[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 37 (Monday, March 5, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Page S2630]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mrs. CLINTON (for herself, Ms. Snowe, Mr. Bingaman, Mr. Nelson 
        of Florida, Mr. Kerry, Mr. Durbin, and Ms. Cantwell):
  S. 764. A bill to amend title IXX and XXI of the Social Security Act 
to permit States the option of coverage of legal immigrants under the 
Medicaid Program and the State children's health insurance program 
(SCHIP); to the Committee on Finance.
  Mrs. CLINTON. Mr. President, today I am introducing the Legal 
Immigrant Children's Health Improvement Act, legislation that would 
again allow States to use Federal funds to provide critical healthcare 
services to pregnant women and children. I want to thank Senator Snowe 
for partnering with me on this bipartisan effort.
  All across New York and America, legal immigrants work hard, pay 
taxes, and exercise their civic responsibilities. I see examples of 
this every day in New York. They fight for our country in the military. 
They contribute to our Nation's competitiveness and economic growth. 
They help revitalize neighborhoods and small towns across the country. 
And most are fiercely proud to call themselves Americans.
  Yet, in 1996, Congress denied safety net services to legal immigrants 
who had been in the country for less than five years. Today, Senator 
Snowe and I are introducing legislation that would take a first step 
towards correcting that injustice. The Legal Immigrant Children's 
Health Improvement Act will allow States to use Federal funds to make 
the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) and Medicaid 
available to legal immigrant pregnant women and children who are within 
the five year ban.
  There is tremendous need for this legislation. An Urban Institute 
study found that children of immigrants under the age of 6 years are 
two times as likely to be in fair or poor health compared to same-age 
children of natives, whereas 6 to 17 year old children of immigrants 
are almost three times as likely to be in fair or poor health. While 
most children receive preventative medical care, such as vaccines and 
routine dental care, too often immigrant children do not. They are 
forced to forego treatment and can ultimately end up seeking needed 
care in emergency rooms--the least cost-effective place to provide 
care. To make matters worse, minor illnesses, which would be easily 
treated by a pediatrician, may snowball into life-threatening 
conditions.
  And women without access to prenatal care are four times more likely 
to deliver low birth weight infants and seven times more likely to 
deliver prematurely than women who receive prenatal care, according to 
the Institute of Medicine. All of these health outcomes are costly to 
society and to the individuals involved.
  Today, 16 States, including New York and Maine, use State funds to 
provide healthcare services to legal immigrant pregnant women and 
children within the five year waiting period. An additional six States 
provide some coverage to either pregnant woman or children.
  The Legal Immigrant Children's Health Improvement has been endorsed 
by a wide range of organizations including Asian American Justice 
Center, Catholic Health Association, National Immigration Law Center, 
National Health Law Program, Families USA, and National Council of La 
Raza and I want to thank them for their support.
  This year Congress will reauthorize the SCHIP program and it is my 
hope that we will finally eliminate the unfair ban on legal immigrant 
children and pregnant woman by incorporating the Immigrant Children's 
Health Improvement Act into the reauthorization of SCHIP. I look 
forward to working with Senator Snowe and my colleagues to enact this 
bill into law.
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