Texas' CHIP Progress Now Depends on Congress!
Author:
Anne Dunkelberg /(512) 320-0222 x 102
July 9, 2007
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The 2007 Texas legislative session saw important victories for Texas children. Legislators improved the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) program by restoring annual renewal, eliminating delays in coverage, and streamlining the enrollment process so that more children can receive affordable, cost-effective health care. None of this matters, however, unless Congress reauthorizes the federal CHIP block grant at a high enough funding level to implement these improvements. The House and Senate have preliminarily budgeted the necessary $50 billion for the State Children's Health Insurance Program, known in Washington as SCHIP, in their 2008 Budget Resolutions. The Administration, however, has not been enthusiastic about funding the full $50 billion. Over the next two weeks, House and Senate committees will begin writing the bills that determine how much money states can get for CHIP in the next five years, including whether the necessary $50 billion is budgeted.