Children's Health Insurance Moves Back To The Debate Floor on Capitol Hill: Let The Politics Begin

Children's Health Insurance Moves Back To The Debate Floor on Capitol Hill: Let The Politics Begin in Politics and Legislation

UPDATE: The House voted in favor of expanding SCHIP 289 to 139, reported the Baltimore Sun.

ORIGINAL POST:

We’re only 2 weeks into the New Year, and legislative politics is already in full swing.

Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives are scheduled to vote on a bill to expand the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) — and with the heavy majority, will almost certainly approve it.

The bill, similar to the bills vetoed by out-going President George W. Bush in 2007, will extend coverage to around 4.1 million children, reported the Washington Post.

According the Post article, the bill will cost an estimated $33 billion — paid for mostly by a 61-cent federal cigarette tax increase.

So here come the politics…

Susan Gates, an attorney for the children’s advocacy group, the Children’s Defense Fund, sought out to criticize President-Elect Barack Obama for its lack of universalism.

“This is certainly not the promise to cover every child that the president-elect ran on,” said Gates, pointing out the bill still will leave some 5 million kids uncovered.

Republicans in the House put their two cents in as well.

A letter sent to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and President-Elect Obama, signed by 112 GOP House members, specified their worries about the SCHIP bill.

They are most worried that the legislation will threaten private health insurance, come with major Medicaid budget shortfalls, and will allows immigrants to enter the program, wrote the Post.

After the just about guaranteed approval in the House, the bill might move to the U.S. Senate for a vote, where it also is likely to pass.

It’s hard to see how this time SCHIP expansion doesn’t make it all the way through.

Any thoughts?

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