I agree 100 %. To see our President threaten to Veto this bill shows just how demented and out of touch he is with our country and what SHOULD be important! I hope Congress passes this Bill and if he is STUPID enough to Veto I hope Congress overrides his veto. January 20, 2009 can not come too soon for our country!

Great Article!

I'd like to see the actual bill, not just press releases.

By: Turner, Davis of Harris, Dukes, England, H.B. No. 109
Pena, et al.

Substitute the following for H.B. No. 109:

By: Davis of Harris C.S.H.B. No. 109


A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to eligibility for and information regarding the child
health plan program.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 62.002(4), Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(4) "Net [Gross] family income" means the [total]
amount of income established for a family after reduction for
offsets for child care expenses, in accordance with standards
applicable under the Medicaid [without consideration of any
reduction for offsets that may be available to the family under any
other] program.
SECTION 2. Subchapter B, Chapter 62, Health and Safety
Code, is amended by adding Section 62.056 to read as follows:
Sec. 62.056. COMMUNITY OUTREACH CAMPAIGN; TOLL-FREE
HOTLINE. (a) The commission shall conduct a community outreach
and education campaign to provide information relating to the
availability of health benefits for children under this chapter.
The commission shall conduct the campaign in a manner that promotes
enrollment in, and minimizes duplication of effort among, all
state-administered child health programs.
( The community outreach campaign must include:
(1) outreach efforts that involve school-based health
clinics; and
(2) a toll-free telephone number through which
families may obtain information about health benefits coverage for
children.
(c) The commission shall contract with community-based
organizations or coalitions of community-based organizations to
implement the community outreach campaign and shall also promote
and encourage voluntary efforts to implement the community outreach
campaign. The commission shall procure the contracts through a
process designed by the commission to encourage broad participation
of organizations, including organizations that target population
groups with high levels of uninsured children.
(d) The commission may direct that the Department of State
Health Services perform all or part of the community outreach
campaign.
SECTION 3. Section 62.101, Health and Safety Code, is
amended by amending Subsection ( and adding Subsection (b-1) to
read as follows:
( The commission shall establish income eligibility
levels consistent with Title XXI, Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.
Section 1397aa et seq.), as amended, and any other applicable law or
regulations, and subject to the availability of appropriated money,
so that a child who is younger than 19 years of age and whose net
[gross] family income is at or below 200 percent of the federal
poverty level is eligible for health benefits coverage under the
program. In addition, the commission may establish eligibility
standards regarding the amount and types of allowable assets for a
family whose gross family income is above 150 percent of the federal
poverty level.
(b-1) The eligibility standards adopted under Subsection
( related to allowable assets:
(1) must allow a family to own at least $10,000 in
allowable assets; and
(2) may not in calculating the amount of allowable
assets under Subdivision (1) consider:
(A) the value of one vehicle that qualifies for
an exemption under commission rule based on its use;
( the value of a second or subsequent vehicle
that qualifies for an exemption under commission rule based on its
use if:
(i) the vehicle is worth $18,000 or less; or
(ii) the vehicle has been modified to
provide transportation for a household member with a disability;
(C) if no vehicle qualifies for an exemption
based on its use under commission rule, the first $18,000 of value
of the highest valued vehicle; or
(D) the first $7,500 of value of any vehicle not
described by Paragraph (A), (, or (C).
SECTION 4. Subchapter C, Chapter 62, Health and Safety
Code, is amended by adding Section 62.1011 to read as follows:
Sec. 62.1011. VERIFICATION OF INCOME. (a) The commission
shall continue employing methods of verifying the net income of the
individuals considered in the calculation of an applicant's net
family income. The commission shall verify income under this
section unless the applicant reports a net family income that
exceeds the income eligibility level established under Section
62.101(.
SECTION 5. Section 62.102, Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 62.102. CONTINUOUS COVERAGE. The commission shall
provide that an individual who is determined to be eligible for
coverage under the child health plan remains eligible for those
benefits until the earlier of:
(1) the end of a period, not to exceed 12 months, [the
six-month period] following the date of the eligibility
determination; or
(2) the individual's 19th birthday.
SECTION 6. Sections 62.154(a) and (d), Health and Safety
Code, are amended to read as follows:
(a) To the extent permitted under Title XXI of the Social
Security Act (42 U.S.C. Section 1397aa et seq.), as amended, and any
other applicable law or regulations, the child health plan must
include a waiting period and[. The child health plan] may include
copayments and other provisions intended to discourage:
(1) employers and other persons from electing to
discontinue offering coverage for children under employee or other
group health benefit plans; and
(2) individuals with access to adequate health benefit
plan coverage, other than coverage under the child health plan,
from electing not to obtain or to discontinue that coverage for a
child.
(d) The waiting period required by Subsection (a) must:
(1) extend for a period of 90 days after[:
[(1)] the last date on [first day of the month in]
which the applicant was covered under a health benefits plan; and
(2) apply to a child who was covered by a health
benefits plan at any time during the 90 days before the date of
application for coverage under the child health plan [is enrolled
under the child health plan, if the date of enrollment is on or
before the 15th day of the month; or
[(2) the first day of the month after which the
applicant is enrolled under the child health plan, if the date of
enrollment is after the 15th day of the month].
SECTION 7. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2007.

from the press release this looks like the democrats are trying to sneak in an universal health care program.

Dan,
How can you say that this is the dems trying to sneak universal health care onto the national agenda? Please give me one concrete example of how this legislation is that....please, cause I in no way see that. This is taking a bunch of WORKING parents, and helping them pay for their kids health care. I cannot think of anything more American then rewarding hard work and effort with making sure your life is not ruined by your kid breaking his arm when you are working as a security guard at the local jewelry shop. Plus, as I stated, this bill was SPONSORED by two reps and two dems. Anything else....

their increasing the allowable income. ie their letting more people into it. and i am just making an observation according to the press release.


hopefully i am wrong.


by the way there are conservitive democrats and there are liberal republicans.

How can you say that this is the dems trying to sneak universal health care onto the national agenda? Please give me one concrete example of how this legislation is that....please, cause I in no way see that.

whose net [gross] family income is at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty level is eligible for health benefits coverage under the program.

Which means that a family making $42k per year would be eligible.  IN addition, what they do not tell you (in the press release or the above since it is what the Current bill is all about), is that they are trying to expand that to 400%, so a family making $84k a year is eligible.

Dan is right.  It is snake oil, wrapped in a pretty package.  It hardly qualifies as helping those who cannot help themselves.  Unless you think a family cannot live on $84k per year now.

I don't know if this program is similar to the one I have experience with, but several years ago Texas' CHIP program was set up to be sliding scale based on income, so higher earners who qualified would pay more.

I like the idea of making sure most, if not all, American children are insured and I like the idea of allowing the parents of those children to contribute even if they cannot afford private insurance.

I do agree that $84K is over the top. At that point a family most likely would be able to afford private insurance (unless maybe it is a really large family).

With what I read in the press release linked in the article I do not believe this to be what it was intended to be.



As you wish. From your own link to the press release:

"Coverage above 300% of Federal poverty level will receive regular Medicaid match rate"


For Many Households, 300 Percent of Poverty Level Is Above America's Median Income

Number of Individuals in Household / 300 Percent of Poverty Threshold

1 $30,630
2 $41,070
3 $51,510
4 $61,950
5 $72,390
6 $82,830
7 $93,270
8 $103,710

Source: Department of Health and Human Services, Poverty Guidelines for 2007, http://aspe.hhs.gov/poverty/07poverty.shtml

According to the information above I could be making over $61 thousand a year and still qualify to get this insurance if this bill is passed. I don't know about you but $61 thousand sounds like a lot of money for a person to be getting free healthcare. And I thought people were complaining that people with money already get enough of it.

Then there is this:

"Childless adults currently enrolled in CHIP will be transitioned into Medicaid"

Now explain to me why a program called CHILDREN’S HEALTH INSURANCE PROGRAM (CHIP for short) has adults (and childless adults for that matter) benefiting from this plan when the name clearly states children? Can you explain this to me?

Tell me how this does not translate to universal healthcare when middle-income people and adults (even those without children) are benefiting from a programs designed to help children (CHILDREN’S HEALTH INSURANCE PROGRAM) of low-income but not low enough parents?

BTW, the fact that you have Col gene here agreeing with you is a bad sign of your opinion.

I am all for helping the children. I think that the best money ever spent in this country is that which helps our children, the future of this country. I would like for this programs to be extended to help more children. What I don't want is for middle-income people to get free healthcare that they can afford. And I don't want adults using this programs either.

I am a low-income father of 2 kids. I qualify for this programs, but I already have insurance for my kids. If I can have insurance, so can many others. These ideas are meant to help people become better people and get away from depending on the Gov't so that they can depend on themselves. But people will live off of this kind of service given by our Gov't paid for by us. That's where the system goes wrong, when people get hooked and wont let go.

sometimes the system won't let you go.

just as the old welfare. if you were on welfare and you got a job on the 2nd day of the month rent is do on the 3rd when your check comes in. welfare would cut you off. if you didn't tell them you had a job when you got one then you would go to jail for fraud.