding requests from Republican and Democratic governors, who are trying to provide health coverage to their states’ uninsured children.
“Most of all, it would deny millions upon millions of young Americans access to critical health care services outside of the emergency room.”
Congress will take up CHIP reauthorization again this month. As Senators and House members work toward final legislation that will increase coverage for children, they will also need to address the recent Bush Administration’s policy changes that undercut states’ ability to enroll additional uninsured children.
“The fact that the Bush Administration wants to take away the flexibility of states in administering the CHIP program runs counter to the entire concept of a state-federal partnership and threatens the current success of the program in providing health coverage to uninsured children,” Pollack said. “State governors—Republican and Democrat alike—have already expressed their dismay and disapproval of these unnecessary roadblocks to health care delivery.
“CHIP must be renewed and enhanced. I urge the President to join—not obstruct—the effort to build a healthier future for our nation’s millions of uninsured children.”
“The children's health insurance legislation will literally have a positive effect on the lives of millions of children for a generation. Passing legislation like this is what the American people expect us to do in Washington,” Senator Robert Casey (PA) said.
“For two years now, the number of uninsured children in our nation has increased each year,” Congressman Frank Pallone (NJ) said. “However, Washington has an opportunity to reverse this troubling trend by strengthening the Children's Health Insurance Program. In the coming weeks, I hope that we can send the president a final CHIP bill that will allow us to ensure that more than 100,000 additional children in New Jersey receive access to health insurance so they can live long and healthy lives.”
For the full report, click here.
