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SCHIP...
Joe Pitts Roadblocks Children's' Health Care
Programs
There is a long
list of grievances that the constituents of the 16th Congressional
District have against their U.S. Representative, Joe Pitts. Among
them is his refusal to support and protect the health of the children
of our District.
Joe Pitts voted
against the original bipartisan SCHIP bill and voted to sustain both
vetoes signed by President Bush.
The modest spending
increase that Congress finally approved for the popular children's
health insurance program will barely maintain coverage for those
children already enrolled. And many children who will still lack
insurance cannot be added to SCHIP programs.
SCHIP, the
State Children's Health Insurance Program, helps states, like
Pennsylvania, to cover uninsured kids. In 2007, Congressional
Democrats proposed a substantial spending increase for the
federal-state partnership known as the SCHIP. Many Congressional
Republicans embraced the idea. Meanwhile, states all over the country
drew up plans to expand health coverage to our uninsured children.
After President
Bush vetoed the SCHIP bill twice, many states had to suspend their
SCHIP plans indefinitely. The expansion of SCHIP that most Republican
and Democrat lawmakers overwhelmingly supported has been scaled back
to previous years' spending levels. Instead of the planned enrollment
increase from 6 million children to 10 million, some analysts say the
number of children actually getting SCHIP coverage may still decline
in 2008.
Typically, many
states provide health coverage for families with incomes up to twice
the federal poverty level - $34,340 - for a family of three. To cover
more children, those states planned to increase the income eligibility
level. The Pennsylvania CHIP program provides no cost coverage to a
family of three earning a maximum of $34,340.00, low-cost coverage to
a family of three earning up to $51, 510.00, and full-cost coverage to
a family of three earning in excess of 51 Thousand Dollars. (View all
eligibility income limits by clicking
here.)
Roadblock Republicans
like Joe Pitts say any expansion should not allow middle-income
families to drop private coverage for the publicly supported coverage
even though the cost of private coverage is increasing at annual rates
in excess of ten to 20 percent per year. Pitts has insisted that
SCHIP retain a new Bush administration directive that makes it harder
for states to cover middle-income children.
Bruce Slater has
criticized our current Representative’s position: "What doesn't Joe
Pitts understand about trying to house, clothe, and feed a family of
four with a disposable income of less than $3,000.00 per month?
Health insurance premiums are escalating at alarming rates and
families with private insurance are often forced to drop health
coverage just to put food on the table and gas in the car to get to
work. Saving for a child's higher education has become a luxury that
few low and middle-income families can afford. But health insurance is
basic and those families are being priced out of the market."
"Joe Pitts voted
against the original bipartisan SCHIP authorization bill and voted to
sustain two Presidential vetoes. He, like his fellow Roadblock
Republicans who have just enough votes to prevent a Congressional
override, say that they are afraid that the SCHIP expansion is just
one more step towards a national health care program for all citizens.
I say they are protecting their campaign contributors like the health
insurance companies and pharmaceuticals and jeopardizing the health
and welfare of our District's and nation's children.*
"Research shows
that uninsured kids are sicker and are more likely to die in hospitals
than children with health insurance. The $35 billion increase that was
proposed is a small price to pay for the health of all of our
children. It will be recouped over and over in the decades to come
because our children got a healthy start.
"Pitts’ position is
not about saving tax dollars. It is about enriching those who profit
from our children being sick. Representative Pitts votes to keep the
money flowing to his campaign chest, which means he votes to put more
money in his own pocket for his own health insurance coverage while
our children suffer. I will, like the all of Pennsylvania's Democrats
in our Congressional delegation (and most the Republicans, too) vote
for this program, because children are the best investment in America
today."
*Since his first
bid to represent the citizens of the 16th Congressional District, Joe
Pitts has accepted over $245,500 in campaign contributions from
special interest groups within the medical profession, over $100,000
from the pharmaceutical industry, and over $17,500 from medical
insurance providers.
Who does Joe Pitts
represent?
Read more about Pennsylvania's CHIP program...
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