What's driving you crazy?

More SCHIP Kool-Aid -
Drink up, kid-hating GOP!

Posted on | 12 November 2007 | Comments Off

Ol’ Doc Burgess continues the practice of other lock-step Bush followers – repeat the lies enough and they develop into their own weird truth. Of course, it is the Democratic leadership ‘playing politics” – not the GOP which keeps repeating the same lies no matter what changes are made in the legislation. Pretty soon, you will see Burgess, and other Bush sycophants, linking SCHIP to terrorism, high energy prices and global warming (even as they carefully point out there is no such thing).

Hechuva job, Bush!

I also would like to point out that, in the usual Bush puppet penchant for truth, Burgess has given me a gender change operation (which I had not requested).  How’s that for family values?

 

Dear Ms. Lee Dunkelberg:

Thank you for contacting me and my office regarding your concerns for the reauthorization of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). Please know that the reauthorization of SCHIP is a high priority for me, and that it is an issue I take very seriously.

SCHIP was created in 1997, by a Republican controlled Congress working with a Democratic President, and it was designed to provide health care for children from low-income families. These were families that made too much money to qualify for Medicaid but could not afford private coverage. Some states made the decision to cover adults or higher income families with limited SCHIP dollars, and then returned to the federal government seeking money that had been unspent by states like Texas. Under the current program, these states, by claiming a budget shortfall, can take money away from Texas children in order to cover adults. That is unfair.

SCHIP’s intent is to provide health coverage for children. Every dollar spent on an adult is a dollar not spent on a child. To solve this problem, I introduced H.R. 1013 which would have ensured that only children and pregnant women would be covered. I believe the integrity of the program should be maintained during the reauthorization process. While the proponents of the last reauthorization bill, H.R. 3963, say that adults are not covered under this bill, the facts do not support that claim. The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office reports that under this bill, nearly 10 percent of enrollees in SCHIP by 2012 will be adults.

Another negative aspect of the past SCHIP reauthorization bill is that it would permit states to increase the income levels of families that could be covered by this program effectively forcing many children out of their parents’ private coverage and into a program funded by the American tax payers. Again, the CBO notes that nearly 2 million children will drop their private insurance to go on taxpayer funded health coverage.

H.R. 3963 also failed to be signed into law because it would not prohibit illegal aliens from gaining coverage under SCHIP. Once again, the CBO notes that contrary to claims of the proponents of this bill, it would still cover illegal aliens to the tune of $3.7 billion over 10 years.

It is important for you to know that SCHIP was originally given a ten year authorization, and this expired September 30, 2007. Congress did pass a funding extension for three months. Despite the rhetoric, the program will continue as long as Congress wants it to continue, whether it is reauthorized today or closer to November 16th, the day the current extension expires. Even with a presidential veto of the previous bill and possible veto of the current legislation, H.R. 3963, low income children will still be covered by SCHIP.

SCHIP was originally a bipartisan effort and I support its reauthorization; however, the Democratic leadership has now chosen to play politics. They have disregarded even token involvement from Republicans and have avoided regular order by bypassing committee mark-ups that could have resulted in a bipartisan bill. With the recent legislation, Speaker Pelosi broke her own promise to give at least 24 hours to the minority to view a bill before a vote, by giving the Republicans the current SCHIP bill at 7:30 p.m. the night before the vote.

As a result we have a bad bill that does not prioritize spending, does not protect states like Texas as we attempt to reach all needy children, and allows other states to make irresponsible choices like covering adults and high income families in a public program designed to serve low-income children. This bill is not good for Texas kids.

SCHIP is a major component of this country’s health care policy, and will affect the quality of health care for decades into the future. That is why it is important that we pass a bill that properly funds SCHIP and does not require a greater burden on the American tax payer.

You may be aware that I am currently a member of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, which has jurisdiction over healthcare issues, including Medicaid and SCHIP. You can be certain that I will keep your views in mind as we continue to work on the SCHIP reauthorization during this legislative session. Differences on this bill can be worked out if the process is allowed to work.

Again, thank you for taking the time to contact me. I appreciate having the opportunity to represent you in the U.S. House of Representatives. Please feel free to visit my website (www.house.gov/burgess) or contact me with any future concerns.

Sincerely,

Michael C. Burgess, M.D.
Member of Congress

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