Catholic Health Association to Congress and President Bush: Uninsured Children Need You...( WASHINGTON Sept. 24 -- Sister Ca...),Health

WASHINGTON, Sept. 24 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Sister Carol Keehan, DC, president and chief executive officer of the Catholic Health Association of the United States (CHA), issued the following statement.

The Catholic Health Association supports the bipartisan compromise to reauthorize the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) and urges all members of Congress to support the legislation.

Reauthorizing SCHIP represents the most humane and pro-life opportunity Congress and the President currently have: to ensure that millions of children -- born and unborn -- receive the health care they need and deserve.

CHA calls on President Bush to reconsider his stance on the compromise SCHIP legislation. It is still not too late for the President to change his mind and do what is right for children in this country.

Temporary extensions and/or inadequate funding levels will lead to children losing coverage. That would be an enormous step backward for our nation and a retreat from our collective commitment to cover uninsured children.

Congress is poised to pass a responsible, bipartisan compromise bill that the public widely supports. When any child is allowed to go without health care, we as a nation do not meet our moral obligations or show our compassion.

In light of a Presidential veto, it ultimately may fall on Congress to do what is right for our nation's children. And we expect Congress to vote to protect children. It is time to break down the barriers to children's coverage and do what is right and moral for our nation's children -- provide them with a healthier, brighter future.

The Catholic Health Association of the United States (CHA), founded in 1915, supports the Catholic health ministry's pursuit of the strategic directions of mission, ethics, and advocacy. As the nation's largest group of not-for-profit sponsors, systems, and facilities, the ministry is committed to improving the health status of communit
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