| For Immediate Release October 25, 2007 |
For More Information Contact: Ed Shelleby (202) 662-3627 |
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Children’s Defense Fund (CDF) President Marian Wright Edelman issued the following comments in response to the House of Representatives failure to pass a new version of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) reauthorization bill by a veto-proof majority:
“Although this revised SCHIP bill is weaker than the previous bill that passed Congress with strong bipartisan support, it is still a step in the right direction, providing critically needed health coverage to more than one-third of America’s uninsured children,” said CDF President Marian Wright Edelman. “While today’s vote shows that Congressional support is growing, it is disappointing that too many Members of Congress are still standing with the President instead of standing with our nation’s needy children. This compromise bill will still leave more than six million children in America without the health coverage they need to survive and thrive — additional negotiations would harm children further. Members who vote against this small step forward need to reach down into their hearts and think about what they do stand for, because they certainly don’t stand for children.”
For more information on CDF’s campaign to provide health coverage to all children, please visit: www.childrensdefense.org/healthychild
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