Congress, Bush turn toward dealing on healthcare

by Matthew Hay Brown

With a 64-30 vote Thursday in the Senate, Congress has signed off again on the $35 billion plan to expand the State Children’s Health Insurance Program.

But still lacking the two-thirds support needed to override the expected veto in the House, congressional leaders say they now plan to hold off on sending the legislation up Pennsylvania Avenue.

"The House will not send the Children’s Health Insurance Program bill to the president immediately," House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said. "We will continue to negotiate in hopes of securing a new bipartisan compromise that will insure 10 million children.

"Congressional Republican leaders should work to forge a deal, not put up obstacles to keep children from receiving the health care they need and deserve."

The White House appeared to endorse further negotiations.

"Congress has known for weeks that the President would veto this bill," Press Secretary Dana Perino said in a statement after the Senate vote. "Now Congress should get back to work on legislation that covers poor children – and stop using valuable floor time to make partisan statements."

Democrats and some Republicans have backed the latest proposal to expand the popular program that now covers 6 million children from families not poor enough to qualify for Medicaid. President Bush last month vetoed an earlier version, which some conservatives described as a step toward a national health plan; the House was unable to override.

The current version, with language tweaked to respond to critics’ concerns about the eligibility of undocumented immigrants, adults and children from families living well above the poverty level, failed to garner additional support. The vote in the House last week was 265-142, 25 votes shy of the two-thirds needed for an override.

In the Senate, where several Democrats did not vote Thursday, an override appears within reach.

The insurance program is due to expire on Nov. 16. Congressional leaders say they will not compromise on insuring 10 million children; they would fund the expansion with a 61-cents-a-pack tax increase on cigarettes.

Bush proposed a $5 billion expansion that critics said would result in hundreds of thousands of children losing coverage.

"For months President George Bush and House Republicans have played political games with the health care of 10 million American children," said Rep. Chris Van Hollen, chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

"Republicans claim they want to negotiate in good faith," the Maryland Democrat said. "Now, we learn that President Bush and congressional Republicans are more worried about protecting the tobacco lobby than providing health insurance to American kids."

House Minority Leader John A. Boehner said before the Senate vote that negotiations for a new deal were continuing.

"The changes that our members were looking for are not deal killers," the Ohio Republican said. "It’s intended as a way of focusing on poor kids first, making sure that illegal immigrants aren’t getting benefits, and making sure that we’ve got real caps on who’s eligible and who isn’t."

Matthew Hay Brown is congressional correspondent for the Baltimore Sun, a Tribune Co. newspaper.