The CHAMP bill would provide health care to as many as 12 million kids by renewing a major piece of health care legislation, the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), which is currently set to expire on September 30^th of this year.  This program, known in California as Healthy Families, is an important partnership between the federal and state government to provide healthcare to children whose parents either cannot afford insurance or who hold jobs that lack healthcare benefits.  The legislation preserves the coverage of the six million children already covered by SCHIP and extends coverage to as many as six million additional children who qualify for the program but are not currently enrolled.  In addition to provide healthcare coverage for millions of children, the CHAMP Act includes important fixes to Medicare to ensure that senior citizens and people with disabilities can continue to see their doctors and that Medicare remains solvent. 

 

In addition to the CHAMP Act’s provisions improving and expanding healthcare for seniors, children and the disabled, Congresswoman Capps’ legislation allowing for the establishment of a County Organized Health System in Ventura County (H.R. 665) was included in the bill.  This provision would expand Managed Medi-Cal into Ventura and Merced counties through a system known as a County Organized Health System (COHS). A County Organized Health System is a locally-operated managed care organization that provides services to all of the Medi-Cal beneficiaries within a given county or counties.  It avoids costly duplication of multiple plan administrative costs, multiple provider administrative guidelines, and the additional marketing costs of two or more plans.

The State of California is mandating that more of its Counties - including Ventura - adopt a managed care approach to providing Medi-Cal services.  The purpose of this shift to managed care is to maintain eligibility for essential services while containing costs and promoting operating efficiencies.  The County of Ventura already has the approval of the State to implement the COHS model, and Congresswoman Capps' legislation will provide the necessary federal approval. Federal legislation is necessary to increase the number of counties and people who can participate in managed Medicaid. 

 

Supervisor Long serves as Chair of the Ventura County Medical Center (VCMC) Hospital Oversight Committee.

 

 

 

 

Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of America’s children and America’s seniors.

 

This bill before us today is the reason I came to Congress – to continue my work in improving healthcare for children.

 

It is an embarrassment that our country has failed the millions of children in working families who have no healthcare coverage.

 

And today we will undo our wrong.

 

Through our fiscally responsible package, we will ensure that millions of eligible children will be able to:

·        access primary care,

·        manage chronic illness

·        avoid unnecessary absences in school

·        and grow into healthy, productive adults

 

And how fitting, that at the same time, we will protect our seniors by preventing the looming 10% cut in Medicare physician reimbursements.

 

I have been disheartened by the breathless misguided and false arguments our colleagues in the minority have been using to oppose this bill.

 

Ron Brownstein put it well in today's LA times -- the arguments put forth by President Bush and Republicans against this bill are hypocritical and amount to not much more than, as he put it, "stealing healthcare from babies."  

 

Harsh, but basically true because that is the end result of their proposal - the continued subsidization of wealthy insurance companies and millions of chidren without health care.

 

We have a choice today.

 

We can ignore the millions of children who lack access to even the most basic health care services.

 

Or we can take the moral high ground and pass this bill, which will provide health care to those who need it most.

 

I’d like to commend Chairman Dingell, Chairman Pallone, Chairman Rangel and Chairman Stark for their hard work on this bill.

 

I urge all my colleagues to vote yes on the CHAMP Act and I yield back.