Original post:
I am going to list six of the facts about SCHIP, facts that the left doesn't want you to see, they would rather the focus be on anything but these facts.
SCHIP needs to address what was wrong with the bill to begin with, which is why underneath this post I will be listing all the phone numbers you need to be calling tomorrow (Monday) and every day until the 18th, when the vote to override the President's veto is held.
We need to call those numbers relentlessly, jam the lines, and let our representatives know that they need to uphold the President's veto until the bill is written in a way that fixes the problems in the original bill and not expand those problems.
Facts about SCHIP: Remember what SCHIP stands for as you read these facts. State Children's Heath Insurance Program.
FACT ONE:
From WSJ-
670,000 adults are covered by Schip. Eleven states cover some parents, and six states cover either pregnant adults or some adults with no children.
FACT TWO:
As this Kaiser 2006 survey of all the states details, in all but three states a family’s assets are not considered at all in determining eligibility for SCHIP. (As I pointed out here Maryland, home of the Frost’s, and California, my home, do not consider assets in qualification for SCHIP.) (Source- Democracy Project)
FACT THREE:
In 2006, 118,501 children and 101,919 adults in Michigan received health care from the S-CHIP program. Incredibly, this means that 46 percent of Michigan’s funding allotment intended to give poor children health insurance actually went to cover adults. (Source-Tim Walberg-congressman from Michigan’s Seventh District.)
FACT FOUR:
Higher income levels instead of low income families- New Jersey:
The Senate bill states: "(B) - Exception - Subparagraph (A) [the limitation of the matching rate to the Medicaid rate for children whose effective income exceeds 300 percent of the Federal poverty level] shall not apply to any State that, on the date of enactment of the Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2007, has an approved State Plan Amendment or waiver to provide, or has enacted a State law to submit a State plan amendment to provide, expenditures described in such subparagraph under the State child health plan." (Source- The SCHIP Bill)
The Senate SCHIP bill also grandfathers in New Jersey's program at 350 percent of the Federal poverty level, which includes children in families with incomes of $72,000 a year.
FACT FIVE: (Pointed out by Right Truth after going through the wording of the bill)
This bill would provide strong incentive for individuals and employers to dump private coverage and shift these costs to the taxpayers -- at an estimated cost of $74,000 per person annually. Here in Tennessee we watched a similar stampede to state-run coverage cripple the TennCare system. Another troubling component of the bill is the removal of the proof-of-citizenship requirements for enrollment. This provision, found in Section 211 (H.R. 976), is commonly referenced as the concerted effort to allow taxpayer subsidized healthcare to illegal immigrants.
FACT SIX: (Pointed out by Heading Right)
However, the Republicans haven’t given up. The GOP contingent on the House Energy And Commerce Committee have published some interesting data about the “children” — they’re awfully mature in many cases. Several states will spend more than 44% of their S-CHIP grants on adults in 2008, and that excludes pregnant women. In Michigan, that total goes to 71%. In most cases, the money gets spent on the parents more than the kids
Here are those states:
Illinois: 52.6% (51.2% parents)
Michigan: 71.6% (all childless adults)
Minnesota: 77.8% (all parents)
New Jersey: 54.6% (all parents)
New Mexico: 79% (26.7% parents, 52.3% childless adults)
Rhode Island: 52.4% (all parents)
Wisconsin: 43.9% (all parents)
The politicians and the left side of the blogosphere would love to keep focus of this issue on the Frost family, which proved FACT TWO, actually, the Democrats use of that family brought the problem of no "asset tests" to our attention, but the reason they would rather keep the focus on the family is so they can avoid the facts presented above.
Tomorrow, we must all call the numbers I am going to list here again, and continue to call them and tell our representatives to UPHOLD THE PRESIDENT'S VETO, until these issues are addressed and fixed within the bill so that SCHIP can do what it is intended to do and that is to cover low income children, not adults and not people that can afford private health insurance but choose not to.
The override vote is scheduled for October 18, so make sure your representatives know that we expect them to uphold the president's veto until the the language in this bill fixes it instead of expands on the problems listed above:
Make sure House Minority Leader John Boehner hears from you:
Washington Office:1011 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515-3508
Phone: (202) 225-6205
Fax: (202) 225-0704
Here is a list of those who voted no before and who we need to vote again to UPHOLD the President's veto.
AL-Robert Aderholt:
(202) 225-4876
AR-John Boozman
(202) 225-4301
CA-Brian Bilbray
(202) 225-0508
CA-John Doolittle
(202) 225-2511
CO-Marilyn Musgrave
(202) 225-4676
FL-Gus Bilirakis
(202) 225-5755
FL-Ginny Brown-Waite
(202) 225-1022
FL-Tom Feeney
(202) 225-2706
FL-Rick Keller
(202) 225-2176
IA-Tom Latham
(202) 225-5476
ID-Bill Sali
(202) 225-6611
IL-Judy Biggert
(202) 225-3515
IL-Tim Johnson
(202) 225-2371
IL-Peter Roskam
(202) 225-4561
IL-Jerry Weller
(202) 225-3635
LA-Rodney Alexander
(202) 225-8490
MD-Roscoe Bartlett
(202) 225-2721
MI- Joseph Knollenberg
(202) 225-5802
MI-Thaddeus McCotter
(202) 225-8171
MI-Tim Walberg
(202) 225-6276
MN-Michelle Bachmann
(202) 225-2331
MO-Sam Graves
(202) 225-7041
MO-Kenny Hulshof
(202) 225-2956
NC-Robin Hayes
(202) 225-3715
NJ-Rodney Frelinghuysen
(202) 225-5034
NJ-Scott Garrett
(202) 225-4465
NJ-Jim Saxton
(202) 225-4765
NV-Dean Heller
(202) 225-6155
NY-Thomas Reynolds
(202) 225-5265
NY-Randy Kuhl
(202) 225-3161
OH-Steve Chabot
(202) 225-2216
OR-Greg Walden
(202) 225-6730
PA-John Peterson
(202) 225-5121
TX-Kay Granger
(202) 225-5071
VA-Thelma Drake
(202) 225-4215
VA-Randy Forbes
(202) 225-6365
Call them Monday, then every single day until the 18th and make sure your message is heard, loud and clear.
UPHOLD THE PRESIDENT'S VETO until this bill is fixed so that it covers low income children and not adults, and not families that can afford private healthcare but simply choose not to.
[Update] Still determined to use terrorist tactics of hiding behind children, the Democrats have chosen another child to hide behind.... this time using an example of a family that does belong on SCHIP, high lighting further the need to rewrite the bill to make sure that only families such as this latest human shield is eligible.
All previous posts about SCHIP, on one page, can be found here.
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