Faith leaders celebrate the passage of child health legislation

President Obama signed historic children’s health legislation to provide healthcare coverage to an additional 4.1 million uninsured children.

February 05, 2009

Today, with millions of families at risk of losing their jobs and health coverage, President Obama signed historic children’s health legislation to provide healthcare coverage to an additional 4.1 million uninsured children.   This builds on the successful SCHIP program and provides vital support for Louisiana to cover more eligible children.

This significant step forward for families comes at a time when unemployment is skyrocketing and more Americans are losing their employer-sponsored health insurance.  Over the last year alone, over 1.2 million children have lost employer-based health insurance through their parents.

 “I am eternally grateful for SCHIP” says Ashanti George-Paulin, member of Greater King Solomon Baptist Church and an active leader in the Micah Project. “I do not have healthcare coverage through work and it has provided critical medical services for my son.”  Joshua George –Paulin, 11, was born with a severe speech impediment and SCHIP coverage allowed him to undergo years of speech therapy that his family would otherwise not have been able to afford. Today Joshua is healthy, a good student, and has excellent speech.  

The Micah Project and PICO LIFT have been working with faith communities and elected officials from both parties to cover uninsured children since 2006. Local leaders have traveled to Washington, DC six times to join with other organizations in the PICO National Network to give testimony and press members of Congress to pass strong child health legislation. PICO organizations have met with over 100 Members of Congress during the process. 

The passage of SCHIP will provide 207.7 million dollars of funding and allow Louisiana to move ahead with covering the 166,605 children without health insurance. The Micah Project and PICO LIFT will be urging Louisiana to use the new funds and tools in the federal legislation to reach out and enroll uninsured children.  Now that our federal officials have taken bold action to help children, our state needs to step to the plate to make sure that families can keep their children insured during this economic crisis. 
 

  “This is not a victory for Democrats or Republicans, but a huge victory for our families. Every child should be able to see a doctor when they are sick and access medical care.” says Rev. John T. White of Greater King Solomon Missionary Baptist Church, a member of The Micah Project. “While this is an important step forward, we need to keep going and gain other needed reforms to make healthcare insurance more affordable and accessible to our families.”

In the upcoming months The Micah Project, PICO LIFT along with the PICO National Network, will be pressing for broader healthcare reform that will be affordable, financially sustainable and cover everyone.

Note: Projected Louisiana allotments under CHIPRA 2009 provided by Georgetown University Policy Institute