(Senate Democratic Caucus 1-23-09)
January 23, 2009 – Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid joined Senator John Rockefeller, Gerald Smith, Associate Director of the Northwest Federation of Community Organizations, and student artist Ibrahim Muhammad at a press conference today to discuss Democrats’ efforts to strengthen the Children’s Health Insurance Program. Democrats are working to pass a bill similar to the ones vetoed by President Bush last Congress that will improve the lives of low-income, uninsured children by ensuring they get the doctor visits and medicines they need when they’re sick and the checkups they need to stay well. The event also featured artwork submitted by students from around the nation highlighting the importance of providing health coverage to children.
“CHIP is a critical program as states begin to run out of money for children’s health care – in the state of Nevada alone more than 100,000 children remain uninsured,” Reid said. “We will enact a bipartisan bill that improves the lives of uninsured children by ensuring they get the doctor visits and medicines they need when they’re sick and the checkups they need to stay well. Not only is passing CHIP the right thing to do; it’s the smart thing to do.” Said Rockefeller: “This isn’t about politics, this is about children and it’s about doing what’s right. With our nation’s economy in crisis and Americans facing the uncertainty that comes with losing their jobs and their health insurance, health care coverage for all children is more important than ever before. Medicaid and CHIP are a critical safety net for working families and their children during these extremely hard economic times. In the years since we created CHIP, millions of America’s children have received needed, and in many instances life-saving, care. It is time to provide that vital coverage to even more of our children, including legal immigrant children. I am eager to finally finish this important mission and give nearly 11 million children the care they need and deserve.” Senate Democrats will act quickly to ensure that America’s children have the health care they need.
