A Voice In Ramah

WHAT:
On Wednesday, November 4th, the Children’s Defense Fund is organizing a Champions for Children’s Health Stroller Brigade to the Capitol in Washington, D.C. Children, parents, grandparents and champions for children will “stroll” to the Capitol to ensure that millions of uninsured and underinsured children are not left behind in health care reform.

CDF is also announcing that “The Strollers Are Coming” to Congressional districts across the country on November 6th through 8th to demand that Members of Congress stand up for critical changes needed in health care reform to protect our children. So far, stroller brigades are being planned for Arkansas, California, Florida, Louisiana, Montana, New York, North Dakota, Ohio and Texas. Other states may be added.

WHY:
Join us in demanding that Congress and the President support real child health reform that leaves all children better off. We need to tell Congress that it is indefensible for children to be squeezed out of health care reform by powerful lobbyists and insurance companies. If our leaders can bail out irresponsible bankers to the tune of nearly $1 trillion almost overnight, they can afford $10 billion a year for ten years to provide our 8.1 million uninsured and millions more underinsured children a simple, seamless, affordable and accessible health care system. Children need an effective national health safety net now.

Congress must:

• End the bureaucratic barriers that keep 2 out of 3 of the 8 million uninsured children who are already eligible for the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) or Medicaid from actually getting the care they need. A simple, seamless enrollment process like older Americans have forMedicare would ensure our children are cared for and covered.

• Guarantee every child access to the full range of child health benefits they need which are now provided to children in Medicaid but not to children in the CHIP or the proposed Exchange. All children’s lives are of equal value.

• Eliminate the unjust lottery of geography and provide an affordable national health safety net for all children whose family income is below 300% of the federal poverty line ($66,000 for a family of four). A Mississippi, Montana and North Dakota child is no less valuable than a Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York child.