Congress Poised to Add Millions of Uninsured Children to Successful, Bipartisan H...(ity health care that will enable them to...),Health

Pollack called attention to the fact that a presidential veto will not only halt the efforts to enroll more uninsured children in state health plans but will also throw millions of children already enrolled in SCHIP out of the program.

"In the midst of what the nation has come to recognize as a crisis in our entire system of health care delivery, the president's veto would be an astounding step backwards," Pollack said. "It would repudiate the funding requests from Republican and Democratic governors, who are trying to provide health coverage to their states' uninsured children.

"Most of all, it would deny millions upon millions of young Americans access to critical healthcare services outside of the emergency room."

Congress will take up the SCHIP reauthorization again this month. As senators and House members work toward final legislation that will increase coverage for children, they will also need to address the recent Bush Administration's policy changes that undercut states' ability to enroll additional uninsured children.

"The fact that the Bush Administration wants to take away the flexibility of states in administering the SCHIP program runs counter to the entire concept of a state-federal partnership and threatens the current success of the program in providing health coverage to uninsured children," Pollack said. "State governors -- Republican and Democrat alike -- have already expressed their dismay and disapproval of these unnecessary roadblocks to health care delivery.

"SCHIP must be renewed and enhanced. I urge the President to join -- not obstruct -- the effort to build a healthier future for our nation's millions of uninsured children."

"The children's health insurance legislation will literally have a positive effect on the lives of millions of children for a generation. Passing legislation like this is what the American
'/>"/>