President Bush said, "members of Congress are putting health coverage for poor children at risk so they can score political points in Washington."

Dear readers, please excuse me a moment and allow me to take this unusual liberty to respond here directly to President Bush myself. I'll be back with you shortly:

"Mr. Bush, this isn't about political points. For goodness sakes, why do you even say things like that? It turns out that many of us actually know something about health care, the costs, and the struggles that hardworking Americans have when trying to pay for it. Apparently, you are trying to pull the wool over our eyes. It's true that your reign as president is coming to an end, and we may feel weary from all the disagreements we have had with you in the last six years. Although we're tired of our contests with you, Mr. Bush, this health care battle taps directly into our deepest values. It has everything to do with who we are, or, at least, who we strive to be on earth. Not only can't we support you on this, Mr. Bush, this is one argument with you that we can't walk away from. No, we can't turn the other cheek. The choice here is between life and death. Do you value death more than life? Believe it or not, Mr. Bush, we don't. We seek to lift our neighbors up. We don't like killing. As Americans, we really do care more about healing people than killing them. The battle in Washington D.C. this month is about health care for America's children! See, it's about healing children and protecting them from harm. We care deeply about that. We value it so much that we've even found a reliable way to pay for it. Stop fighting us on this. Unfortunately, Mr. Bush, you're currently smack dab on the wrong side of this fight. When this children's health care legislation comes across your desk later this week, you just need to sign it. Stop posturing. Just sign the bill."

OK, thanks for the detour, I'm back with you now. Here's the background...

Despite broad bipartisan support in Congress and the states, President Bush is threatening to veto the bill. If he does veto this children's health care bill, we need to shore up enough votes in the House of Representatives so that Congress can override Bush's threatened veto.

The White House is looking increasingly isolated on the issue. America's Health Insurance Plans, the largest insurance lobbying group, endorsed the measure yesterday, undercutting Bush's contention that the bill is a step away from private insurance and toward government-run health care.

"It repairs the safety net and is a major movement toward addressing the problems that states and governors have been trying to address, which is how to get access for children," said Karen Ignagni, the group's president. (Washington Post)

Bush claims that it is too expensive and would cover too many children.

Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-IL-05) notes that the cost of fully funding SCHIP is equivalent to that of only 41 days of fighting in Iraq.

That said, the lawmakers are not requiring a 41 day reprieve from the fighting in Iraq in order to pay for the children's medical care.

The bipartisan conference agreement would not add a dime to the budget deficit.

So, how is it to be paid for?

The same bill increases the tobacco tax to both offset the necessary costs of covering low-income, uninsured children and reduce teen smoking, creating long-term, positive health effects.

The increase in tobacco taxes is marginal. And, a June 2007 survey indicates the majority of American voters favor a 75-cent increase in the cigarette tax to fund children's health care.

Private plans typically use cost-sharing requirements, including deductibles and co-payments, to reduce health care utilization and control premium costs. These cost-sharing responsibilities can be particularly burdensome for families with low-wage workers. For example, workers with preferred provider organization, or PPO coverage, the most common plan arrangement, face on average an aggregate family deductible of $1,200 - 10 percent of the annual pre-tax income for a minimum wage worker. And, this amount does not include co-payments or co-insurance required at the point of service.

So, even if employers offer a health plan (remember, many don't), and even if low-wage workers can afford the premiums (many can't), then when all is said and done, the children of these employees still can't go to the doctor because the worker cannot afford the deductibles and co-pays.

Increasingly, doctors and hospitals are requiring that low-wage workers pay their deductibles and co-payments in cash before any medical service will be rendered - if they don't have the cash, they are sent away without the antibiotics or vaccinations for their children.

However, under SCHIP, total cost-sharing and premium amounts cannot exceed 5 percent of family income.

Don't American children deserve coverage that meets their medical and developmental needs and makes services economically accessible? Health care that they can actually use when they are sick, or to keep them from becoming sick?

Our bipartisan package makes some very important improvements to bring SCHIP back in line with its core mission....

The $35 billion we are investing in children's health coverage over the next five years is a drop in the bucket. It's one quarter of one percent of the $14 trillion that will be what will be spent on health care in the United States between now and 2012....

I appreciate very much the leadership that Chairman Baucus has provided. I thank him and Sen. Rockefeller for what they did to reach a bipartisan agreement. I also extend my sincere thanks to Sen. Hatch for being part of this effort. Sen. Hatch was the main sponsor of the bill that created the SCHIP program ten years ago, and his commitment to the ideals and fundamentals of the program is steadfast and the program is better for it. (Senator Grassley, Republican from Iowa, ranking member on the Senate Committee on Finance)

The Senate is likely to garner enough votes to override Bush's veto, though it is less clear whether a veto-proof majority exists in the House.

Asked if he would support a veto override, Sen. Orrin Hatch (Republican-UT) responded, "You bet your sweet bippy I will."

The number of uninsured children will likely increase unless this SCHIP reauthorization passes.

"We're talking about kids who basically don't have coverage," Sen. Hatch said. "I think the president's had some pretty bad advice on this."

Members of both parties countered that it is the president who is putting children's health in jeopardy.

They said most Americans, including many GOP governors and groups such as AARP, support the expansion of the program's enrollment to about 10 million children from 6.6 million now.

Some Republicans could face considerable pressure to defy the president when the measure comes to a vote. Lawmakers are confident of veto-proof passage in the Senate, but getting the required 290 votes in the House appears to be a long shot. (Washington Post)

The SCHIP program, implemented in 1997, now covers 4 million uninsured children.

Yet 10 million children still have no health insurance, even though 6 million of those qualify for Medicaid or SCHIP.

Despite what President Bush has said, the fight over children's health isn't about chalking up political points. It's about making sure millions of children have access to secure, quality health care.

You can easily help with just a phone call

Do you want to help? Call your congressman today!

1. Tell your congressman or congresswoman that you strongly urge a yes vote on the SCHIP legislation before the House today.
2. Tell your representative in the House that if Bush ends up vetoing the SCHIP bill, then, you also expect your congressman or congresswoman to override Bush's veto with an affirmative vote on the SCHIP bill when it returns to the House of Representatives.
3. Tell the legislators in Congress that you will personally hold them accountable for the health of ten million children.

Next time you are out and about in your community, look around you. Think about the numbers. One out of every seven children you will see are children that cannot go to the doctor today.

Make the phone call to your representative! That important phone call may also help you look into those sweet faces and those bright eyes with a clearer conscience.