Senate Panel Approves Expansion of Children's Health Insurance Program Despite Veto Threat

[babylonsister]

Oooh, the dim one's not going to like this.

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/2007/07/senate_panel_oks_child_health.php

Senate panel OKs child health bill

Senate Panel Approves Expansion of Children's Health Insurance Program Despite Veto Threat

KEVIN FREKING
AP News

Jul 19, 2007 13:54 EDT

Brushing aside threats of a presidential veto, a Senate committee on Thursday overwhelmingly approved a five-year, $35 billion expansion of a children's health insurance program that would be financed through higher tobacco taxes.

A majority of Republicans on the Senate Finance Committee joined all of the committee's Democrats in voting to reauthorize the State Children's Health Insurance Program, which subsidizes insurance for children and some adults with incomes too high for Medicaid but not high enough to afford private insurance. The vote was 17-4.

"There are more kids without health insurance than there are kids in the first and second grades," said Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., the committee chairman. "Americans overwhelmingly support getting kids covered."

The additional spending approved by the committee would bring total SCHIP funding to $60 billion over five years _ double what the administration has proposed. The tax on a pack of cigarettes would increase by 61 cents to help pay for the expansion. Taxes on cigars and chewing tobacco also would jump.

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[flamin lib]

1. Are there enough votes for an over-ride? nt