[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 127 (Friday, August 3, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1713-E1714]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         CHILDREN'S HEALTH AND MEDICARE PROTECTION ACT OF 2007

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                           HON. RUSH D. HOLT

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, August 1, 2007

  Mr. HOLT. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of our Nation's 
children, a strong and secure Medicare program, and for passage of the 
Children's Health and Medicare Protection Act of 2007, CHAMP Act, H.R. 
3162.
  More than 6.6 million children today have health insurance because of 
the creation a decade ago of the State Children's Health Insurance 
Program SCHIP. However, these children will lose their access to good, 
affordable

[[Page E1714]]

health insurance if the Congress does not act to reauthorize the SCHIP 
program by September 30, 2007.
  Today, the House will vote on the CHAMP Act, H.R. 3162, which will 
reauthorize and expand the SCHIP program to ensure even more children 
have access to the health care their parents cannot afford or who work 
in jobs that do not provide health care benefits. The CHAMP Act will 
provide 11 million children with health care, by expanding SCHIP to 
include an additional 5 million children who currently have no health 
insurance.
  The CHAMP Act also provides the tools needed and creates incentives 
for States to reach the millions of children who are eligible but not 
currently enrolled in the SCHIP program. The bill ensures that children 
have 12 months of continuous eligibility, so their parents do not 
frequently have to complete a complex renewal process. Additionally, 
dental coverage and parity for mental health will also be provided to 
children under the CHAMP Act.
  According to the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, more than 44 
million Americans lack health care coverage, including more than 14 
percent of New Jersey's residents. Many of these Americans are 
children. It is simply unconscionable that in our country millions of 
children are uninsured.
  The SCHIP program is strongly supported by our Nation's governors who 
have managed the State-run programs over the past decade and understand 
that SCHIP allows States to cover low-income children who lack health 
insurance in families of the working poor.
  New Jersey uses its SCHIP funds to run a program called FamilyCare. 
Our State is a leader in extending FamilyCare eligibility and currently 
125,000 children as well as 85,000 low income-parents are enrolled in 
New Jersey's program. Without SCHIP all of these residents of New 
Jersey would again be uninsured.
  The CHAMP Act will allow States, like New Jersey, to continue set 
income eligibility for the SCHIP program. Because the cost of living is 
so high in New Jersey, it is important that our State has the 
flexibility needed to establish realistic eligibility guidelines.
  Additionally, the CHAMP Act will allow New Jersey to continue to 
enroll parents along with their children. According to research by the 
Institute of Medicine of the National Academies of Sciences, one highly 
effective way of boosting coverage among low-income children is to 
broaden health insurance to their parents. Currently, New Jersey is one 
of nine States that covers low-income parents.
  Because the new Democratic majority is committed to balanced budgets 
and opposed to deficit spending, this bill pays for this historic 
commitment to our Nation's children with an appropriate increase in the 
Federal tobacco tax and reductions to the overpayments that have been 
paid to the privately run Medicare Advantage plans. Contrary to their 
euphemistic name, these plans have not been so advantageous for our 
Nation's seniors.
  According to the Campaign for Tobacco-free Kids, the 45 cent-per-pack 
increase in the tobacco tax that is included in the CHAMP Act will 
result in 1,381,000 less children who will become smokers. This will 
improve their health and result in long-term healthcare savings of 
$32.4 billion, 669,000 fewer smoking related deaths and 171,800 fewer 
newborn children harmed by smoking over the next 5 years.
  Further, by reducing overpayments to the privately run Medicare 
Advantage plans, the CHAMP Act increases Medicare's solvency, and helps 
protect Medicare beneficiaries from higher premiums.
  For our Nation's seniors the CHAMP Act makes much needed improvements 
to Medicare. I am pleased the CHAMP Act contains a provision I wrote 
when I introduced the Helping Fill the Medicare Rx Gap Act, H.R. 2058, 
to include costs incurred by AIDS Drug Assistance Programs, ADAPs, in 
calculating a Medicare Part D beneficiary's true out-of-pocket, Troop, 
costs. Medicare Part D pays 75 percent of a beneficiary's drug costs 
until their expenses reach $2,400. Part D then stops paying and 
individual beneficiaries must pay for all of their drugs until total 
expenses reach $5,451. This leaves a coverage gap of $3,051--the 
``donut hole.'' ``True out-of-pocket'' costs, Troop in the donut hole 
determine when a beneficiary becomes eligible for catastrophic 
coverage.
  Individuals suffering from HIV and AIDS need help. By including ADAP 
costs in calculating out-of-pocket expenses, we make them eligible 
sooner for help with their prescription drugs and we fix a loophole in 
Medicare Part D that discriminates against HIV and AIDS victims.
  Additionally, under this bill the Medicare Part D late enrollment 
penalty for beneficiaries eligible for the Low-Income Subsidy program 
is eliminated and our Nation's seniors will be allowed to change their 
Part D plan during the year to meet their prescription needs. It also 
reduces the discriminatory copayments that Medicare charged for mental 
health services to the standard 20 percent copayment and adds 
additional mental health providers to Medicare so services are more 
easily available. Under this legislation, Medicare beneficiaries will 
have increased access to preventative services. The CHAMP Act also 
ensures that seniors have access to world class doctors by blocking a 
devastating cut in Medicare physician payments over the next 2 years.
  The CHAMP Act is supported by the AARP, the American Medical 
Association, the Catholic Health Association, the National Rural Health 
Association, the American Hospital Association, the American Nurses 
Association, Families USA, the National Partnership for Women and 
Families, Children's Defense Fund, Child Welfare League of America, and 
the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare. All of 
these organizations understand that the CHAMP Act will ensure more 
American children have health insurance and that Medicare remains 
strong for decades to come.
  There are 11 million reasons to vote for this bill, each one a child 
who will move out of the ranks of the uninsured with the health care 
provided in the CHAMP Act. Medicare beneficiaries will also see 
important improvements to their benefits. A measure of a Nation's 
greatness is how it treats its most vulnerable citizens. By making 
health insurance available for 11 million children, we live up to our 
moral obligation to keep children healthy and we make our society 
stronger. The CHAMP Act is historic legislation and I implore the 
President to drop his objections to this bill and join us in ensuring 
more Americans are healthy.

                          ____________________