National Alliance for Hispanic Health Ramps Up Lobbying for SCHIP Vet...( State Delegations of Major Commun...),Health

State Delegations of Major Community-Organization CEOs to Meet with Members of Congress This Week

WASHINGTON, Oct. 15 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The senior leadership of major community-based Hispanic health organizations will converge on Capitol Hill this week to lobby for a congressional override of President George W. Bush's veto of the bill to re-authorize and improve the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP).

The visits are part of an ongoing effort by the National Alliance for Hispanic Health (the Alliance) and its member organizations to get the SCHIP bill signed into law so more than 1 million Hispanic children can obtain health insurance who will otherwise be uninsured.

Prominent local leaders visiting Capitol Hill this week are from lead agencies in New York, NY; Chicago, IL; Dallas and Houston, TX; Albuquerque, NM; Las Vegas, NV; San Diego, San Ysidro, Los Angeles, and Hayward, CA.

"SCHIP is a federal-state success story," said Dr. Jane L. Delgado, President and CEO of the National Alliance for Hispanic Health, the nation's leading Hispanic health advocacy group. "SCHIP is working, providing millions of children with health insurance so that their parents are not forced to make heart-wrenching financial decisions that no one should ever have to make."

"Democrats and Republicans worked hard to find a bipartisan compromise on SCHIP," said Dr. Delgado. "We're going to ask Congressional leaders to stick together, reach out to their colleagues, and override the president's veto to help America's laboring families."

The Senate and House passed the SCHIP bill with, among other items, three key provisions the Alliance and its affiliates will be lobbying for this week when they ask Congress to override the president's veto:

-- Retention of a $1 tobacco tax to finance the legislation.

-- Coverage of 4 million children, including over 1 million Hispanic

children, who would otherwise b
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