MELLOW BLASTS BUSH FOR TARGETING UNINSURED KIDS HARRISBURG, August 23, 2007 – Senate Democratic Leader Robert J. Mellow today harshly criticized the Bush Administration for authoring new federal rules that would potentially disqualify thousands of children from eligibility for low-cost health insurance coverage. “I am dismayed and disgusted that President Bush would have his bureaucracy cook rules that may cut health insurance for children from working families,” Mellow said. “I urge Pennsylvania’s federal lawmakers to stand up and fight this injustice before any child in Pennsylvania is affected.” Under the proposed new directive from the federal Department of Health and Human Services, states could not provide expanded coverage to children from lower middle class families unless they enroll at least 95 percent of eligible children under 200 percent of the poverty level. The new federal rules would also require children to go one year without health insurance before they are able to enroll. Pennsylvania currently has a six-month uninsured period. Pointing to a nationwide 72 percent enrollment level, Mellow accused the Bush Administration of creating a statistical compliance hurdle that few, if any, states will be able to scale. In Pennsylvania, the state expanded its successful CHIP program this year to “Cover all Kids.” Under the program, children from low-income working families can receive free insurance coverage. Working Families with higher income levels pay small premiums ranging from $38 to $60 per child. “There is no attempt to ignore eligible kids who are not enrolled,” Mellow said. “Public health agencies, insurance carriers, schools and other organizations have worked hard promoting CHIP and trying to reach out to these low-income families. We will continue to seek out and reach out to these families. “While Pennsylvania has a higher enrollment percent (93 percent) than the national average, it remains unrealistic and mean-spirited for our federal government to set unreachable enrollment goals. Adding insult to injury, shutting out children who would benefit by the expanded eligibility levels because their state cannot achieve unrealistic enrollment numbers solves nothing and helps no one.” As troubling, Mellow said the one-year waiting period is a real hardship for struggling working families and that it exposes families to a broad financial liability window. “Making families wait an extra six more months for insurance makes no sense whatsoever,” Mellow said. “With this in place, children under the age of two would have to be uninsured for a full year before being eligible for important health services such as well-baby visits and important immunizations. The lives of children and families will be put in jeopardy as a result of this short-sighted policy.” Mellow sponsored the Senate version of legislation that expanded the state’s CHIP program. The program was enacted in Pennsylvania under the late Gov. Robert P. Casey in 1992. Modeled after Pennsylvania’s success, the federal government established CHIP nationwide under former President Bill Clinton in 1997.