Providing Better Health Care for Our Children

Statement

Every Wednesday when the Senate and the House of Representatives are in session, I join Nebraska's other members of Congress to welcome our constituents to the Nebraska Breakfast.

This 73-year-old tradition is the longest-running meeting of its kind on Capitol Hill. Former Senator Hugh Butler hosted the first Nebraska Breakfast in 1943, and today, it remains a wonderful tradition where Nebraskans can meet with their representatives while visiting the nation's capital.

Nebraskans travel to Washington for many reasons. Some of them come to see the sights. Some come on business, while others come to advocate for different causes.

Emery Rosenboom is one such visitor. I had the pleasure of meeting her and her family at a recent Nebraska Breakfast. Emery is a beautiful little girl who has Down syndrome. She is seven years old and a frequent patient at Children's Hospital & Medical Center in Omaha.

With her blue eyes and radiant smile, Emery is a delight. She loves to sing and treated everyone at the breakfast to a performance of "Let's Go Fly a Kite" from the Disney movie Mary Poppins.

Emery's condition is classified as "medically complex" under Medicaid. This means that she faces several obstacles and long delays if she has to travel across state lines to reach the doctors best able to care for her specific needs.

Emery is not alone in this. When I visited with Dr. Gary Perkins, the former president of Omaha's Children's Hospital, he told me more than 20 percent of the hospital's "medically complex" children come from surrounding states. Like Emery, they also endure long delays before receiving the specialized care they need. These rules also affect Nebraska children who must travel to hospitals in other states for their care.

Far too often, these patients are very sick children. Their treatments are not easy and their families are under enormous stress balancing their care with life's other obligations. These roadblocks and delays are unnecessary. And while we cannot completely alleviate the burdens these families face, we can straighten their path and offer some relief.

That's why Emery and her family came to Washington. They came to advocate for legislation that would help reduce these hurdles for medically complex children. That bill, known as the Advancing Care for Exceptional (ACE) Kids Act, is currently moving through Congress. I am proud to cosponsor this bill.

This legislation would allow children like Emery to pass seamlessly across state lines to obtain the care they need. It would also allow hospitals to work together so that patients can move from state to state, save money, and avoid frustrating delays.

The ACE Kids Act cuts federal red tape. It makes the medicine go down, maybe not "in the most delightful way," but at least a little more easily.

As I listened to little Emery sing Mary Poppins at our breakfast, I realized how fitting it was. If you're not familiar with the movie, it is about focusing on what's truly important, about not losing sight of those in your care, even as you work hard to provide for them.

This is an excellent lesson for those who work in the federal government. In their work, they must never lose sight of people like Emery. Their burdensome regulations should never make it harder for sick children to receive the care they need.

I am very grateful for Emery's visit and for the thoughts and guidance of every Nebraskan who travels to our nation's capital. Like Emery, they remind us all of what matters most.

Thank you for taking part in our democratic process. I look forward to visiting with you again next week.

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