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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Mr. POLIS of Colorado. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, House Resolution 107 provides for consideration of the Senate amendment to H.R. 2, the Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2009.
I rise in support of House Resolution 107, the Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act. I again wish to thank Speaker Pelosi who has been an unrelenting champion on this important issue. I also want to thank Chairman Rangel and Chairman Dingell for sponsoring bills that were vetoed in the 110th Congress, and Chairman Waxman and all of my colleagues for their leadership on this issue in this Congress, and I want to recognize everyone's efforts to bring this bill to where it is today.
Although I began my House service only a few weeks ago, I have received hundreds of letters from constituents who have serious concerns about health care cost and coverage. Too common is the story of hardworking, low-income moms and dads forced to choose between buying groceries and visiting their family doctor. I have heard from those who have either lost their health care coverage or feared that they will lose it because they simply can't afford it.
I have heard from parents who are denied necessary health care by their insurers, and as a result, their children are suffering too. I have heard from caregivers who have been laid off losing not only their health coverage, but that of their children's as well. This is a serious problem that we can no longer afford to ignore.
No longer can we lay the blame at the front door of the White House. With the change in administration, we can ensure that this legislation passes the House today and reaches the President's desk as soon as possible. With our approval, President Obama has indicated he will sign this bill into law today and change the lives of millions of children and families. Delay is simply not an option.
A large majority of Americans of all political persuasions support this important bill. It's a fiscally responsible way to not only extend the number of children in our Nation who will receive health care, but to improve the quality of that care. This bill relieves the burden of taxpayers who currently subsidize millions of costly and inefficient uninsured emergency room visits. By encouraging preventative care for children who lack insurance today, we can actually reduce costs from the system and provide healthier outcomes for young people.
This bill is just common sense, given the Nation's skyrocketing health care costs, coupled with our current economic challenges. It is an investment where the return is a generation of healthy, happy and productive Americans. This legislation will provide health care coverage for more than 11 million children nationally.
Tomorrow morning, 170,000 children in my home State of Colorado wake up without health insurance. That is 170,000 too many. This bill will change that terrible statistic for the better by giving States the vital tools needed to reach out to uninsured children who are eligible for SCHIP and Medicaid, but not yet enrolled. This is not only critical to Colorado, but to all our States and territories.
Madam Speaker, the epidemic of the uninsured is not just a consequence of our struggling economy, it is a component of it. Under a new administration, with the political will of this new Congress, we have the power to set this particular wrong right. A healthy economy is supported by healthy people. Providing health care insurance for millions of uninsured Americans is an important beginning to keeping our people and our economy healthy. But it is just a beginning.
Protecting the health of our Nation's young children is of paramount importance to society and the security of our Nation. A recent military study reveals that one-third of American teenagers are incapable of passing a basic physical test. This legislation will help give every child a chance at a healthy start.
With rising unemployment, a battered economy and more layoffs coming every day, the plight of the uninsured is likely to only get worse. Next month, Madam Speaker, SCHIP will expire. Our failure today would add millions of children to the rolls of the uninsured. To me, my constituents, and hopefully to my colleagues, as well, this is unacceptable. Today we have an opportunity to protect millions of children across the Nation who don't have a voice and to safeguard their future. I urge you to vote for this legislation. I reserve the balance of my time.
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Mr. POLIS of Colorado. Madam Speaker, as you know, children do not control what family they are born into. And an important part of the meritocracy that makes our country great is that every child should have the opportunity to succeed. Establishing healthy habits and a healthy life early in life, regardless of the parent's station, is an important part of making sure that a child has the opportunity to climb to whatever station they are capable of.
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Mr. POLIS of Colorado. Madam Speaker, a brief history on the SCHIP legislation and why this is so critical for us to pass here today. This rule before the House would permit the House to concur in the Senate amendment because this legislation has been considered repeatedly and thoroughly in the House in this Congress and the last.
In July of 2007 the House considered H.R. 3162 to reauthorize and amend SCHIP and the bill passed. In September 2007 the House considered H.R. 976 to reauthorize and amend SCHIP. The bill passed. The Senate also passed the bill and it was presented to President Bush and received a veto. In October of 2007 the House again tried to reauthorize SCHIP. 3963 was the House bill. Passed the House, passed the Senate. The President again vetoed the bill and the House was unable to override the veto.
Ultimately, legislation to merely extend SCHIP as it was enacted into law will expire next month. Children's lives are at stake. That's what's so critical about passing this bill today.
When people lack health care insurance they often don't seek preventative care and are forced to use emergency rooms as their primary care provider. Not only does this cost more, this also provides for worse health outcomes, and conditions that could have been dealt with less expensively and more successfully in the onset are instead deferred, and incur more expense and worse health outcomes.
By passing this bill today, we can ensure that hundreds of thousands of poor children across our country receive adequate health care and are able to succeed and grow in school and be able to succeed in their lives. Madam Speaker, I would like to reserve the balance of my time.
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Mr. POLIS of Colorado. Madam Speaker, I am proud to back a plan to help improve the health and chance for success of 11 million children. It also reduces the more costly nature of emergency room use, and moves us closer to providing every child in our Nation with affordable, high quality health care.
This bill also extends health care coverage to 4.1 million additional low-income children who are currently uninsured.
A healthy child is better prepared for learning and success. Studies show that early childhood health is indicative and can, in fact, impact the learning processes, the special education needs of the child and indeed, even the IQ of the child as the child matriculates through education. By making sure that children have health care coverage, we can, in fact, prevent a lot of gaps within our education system from arising before they arise, and ensure that children, regardless of their background, have the opportunity to succeed in our country. This is the change that America needs.
Providing health care coverage for children and indeed, all Americans, is one of the reasons that I ran for Congress. Providing health care to 4 million more children will be a clear demonstration that change has come to Washington.
This is legislation that President Bush vetoed twice in the 110th Congress. Today we have the opportunity to send this bill to a new President who has committed to sign it this very afternoon and begin implementing it immediately to help cover 4.1 million additional children in our Nation. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
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Mr. POLIS of Colorado. Madam Speaker, with regard to the delivery of the services, most SCHIP and Medicaid beneficiaries receive service delivery through private doctors and through private management care plans, not through government doctors. So, when we are talking about how the service is delivered, we are talking about an important aspect of what insurance and what coverage allows. Yes, separately, we certainly hope that we will be able to address universal coverage, in rural areas in particular, as an important component of health care in this country.
With regard to income limits, this bill does provide that if a State covers children in families of three with income over $52,800, which is 300 percent of the poverty rate, then the States get the regular Medicaid match rate. There are, in fact, income provisions in here as well. There is also section 605 of the bill, which prevents payments to individuals not lawfully residing in the United States. So I believe that the issues that have been raised by my colleagues are addressed in the bill.
It does, of course, matter what the bill says. The bill says very clearly that individuals not lawfully residing in the United States will not receive payments, and it also is very clear with regard to the income level. So I think that this bill has been clear.
As I have mentioned, this bill has been voted on a number of times in Congress. The main difference now is we are sending it to a President who has indicated that he is, in fact, willing to sign it and, indeed, is willing to do so on this very afternoon. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
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Mr. POLIS of Colorado. Madam Speaker, I would also like to discuss that SCHIP provides quality dental care, alleviating the most common childhood disease--tooth decay.
I cannot help but remember a story that was told to me when I was visiting a free dental clinic in Boulder, Colorado that provides services to those who are uninsured. This story is about a young girl who was in the third grade. Due to the lack of dental care and poor dental hygiene practices at home, her teeth had actually rotted out. This is when she was a young girl. She had received no care for that as well. As a result, she was very, very shy, and was constantly in pain. Her diet suffered. She suffered malnutrition because of the condition of her teeth. Fortunately, the community there was able to help her, but there are hundreds of thousands of young people across the country who suffer from no or from poor quality dental care, which has vast ramifications as well.
In addition, this bill gives the option of providing pregnant women critical prenatal care. When we talk about the impact on reducing the need for special education and for increasing one's IQ, these things start in the prenatal stage, and they continue through early childhood. I think that that is a very important aspect in terms of giving States that option as well as covering 4.1 million additional low-income children who currently lack insurance.
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Mr. POLIS of Colorado. Madam Speaker, another story from Colorado is about someone who I know firsthand, a student at one of the schools that I was involved in running.
Like many of the students I worked with, this student lacked health care insurance. She was diagnosed with diabetes, and she was not diagnosed early. She had severe symptoms, weakness, et cetera, but because of economic barriers to seeking health care and because of her lack of insurance, she did not seek any form of preventative treatment. When she then went in, she went into the emergency room, and she needed emergency dialysis immediately. So a condition that could have been dealt with through a combination of diet and insulin instead became an acute condition which had to be dealt with at a much greater cost and with a much worse health outcome for the individual.
These are the stories that are taking place across our great Nation. By passing this bill today, we can make a dent in making sure that people have access to preventative care and to health care throughout their childhoods. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
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Mr. POLIS of Colorado. Madam Speaker, SCHIP currently provides for coverage of 7 million children. This bill before us today would also allow for extending the coverage to 4.1 million uninsured children, every single one of them who is currently eligible for but not enrolled in SCHIP and Medicaid.
Polls have shown that more than 8 percent of the American people support this bipartisan legislation, including large majorities of both major political parties. This is not only popular, Madam Speaker; this is the right thing to do for American families. I urge a ``yes'' vote on the previous question and on the rule.
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