The Senate is Poised to Expand Healthcare Coverage for Kids! Quick Action Needed
It's been a historic week, and not just because of the inauguration of our 44th president. After over a year of your unceasing demands for fair pay, Congress passed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act and it's headed for the President's signature.
And now for our second act, Congress is poised to substantially expand children's health coverage under the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). This is a huge step forward, particularly since 1 in every 8 children doesn't have healthcare coverage right now.
There is no stopping us now! Tell your Senators to vote in favor of expanding children's healthcare coverage:
If Congress acts fast, SCHIP and the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act could be among the very first bills that Congress puts on President Obama's desk. Let's take a moment and note how great it is to have two of our top priority bills vying to be the first passed! This is no small part due to the work of MomsRising members. Bravo!
In fact, just last week, MomsRising members sent over 22,000 letters which helped pass a strong SCHIP bill in the House of Representatives. Now, we need you to work your magic once again as SCHIP comes to a vote in the U.S. Senate this week because our work is far from done!
Decisive action is needed right away because the number of uninsured children is increasing as families lose employer-sponsored coverage due to record job losses. SCHIP is an effective, established program. Since 1997, the number of uninsured children has fallen by almost a third. SCHIP now covers more than 4 million children, though approximately 9 million children in America still live without the promise of healthcare and job loss is hitting more families every day. By fully funding and reauthorizing SCHIP, we can take a huge step toward healthcare coverage for all kids.
Urge your Senators to expand children's health coverage and oppose any amendments that would create barriers to children's coverage:
Please forward this message to all your friends, family, parents' lists and school lists.
Thanks for your work on behalf of America's children. Together, we can get this done.
-- Donna, Kristin, Ashley, Julia and the MomsRising.org Team
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