[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 18]
[Senate]
[Page 25351]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                                 SCHIP

  Mr. CASEY. Mr. President, I rise to talk about an issue we have 
debated for many months on the floor of the Senate. It has been debated 
in the other body, and it has been debated a lot of places across the 
country. The issue is children's health insurance.
  We have a vehicle in place to make sure that not only do the 6.5 
million children who are covered already under the program maintain 
their coverage all across the country, but in particular with this 
legislation, this bipartisan legislation, the Senate bill, which a 
couple of weeks ago we saw got 68 votes--the Presiding Officer and 
others in this body know it is hard to get 68 votes on anything, 
especially something as significant as children's health insurance. But 
that was a resounding vote in favor of a policy which will make sure we 
cover those 6.5 million children but add substantially to that to the 
point where this legislation would allow us to make sure 10 million 
American children have health insurance. We have a vehicle. We have a 
program that works. We have bipartisan consensus from across the board, 
even beyond parties. We have people who don't agree on much in 
legislation over the course of a year or two agreeing on this. There is 
strong support across America for it, certainly in my State of 
Pennsylvania, certainly in the State of New Jersey. But all across 
America we see support from virtually every corner.
  There is only one problem. Despite the bipartisan consensus which 
exists here and in the other body, the President has threatened and 
seems determined to veto this legislation. For the life of me, I can't 
understand that. I can't understand why the President would say that he 
supports reauthorizing the program, that he thinks the program is good 
and it works, but he will not support a bipartisan consensus. This 
makes no sense, especially since States across America have had this 
kind of insurance in place for many years. In Pennsylvania, we have 
about 160,000 children covered right now, maybe a little more. We could 
increase that substantially over the next 5 years to add another 
140,000 or more. So instead of having 160,000 kids covered, we get 
300,000 children in Pennsylvania covered.
  We know this doesn't end the discussion. We know there will still be 
children who won't be covered. Even if we get to that 10 million 
number, we know there will be millions of children, maybe as many as 5 
million, who are not covered. So we can't rest just on the foundation 
of this legislation.
  I plead with the President, don't veto legislation that will provide 
10 million American children with the health care they should have, the 
health care their parents and their communities have a right to expect 
but also the health care for children in the dawn of their lives which, 
beyond what it does for that child, which is obvious, I think there is 
a strong moral argument, but even beyond that argument, what this will 
do for the American economy years into the future.
  These children, if they get the kind of health care and early 
learning we all support, will do better in school. They will achieve 
more. They will learn more. And if they learn more, they can earn more. 
We know there are CEOs across the country who understand this 
investment in our children is an investment in our economic future.
  I join a lot of people in this Chamber in both parties who worked 
very hard to get 68 votes for this legislation. There was a lot of 
tough negotiating in the Senate Finance Committee, where the vote, I 
think, was 17 to 4 way back in the summer. There is the work that has 
been done in the House and the work that has been done between both 
bodies to get this right.
  I ask anyone who has an interest in this legislation across the 
country--or anywhere someone is following this issue--to urge the 
President not to veto children's health insurance that will cover 10 
million American children.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. CASEY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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