Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2009

Floor Speech

CHILDREN'S HEALTH INSURANCE PROGRAM REAUTHORIZATION ACT OF 2009 -- (Senate - January 28, 2009)

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Mrs. SHAHEEN. Madam President, I do not wish to speak to the amendments on the floor but to the underlying bill, and I rise today to express my strong support for H.R. 2, the Children's Health Insurance Program Improvements Act.

Providing children access to doctors and medicine is absolutely critical to a good start in life, but there are many children in New Hampshire and across this country whose families can't afford private health insurance but who are also not eligible to receive help such as Medicaid. It is the future of these children that we are considering this week on the floor of the Senate.

This is an issue that is near and dear to me. After children's health insurance was first passed--and I appreciate the efforts of so many people in this body to get that done--I was the Governor of New Hampshire, and I tried to start a children's health insurance program in New Hampshire, but the State legislature was unwilling to fund New Hampshire's share of the cost. I believed the program was important enough to keep working on it, and so we secured a waiver to allow private foundations to put up what would be the State's share. The program was successful and the State's share was funded in the next budget because there were so many families in New Hampshire who had received health insurance for their children, they came to the legislature and the legislature agreed to support it.

After enacting New Hampshire's children's health insurance program, tens
of thousands of New Hampshire children have obtained affordable coverage through this program. I have seen firsthand what a difference the program can make for middle-class working families.

Consider the case of Quint Stires from Keene, NH. I had the pleasure of meeting Quint on the campaign trail last year. Quint had advanced thyroid cancer, and he had to quit his job after becoming too sick to work. Then his wife also lost her job. Of course, they lost their health insurance. But, fortunately, in this instance, in the toughest of circumstances, Quint and his wife didn't have to worry about how they were going to provide health care for their two sons. They had New Hampshire's children's health insurance.

Unfortunately, Quint has since passed away, and my thoughts go out to his family. But I think it is important to share his story as we talk about this children's health insurance legislation on the floor of the Senate because sometimes we lose sight of the individuals the legislation we enact is really going to help. The Children's Health Insurance Program offered help to the Stires family when they needed it the most, and we have the opportunity to make sure other families have the same safety net available to them.

Due to the uncertain economy we face today, there are going to be many more parents and children in tough circumstances. Families and businesses are being forced to cut back on just about everything. People are losing their jobs, and employers are struggling to offer health care, leaving a rising number of Americans in need of affordable coverage options for their kids.

The legislation we are considering reauthorizes children's health insurance through September 2013 and provides enough funding to cover an additional 4 million uninsured children across the country. In New Hampshire, the estimate is that over two-thirds of our uninsured children are eligible for either Medicaid or children's health insurance, what we call New Hampshire Healthy Kids Silver. The Senate legislation increases funding for outreach so we can identify eligible children and enroll them, it streamlines the signup process, it provides incentives to States that achieve enrollment benchmarks, and it provides enough funding to cover every eligible child in New Hampshire.

For those who are as concerned about our mounting national debt as I am, the costs of this bill are fully offset through an increase in the Federal tobacco tax. Moreover, it is simply more cost-effective to get preventive health care for children than to have them treated in emergency rooms or to suffer from permanent conditions due to lack of care.

Today, more than 76,000 children in New Hampshire have health coverage, either through Medicaid or through our Children's Health Insurance Program. But I know we can do better because all children need regular checkups, all children need access to medicine, all children deserve a shot at preventing disease later in life, and all families need to know they can provide for their kids without going into insurmountable debt.

I am pleased that the Senate is considering this very important legislation so early in the 111th Congress. I believe it reflects our commitment to the children of this country. I urge my colleagues to support the legislation.

I yield the floor.

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