Children’s Health Proposal by Senate Finance Committee Offers Opportunity for Bipartisanship

The Proposal Would Add Health Coverage for Millions of Children, but Millions of Others Would Remain Uninsured

Bipartisan leaders of the Senate Finance Committee unveiled late last night their proposal to extend the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). The following is the statement of Ron Pollack, Executive Director of Families USA, about this development:

“We commend leaders of the Senate Finance Committee for their work on a bipartisan proposal to expand children’s health coverage. This bipartisan spirit is sorely lacking from the Bush Administration, even though that spirit has pervaded the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) from its inception.

"Several features of the new proposal are praiseworthy. They include: retaining states' flexibility to increase SCHIP eligibility standards for children as more and more families get priced out of affordable health care; enabling more eligible children to enroll in SCHIP; increasing opportunities for pregnant mothers to receive important pre-natal care; and eliminating cumbersome paperwork requirements that deter eligible children from enrolling in public health coverage.

"The proposal has shortcomings that deserve to be fixed before Congress completes its work. They include: inadequate funding that will leave many millions of children uninsured; limitations in parental coverage that will prevent families from enrolling in health plans together with their children; and the continued failure to provide health coverage for legal immigrant children.

"The American people overwhelmingly support health coverage for all children, especially those children in low-wage working families who can't afford health insurance. The committee's proposal is a significant step in that direction, and we intend to work with the Congress so that this goal is fully achieved."  

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Families USA is the national organization for health care consumers. It is nonprofit and nonpartisan and advocates for high-quality, affordable health care for all Americans.

1201 New York Avenue NW, Suite 1100 · Washington, DC 20005
202-628-3030 · Email: info@familiesusa.org · www.familiesusa.org