National Institutues Of Health Reform Act of 2006
NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH REFORM ACT OF 2006 -- (House of Representatives - December 08, 2006)
Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
I want to thank you, Mr. Speaker, and I want to thank Mr. Barton and Mr. Dingell for all their hard work on this NIH bill. As was mentioned, this is the first time in 13 years that we have had a reauthorization of the National Institutes of Health. This is an important piece of legislation because the National Institutes of Health are the world's premier research medical center and the key focal point for medical research in the United States.
On September 26, the House overwhelmingly passed H.R. 6164 with a vote of 414-2. The Senate recently passed that bill with amendments, which is the bill before us now. Those amendments helped clarify provisions in the bill and therefore improve it. So every Member who voted for H.R. 6164 on September 26 should feel comfortable voting for this bill this evening.
I wanted to mention that the bill before us also includes provisions with regard to the SCHIP, or the State Children's Health Insurance Program.
This is another reason we should be supporting the legislation this evening.
This part of the legislation would provide the money necessary to help a number of States, including my own, avert a funding shortfall in their State Children's Health Insurance Program.
Specifically, the bill will redirect existing unspent SCHIP funds from fiscal years 2004 and 2005 to help States that will not have sufficient funds to maintain their existing programs. States forfeiting unspent funding will be held harmless by capping the amount of funds that will be donated to $20 million. Thanks to this compromise, we can prevent many States from having to limit eligibility, increase cost-sharing requirements or restrict benefits. Keeping these programs intact is critically important for the health and well-being of our Nation's children.
Since its inception, SCHIP has been an integral part of reducing the number of uninsured children. But last year, for the first time since 1998, the number of uninsured children in the country actually increased, and even more children will go without coverage if Congress does not act tonight to avoid the funding shortfall currently projected for next year.
Again, I would like thank my colleagues Mr. Dingell and Mr. Barton, as well as their staffs, who helped work out this compromise, as well as our Senate counterparts. Thanks to our efforts, we will help preserve access to health care coverage for millions of low income children, as well as their families.
Finally, Mr. Speaker, while we have temporarily prevented a cut to the SCHIP program tonight, we must not forget that there are still approximately 8 million American children who currently have no health insurance, many of which are eligible to participate in SCHIP. Reauthorization of the SCHIP program must be addressed early next year and we must work together to help expand coverage and increase participation. Failure to do so will undoubtedly jeopardize the health of those most vulnerable in our Nation, our children.
I would like to thank everyone again.
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