Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2009

Floor Speech

Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2009-- (House of Representatives - February 04, 2009)

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Ms. DeGETTE. We will pass this bill today. And we will pass this bill for millions of women, like Susan Molina, who are trying to work and support their children and do the right thing for them. Susan is a single mother in my district. Her abusive husband left her, and she has struggled to work and pay for health insurance for her two children as she worked tirelessly to move from a janitor to an apartment manager position.

In 2006, Susan's two children lost their health insurance under SCHIP because her new job paid just slightly more than 200 percent of poverty level. Susan has tried to work her way up to be a responsible member of society. Eventually, she got her children in SCHIP, and they have health care, and she could work. But then after she lost her SCHIP coverage, as she testified to Congress, to our committee, she felt like a failure as a mom.

She was working, she was in school trying to get her GED, but she still had to take her kids to the emergency room when they got an ear infection. Frankly, Madam Speaker, it is about time that the most civilized country in the world give health care coverage to all of its children.

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