July 9, 2007 
Congress Will Consider Extending SCHIP

As the U.S. Congress returns from a Fourth of July break and settles down for the July/August session, major debate is expected on whether to continue and expand the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), which provides health insurance to children in families too poor to buy private insurance but too well off to be on Medicaid. The Bush administration in its 2008 budget proposed to continue SCHIP but to increase funding for the program by $5 billion over the next five years, which is the amount expected to be needed to keep the current number of children enrolled in SCHIP. Congressional Democrats have vowed, however, to authorize an increase of $50 billion more for the program over the next five years, which would allow for a major expansion of the number of children with health insurance. The administration and some Republicans in Congress oppose any major increase in SCHIP as an opening wedge for universal health coverage and have pledged to oppose the Democratic increase.