Mr. President, today we are voting on the reauthorization of a program that has wide support in our country and that has reduced the number of uninsured children nationwide by over six million. In fact, CHIP has helped lower the rate of non-insurance among low-income children by one-third since its enactment in 1997. That is a huge accomplishment, and has helped address a problem in our country that is unacceptable—the millions of uninsured families.

In my home state of Wisconsin, CHIP, known as BadgerCare, provides health insurance for over 67,000 families. Wisconsin has done an incredible job of covering uninsured children as well as their parents, and the positive effects of this program are felt at schools, in the workforce, and at home. This bill helps support Wisconsin’s efforts and provides low-income families in my state with better access to preventive care, primary care, and affordable care. The end result is healthier families. BadgerCare is vital to the well-being of many families in Wisconsin and I am very pleased that this bill supports the program in my state, including Wisconsin’s choice to cover parents of CHIP and Medicaid children.
We know from numerous reports that when we cover parents, we bring more uninsured children into the program as well. States like Wisconsin have proven time and again that covering parents means covering more kids. I worked hard with my colleagues and the Senate Finance Committee to make sure that Wisconsin could keep families in the CHIP program, and I am very pleased that those efforts have paid off.

This legislation is not perfect. I would like to be voting on a more expansive package today that would offer health care access to more children and families. I am very disappointed that this legislation does not include language that would allow access to the program for legal immigrants. Unfortunately, it appears that, because of Republican opposition to this policy, legal immigrant children will continue to have to wait five years before they become eligible for CHIP and Medicaid. I will do my best to help change the discriminatory policy in the future.

Despite the flaws in this legislation, the CHIP reauthorization bill marks an important step forward in getting coverage to those who need it. I will support this bill’s final passage, and I hope the President will reconsider his ill-advised decision to veto it. I look forward to the day that everyone in our country has access to the basic right of health care.