9-25-07, 5:07 pm

In a speech on the floor of the House of Representatives today (9-25), Rep. James McGovern (D-MA) urged passage of the State Children's Health Insurance Program (S-CHIP) reauthorization bill and accused President Bush and Republican opponents of the bill of hypocrisy.

McGovern rose in support of a conference report that most closely mirrors the Senate version of the S-CHIP reauthorization passed by the Senate with 68 votes, including 20 Republicans.

McGovern stated that despite claims by the White House, the reauthorization bill is completely paid for and 'represents a careful bipartisan compromise.'

Despite the bipartisan support, President Bush threatened to veto the bill, claiming that its $5 billion per year price tag is too steep.

McGovern stated that the bill would expand S-CHIP to include about 3 million additional children from working families who cannot afford the rising costs of health insurance premiums. Currently, the Census Bureau estimates that about 8 million children lack health insurance.

The S-CHIP bill would provide affordable medical, dental, mental health, and pre- and post-natal health care.

The vast majority of the people served by S-CHIP programs are unable to afford health insurance but also have incomes that are too high to be eligible for Medicaid. Contrary to Bush administration claims, McGovern said, the bill provides coverage for poor and near-poor children, not middle income families with private insurance.

'This represents a sharp change from earlier bills that the president enthusiastically supported,' McGovern stated. 'From the 2003 Medicare Prescription Drug bill to the Energy Bill to his tax cuts for the rich which were all financed by massive amounts of deficit spending.'

McGovern warned that the program is set to expire in six days, 'unless we act to reauthorize it.'

'The bill before us does not go as far as I would like,' McGovern added. He stated that he preferred the House bill passed in July that would have provided funding to cover 1 million children more than the bill currently under consideration.

But, McGovern added that he would not 'allow the perfect become the enemy of the very good. And this bill is very good,' he said.

McGovern rejected the Bush administration's claims that S-CHIP is a way of 'socializing medicine' or 'undermining private health insurance' as laughable given the broad bipartisan support for the reauthorization bill.

Concerning President Bush's threat to veto the S-CHIP reauthorization bill, McGovern said, 'That takes my breath away. He didn't veto billions in tax breaks for oil companies that were gouging people at the pump. He didn't veto billions of dollars in no-bid defense contracts. But he will veto a modest, bipartisan bill to provide health care coverage for millions of low and moderate income American children?'

McGovern also pointed out that the funding Bush has said he would be willing to support isn't enough to provide the current level of coverage. 'Those who support the president,' McGovern thundered, 'would take health care away from over 800,000 kids who have it today. That is not acceptable. That is cruel.'

McGovern did not take the opportunity to note that right now one day of spending on the failed Iraq policy could successfully cover 246,000 children for an entire year. Four months of what is spent in Iraq could pay for the entire reauthorization over the proposed five-year term.

--Reach Joel Wendland at

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