News Releases for February 2003
February 25, 2003
Contact: Lance Gaebe
(701) 328-2200
Governors Look to Congress to Preserve S-Chip Funds
O’Bannon, Hoeven Call for Bipartisan Compromise on Children’s Health Insurance Program
WASHINGTON, D.C. - As the nation’s governors gathered here for their Winter Meeting Feb. 22-25, National Governors Association (NGA) Human Resources Committee Chairman Indiana Gov. Frank O’Bannon and Vice Chairman North Dakota Gov. John Hoeven renewed their call for Congress to quickly approve a bipartisan compromise to protect funding for the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (S-CHIP).
Without agreement, states are scheduled to lose as much as $2.7 billion in unexpended S-CHIP money. In October 2002, $1.2 billion reverted to the federal treasury and $1.5 billion is scheduled to be taken back Oct. 1, 2003. The loss of funding would cause states, already strained by billions of dollars in budget shortfalls, to make significant cuts in enrollment and prevent states from providing health care to currently uninsured children.
S-CHIP was created under the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 to provide states with the ability to design comprehensive and meaningful health insurance coverage for uninsured children. The program began distributing $40 billion to states over 10 years in 1997.
Congress is considering a bipartisan compromise supported by the House Energy and Commerce Committee and the Senate Finance Committee. The proposal would provide stable health care coverage for children by keeping the $2.7 billion in S-CHIP.
On January 9, Govs. O’Bannon and Hoeven sent a letter to the Senate and House leadership urging a compromise.
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