Washington, D.C. - Congressman David Price (D-NC) today voted to provide health insurance to 11 million children in the United States. The State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) Reauthorization bill (H.R. 2) passed the House with a strong, bipartisan vote and will now move to the Senate for consideration.

"Today's vote will go a long way toward reducing the number of children who go without health coverage in America," Price said. "I strongly support SCHIP and understand the important role it has played in providing health care to low-income children in North Carolina and around the country."

Pictured:Congressman Price met today with Governor Beverly Perdue, Congressman Bob Etheridge and other members of the North Carolina Congressional Delegation to discuss children's health insurance and the need for an economic stimulus bill.

The bill would renew and improve SCHIP by preserving healthcare coverage for the 7 million children currently covered by SCHIP and extending coverage to 4 million uninsured children who are currently eligible for, but not enrolled in, SCHIP and Medicaid.

Additionally, the bill would provide quality dental coverage to all children enrolled in SCHIP and would ensure that states offer mental health services on par with medical and surgical coverage under SCHIP. The bill is fully paid-for with offsets in the budget, so it will not contribute to the deficit.

Price joined many of his House colleagues in voting for a similar expansion of children's health coverage in the last Congress. But despite bipartisan majorities in the House and Senate, President Bush vetoed the bill twice.

"This vote was a long time coming, and when our new President is sworn in next Tuesday, we can be sure that this bill will be enacted into law. That will be a great day for these 11 million children and their families, and it will represent a significant down payment on our goal of ensuring that all Americans have access to affordable health insurance."

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