I Don’t Hate America!

After a Bush presidency where an expansion on a successful childrens’ health insurance program was not worth an increase in tobacco taxes, Obama will be able to decide in his first days in office if he believes in this same logic.

What I find most interesting is according to the CDC, tobacco is responsible for the deaths of 5 million people worldwide every year.  Raising taxes would give one way to curb its use to those who are needing a reason to quit.  This is similar to what happened when oil prices sky rocketed last year.  When gas prices were at all time highs, Americans drove much less and public transportation was used much more (Smackers, 2008). This gave us an opportunity to call out for alternative fuel sources, use energy efficient sources, and require politicians to endorse it in their speeches.

According to UPI, the SCHIP bill calls for a “61-cent-per-pack increase in the federal cigarette tax.”  The Cigar Aficionado, a website I do not regularly read, posts that “legislation would impose a revised federal excise tax on large cigars—52.4 percent, with a maximum tax cap of 40 cents per cigar.”  I am not sure if this includes the Strawberry flavored Swisher Sweet’s at this time.

From Tim Walz press release:

WALZ SAYS CHILDRENS HEALTHCARE EXPANSION FISCALLY AND MORALLY RESPONSIBLE

Twice vetoed by Bush, SCHIP expansion passes House with wide bipartisan majority on its way to Obama’s desk

(Washington, D.C.) – Today, Congressman Tim Walz voted with a bipartisan majority of his colleague to expand the State Children’s Health Insurance Program, providing 11 million American children with health coverage. Growing unemployment, which reached 7.2 percent in the 4th quarter of 2008, combined with the housing crises mean that more children will need health insurance than when President Bush first vetoed the plan in 2007.

“During these tough economic times, when millions of middle-class Americans are losing their jobs and health care, it is essential that health care coverage for children be expanded without further delay,” said Walz. “This bill is the best of both worlds – it is fully paid for and insures an additional 4 million children who are not covered today.”

“This bill makes it easier for those 11 million kids to get preventative care and for their parents to reduce health care costs by replacing emergency room care with access to critical preventive health services,” continued Walz. “I believe that expanding health care coverage for children is a powerful statement about the value that we as a country put on our children’s health. Children’s healthcare is not just another detail — it is critical to strengthening the American family, and it deserves our continued attention. With the Senate’s help, this bill will land on President Obama’s desk in the next few weeks.”

The State Children’s Health Insurance Program was created under a Republican Congress in 1997, and has been wildly successful at providing health care for children whose parents earn too much to qualify for Medicaid, but not enough to afford private insurance. SCHIP is a program any fiscal conservative can support — it costs less than $3.50 a day to cover a child through the program, and it saves money in the long run, as providing children with routine preventive care means that families no longer have to rely on emergency rooms for their medical care.

Under SCHIP, private health care plans run by private insurers work with individual states to cover uninsured children. That innovative public-private partnership is the reason this legislation has been endorsed by America’s Health Insurance Plans, the American Medical Association and the American Hospital Association. Those groups recognize that this program is good for the health care industry, as well as being good for America’s kids.

The expanded SCHIP program passed today by the House of Representatives:

Ensures health care coverage for 11 million American children. The bill renews and improves the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), reauthorizing it for four and a half years – through FY 2013. The bill ensures that the 7 million children who currently participate in SCHIP continue to receive coverage. It also extends coverage to 4 million uninsured children, according to the nonpartisan CBO.

Improves care and strengthens funding. The bill invests billions in new funding over five years in SCHIP in order to strengthen SCHIP’s financing; increase health care coverage for low-income, uninsured children; and improve the quality of health care children receive.

Provides resources for states to reach uninsured children who are today eligible for SCHIP and Medicaid but not yet enrolled. Two-thirds of uninsured children are currently eligible for coverage through SCHIP or Medicaid – but better outreach and adequate funding are needed to identify and enroll them. This bill gives states the resources and incentives necessary to reach and cover millions of uninsured children who are eligible for, but not enrolled in, SCHIP and Medicaid.

Improves SCHIP benefits – ensuring dental coverage and mental health parity. Under the bill, quality dental coverage will now be provided to all children enrolled in SCHIP. The bill also ensures that states will offer mental health services on par with medical and surgical benefits covered under SCHIP.

Improves outreach tools to streamline enrollment of eligible children. The bill provides $100 million in grants for new outreach activities to states, local governments, schools, community-based organizations, safety-net providers and others.

Improves the quality of care for low-income children. The bill establishes a new initiative to develop and implement pediatric health quality measures and improve state reporting of quality data.

IDHA Side Notes:

-  IDHA is still around so please don’t delete us from your blogroll just yet.  We currently have one blogger on staff, but have some plans in the works.  It may be slow, but we are still around.

- Close friend of IDHA and also a personal/political blogger, Chad Larimer recently lost his mother to illness.  Our deepest condolences go out to him and his family through this rough time.  We ask that the blogosphere keep Chad in their thoughts and prayers.

Notwithstanding the Bush administration’s bull-headed ideology (maybe just blindness to the issue), the Democrat-led Congress is trying again to extend children’s health benefits.

Earlier this week, Rep. John Kline, R, MN-2, came out with a column full of gloom and doom scenarios about the bill. It didn’t take long for Rep. Tim Walz, DFL, MN-1, to answer with a column of his own shedding daylight on Kline’s rhetoric such as a claim that S-CHIP legislation provides give-aways to illegal immigrants. What is really sad about this whole state of affairs is that Bush, Kline and others shouldn’t even need a Democrat to tell them they’re wrong; GOP Sen. Chuck Grassley, Iowa, has blamed false gloom and doom comments like those from Kline on “intellectual dishonesty.” Wow; that’s brutal.

A letter to the Red Wing Republican Eagle by Cannon Falls’ Joy Jacques shows frustration with Kline’s priorities:

Can someone tell me why we continue to throw an unlimited amount of money into Iraq, but we can’t help American kids get health insurance?

Republicans failed us yet again when they refused to override Bush’s veto of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program.

It’s obvious that Republicans like John Kline will approve endless sums of taxpayer money to conduct war, and for their own pet projects, yet claim that funding SCHIP is too costly.

These Republicans say nothing about the social costs of denying millions of children access to insurance. They say nothing as they spend $12 billion a month in Iraq. They say nothing when their colleagues spend millions on pork-barrel projects.

They spend and spend, but they won’t fund our kids and help our families.

Does your family have job and health insurance security? Many middle-class families are one catastrophe away from losing what they have worked so hard to achieve.

Our family experienced this. After a costly surgery my husband was laid off by the company that had employed him for 10 years. Our family faced his lost income yet we could continue our insurance for $800 per month.

That’s a lot of money for after you’ve just lost your job.

Policy makers seem more afraid of “socialized medicine” and “Hillarycare” than in dealing with a broken system. All we hear are scare tactics from the Republicans and insurance companies.

It’s long past time we stopped giving these people the benefit of the doubt. Republicans in Washington like John Kline have stopped representing their constituents.

They continue to support a president and an administration that have done nothing but lead our country closer and closer to bankruptcy and ruin.

Let’s send them a clear message. American families should be their first priority.

Reading this letter coupled with the news that Tim Walz plans to hold another town hall meeting with constituents makes me wonder when and if Kline ever intends to hold one.

At the meeting in Winona last weekend, Walz made it clear to the attendees that that type of gathering is one of the most fundamental principles of democracy.

“I would argue it’s a requirement of our citizenship to engage in these discussions,” Walz told the crowd. “I would also argue that it’s a requirment of the job in representing you. It’s critically important that I provide a forum that has as easy and unrestricted access as possible to air your points of view and your concerns.”

Kline’s record of constituent outreach is anything but “easy” or “unrestricted” to constituents. When Kline does invite citizen input the medium is usually a “tele-townhall meeting” which is by its nature restricted. If Walz is able to provide stellar constituent service after fewer than 11 months in office, why does Kline continue to lack in that department?

The voters of the Second Congressional District have sent John Kline to Washington three times. I would certainly think that after five consecutive years of service to the district he ought to feel comfortable enough to have an open and honest conversation with constituents. Or is he comfortable?

Come on, John, how does avoiding open and honest discussion with the public give us a reason to not replace you with Steve Sarvi next November?

Today in Congress, the House of Representatives has under its consideration H.R. 3161, a bill dealing with agriculture spending. Having already passed the policy-centered Farm Bill last week, H.R 3161 would appropriate $91 billion on agriculture.

For about the past three hours the House has been debating an amendment offered by Rep. Phil Gingrey (R-GA) which would reduce the appropriation by $50,000 to the office of the Secretary of Agriculture.

Almost immediately the Democrats announced they would accept the amendment. Regardless of the non-controversial nature of the amendment, the House Republicans have used this time to debate State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) appropriations which will likely be brought to the House floor later this week.

Yes, during debate on an amendment about agriculture, they are talking about health care.

Much like common friggin’ sense would dictate, House rules state that debate must be germane to the subject under consideration, and Speaker Pro Tempore Rep. Ellen Tauscher (D-CA) has reminded members of this rule countless times. One bloviating member in particular, Rep. John Shaddeg (R-AZ), didn’t like that the rule was applied to him and moved to appeal the decision of the chair.

Ugh.

Members are now in the middle of a roll call vote on this!

“Considering the cost of the clerk, air conditioning, and lights to keep this place open we have spent more money to hear this rhetoric than what is saved in this amendment,” Rep. Dave Obey (D-WI), House Appropriations Chairman, said.

House Republicans today are doing nothing today but grandstanding on the taxpayer’s dime. It’s downright shameful that a party which touts “fiscal responsibility!!!” like an ice-cream man would tout “soft serve cones with sprinkles!!!” would do this.

And according to all the conservative talking heads, it’s the DEMOCRAT LEADERSHIP’S fault that nothing is getting done in Congress? Spare me that song and dance, please!

If I were there I would rise and move the previous question.

Someday. Hee hee.