[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 32 (Thursday, March 13, 1997)]
[House]
[Page H953]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        CHILDREN'S HEALTH CARE SHOULD TOP OUR LEGISLATIVE AGENDA

  (Ms. DeLAURO asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. DeLAURO. Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Children's Defense Fund 
released its annual state of America's children. The news is 
heartbreaking; 1 out of every 7 American children are living today 
without health insurance; 1 out of every 7 kids. It is a national 
disgrace. The vast majority of these kids live in families where one or 
both of their parents work. Their folks work hard and they play by the 
rules, but they are caught in the middle, not poor enough to qualify 
for Medicaid, but unable to afford private health insurance for their 
families.
  It is time for the Republican leadership to focus on this problem. 
There are 10 million reasons why we must do this: For the 10 million 
children in this country who are living without health insurance. But 
we only need one, the fact that the American people are counting on us 
to make this world a better place for their families.
  We cannot have healthy families without healthy kids. We need to 
address this crisis, we need to move this issue on to the top of the 
legislative agenda.

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