Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to pass a bill that reauthorizes and expands the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP).

Highlights:

• Requires state CHIP plans to provide a 12-month continuous eligibility option for low-income children whose family income is below 200% of the federal poverty level, effective January 1, 2008 (Sec 115).

• Allows states the option of covering temporary and permanent documented immigrants under the state’s CHIP (Sec. 132).

• Prohibits coverage of undocumented immigrants (Sec. 135).

• Increases the tax on cigarettes from $19.50 to $42 per thousand on cigarettes weighing less than 3 pounds, and from $40.95 to $88.20 per thousand on cigarettes weighing more than 3 pounds (Sec. 1001 [a-b]).

• Increases the tax on cigars that weigh less than 3 pounds per thousand from $1.828 to $42 per thousand (Sec. 1001).

• Increases the tax on cigars weighing more than 3 pounds per thousand from 20.719 percent to 40 percent of the sale price, limited to $1 a cigar (Sec. 1001 [c-d]).

• Increases the tax on chewing tobacco from $0.195 to $0.42 per pound (Sec. 1001 [h]).

• Dictates that federal payments for states for the fiscal year 2008 will be the greater of either the state projection of federal payments or the federal payment from 2007 multiplied by the allotment increase factor for per capita growth or child population growth (Sec. 101).

• Allows unused federal payments under the Social Security Act to be redistributed to address state shortfalls (Sec. 103).

• Requires state CHIP plans to cover dental care, federally qualified health centers, and rural health centers (Sec 121).

• Provides a 30-day grace period for premiums on state child health plans (Sec. 123).

• Extends states' optional coverage for children from age 19 to age 21 (Sec. 131).

• Provides states with the option to cover pregnant women as long as the income eligibility level is at least 185 percent of the federal poverty level (Sec. 133).

• Provides coverage for preventative services including prostate cancer screening tests, colorectal cancer screening tests, diabetes outpatient self management, glaucoma screening, medical nutrition therapy, physical examinations, cardiovascular screening blood tests, diabetes screenings, abdominal aneurysm screenings, influenza and pneumococcal vaccines, hepatitis B vaccine administration, mammography screenings, pap smears and pelvic exam screenings, and bone mass measurement (Sec. 201).

• Appropriates $300 million for fiscal years 2008-2010 to create the Center for Comparative Effectiveness Research to conduct, support, and synthesize research to determine the outcomes, effectiveness, and appropriateness of health care services (Sec. 904).

• Authorizes the appropriation of $50 billion for each of fiscal years 2008 and 2009 to provide abstinence education, mentoring, counseling, and adult supervision to promote abstinence from sexual activity (Sec. 910).

Full Bill Text

Full Bill Text