Thread: TN SENATORS SCHIP BILL GIVE ILLLEGALS OPEN DOOR

It is very interesting that many of the Senate Republicans pushing the SCHIP legislation as it is written currently as the very same Republicans voting for AMNESTY for illegal aliens, whether through the Senate Bill or the recent Dream Act.

This is the list:
Along with Senators Hutchison and Corker, the letter was signed by Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA), the Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Committee, and Sens. Lamar Alexander (R-TN), Kit Bond (R-MO), Norm Coleman (R-MN), Susan Collins (R-ME), Pete Domenici (R-NM), Orrin Hatch (R-UT), Richard Lugar (R-IN), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Pat Roberts (R-KS), Gordon Smith (R-OR), Arlen Specter (R-PA), Olympia Snowe (R-ME), Ted Stevens (R-AK), John Sununu (R-NH) and John Warner (R-VA).

Should Tennesseans and American citizens be disappointed in the two Tennessee Senators, Lamar Alexander and Bob Corker? It is apparent that they either dismiss the fact that SCHIP allows access to insurance at our expense to illegal aliens or they simply do not care. In contacting Senator Lamar Alexander's Office this morning I was given the following information - there was an interview with Senator Alexander and Radio Talk Show Host Steve Gill in Tennessee in which SCHIP was discussed. I immediately accessed the website for Steve Gill and the following story came up on a couple of different sites.

Tennesseans, American taxpaying voters and those who are tired of the 11 % Congress telling us what legislation says, either intentionally lying or just suffering from ignorance due to not reading important sections and possible loopholes, are rightly leery of these pompous, arrogant Senators and Representatives ignoring us. When the large majority of Americans don't believe them and trust them in regards to the illegal immigration issue and their desire to eliminate magnets and benefits, it does not bode well of Senator Alexander to say there may be loopholes, but it benefits so many.

Steve Gill rightly outlines some of the loopholes and yet, in conversing with Senator Lamar Alexander and Senator Bob Corker staffers, one would be led to believe something entirely different about SCHIP and the ability for illegal aliens to access.

Hunter, with Senator Bob Corker's Office, pigeon holed my comments into there should be no further legislation until the illegal immigration issue was resolved. How naive and insulting not to recognize the outcries and anger from the American people on this issue. As explained to him, illegal immigration umbrellas everything. It impacts health care, education, taxes, social security, crime, benefits, quality of life in neighborhoods and cities, etc. and there is rampant fraud and a lack of will to curb and/or end this fraud and to end the theft of the American taxpayer dollars.

We are continually being insulted by these Senators, their staffers, and by the very votes of these Senator Sellouts. I asked Hunter if I would be correct in saying and posting on the internet that Senator Alexander and Senator Corker voted for illegal aliens to have access to health insurance when the really poor American children in certain areas would be ignored? Where are the safeguards, the real wording that said proof of citizenship required, etc. that would deny illegal aliens any further fleecing of our pockets? Hunter said there is no guarantee, no fool proof way to avoid fraud. While true, how about some effort, some language, some real action that says NO. How about addressing the obvious and blatantly apparent loopholes that Steve Gill highlights. There should be verification of citizenship and something required more than declaration of yes, I am a citizen as is the only requirement for so many things that illegal aliens are fraudulently attaining at our expense these days.

I read the key points of Steve Gill's argument on the SCHIP and yet the spin kept spinning. What do you do when you hold the information right up to their faces and they totally ignore the truth?

Why did some Senators vote against the bill who recognized the illegal alien access early on in the debate? Why is it that Tennessee Representatives Zach Wamp and Marsha Blackburn came out early to expose this fraud? Why is it that Senators tried to say that the Senate version did not allow for this? Why is it that when we the people called before the last SCHIP vote in the Senate to say illegal aliens would be covered under the legislation, the staffers said "Oh no, the bill does not provide insurance to illegal aliens?"

So again, Tennessee Senators may FINALLY be acknowledging that there may be loopholes, but they still insist on continued support of flawed legislation that demands nothing in regards to proof of citizenship. A loophole here in this bill, a loophole here in this bill, and the United States continues down the road to financial doom from millions of illegal alien lawbreakers taking, taking, taking and being given, given, given the rewards by Senators and Representatives.

I was asked do you not think that the Tennessee Senators have voted the way you would have wanted? Did they on SCHIP? The point is that allowing access to any benefit or service or privilege without the obvious requirement of citizenship does not help to appease Americans when they say but look how we voted over here. If it were not for the millions of Americans storming the phones and emailing and faxing and confronting in person our legislators, we have no doubt that many of the votes would have gone the other way on several bills.

Senator Lamar Alexander is up for re-election.

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CLEARING THE AIR ON SCHIP?

October 20, 2007 - October 27, 2007
Last week the U.S. House failed to override President Bush�s veto of legislation that would have reauthorized and expanded health insurance coverage under the SCHIP program by $35 billion over the next five years. The Senate had the votes to override the veto, but the Senate leadership opted to wait for the House to act before scheduling their own vote on the matter. Tennessee Senators Lamar Alexander and Bob Corker both voted for the legislation and would have voted to overturn the President�s veto had they been given the opportunity.

As new legislation is drafted to reauthorize and expand this important health insurance coverage program for poor children it will be more important than ever for Tennessee�s Senators to understand what the bill actually says BEFORE they cast their votes. They clearly failed to do that when they voted for the version of SCHIP that President Bush vetoed.

For example, both Senators have claimed that the version they supported would not have provided illegal aliens access to taxpayer funded health insurance. That is simply not true. Section 605 of the bill did indeed provide: �Nothing in this Act allows Federal payment for individuals who are not legal residents.� But, as is so often the case, the devil is in the details.

Section 211 of the bill dealt with verification of citizenship for purposes of determining eligibility for the program. Under the proposed law the applicants would only have been required to submit a name and social security number, which would then be verified with the Social Security Administration, to qualify for SCHIP coverage.

The current law requires states to determine whether persons applying for SCHIP are U.S. citizens. That requirement is satisfied by having applicants show specified types of identity documents, like drivers� licenses, passports or birth certificates, when they apply for these programs. But the bill supported by Corker and Alexander would have substantially weakened those requirements and made it easier for both legal and illegal aliens to break the law. None of that documentation would have been required under the law Tennessee�s Senators supported.

In fact, Michael Astrue, the Commissioner of the Social Security Administration, confirmed that the new SCHIP provisions would fail to identify and therefore would not prevent illegal aliens from fraudulently using another person�s valid name and Social Security number to get health coverage under SCHIP. Individuals who illegally overstayed a valid work permit would also not be detected under the weakened provisions of the law. Bottom line? Illegals were being provided with a huge loophole to gain access to SCHIP coverage.

There were a lot of landmines tucked away in the amnesty bill for illegals a few months ago. The same thing happened with the SCHIP bill. When dealing with the voluminous bills that come before Congress, Senators Alexander and Corker need to make sure they conduct fair, full and skeptical analysis rather than simply relying upon the Cliffnote versions provided by advocates of the legislation. At the very least they should rigorously follow Ronald Reagan�s advice to �trust, but verify.�

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http://www.gillreport.com/wk-53

SENATOR LAMAR ALEXANDER TELLS HIS VERSION HERE:

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The bill passed by the House and Senate also helps keep Tennessee hospitals afloat by providing a permanent annual Medicaid Disproportionate Share Hospital (DSH) allotment for Tennessee of $30 million per year – the first permanent fix for Tennessee ever approved by Congress. DSH payments help compensate hospitals that treat large numbers of Medicaid and uninsured payments, and until this agreement was secured by Senator Corker and myself Tennessee and Hawaii were the only two states that did not have permanent DSH allotments.

Some misinformation about the SCHIP bill has made its way into press coverage. Just to be clear, the final version of this legislation:

Does not expand access to include illegal immigrants. It explicitly prohibits illegal immigrants from receiving Medicaid and SCHIP benefits. It requires, for the first time, an established process for states to verify citizenship of SCHIP enrollees.

Does not raise the income levels required for a child to be eligible for SCHIP benefits to incomes of up to $83,000. Those income levels, as before, will be determined by states in consultation with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

Does not raise the age of a “childâ€

Senator John Cornyn is on CSPAN discussing SCHIP. He is mentioning the well to do having access and adults receiving insurance from this bill.

He is saying that the original bill strayed far from its desired intent. He says this bill does not put priority on poor children, they are crowded out. It gives insurance to others who may have private insurance. Does not close loopholes for qualifying income. It disallows some income so families may qualify. Two (2) million children would transfer from private health care to government health care. He is speaking of non citizens qualifying for SCHIP. A large percent of children in Texas who need this insurance are excluded, need help in access to this insurance.

Psalm 91

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Sunken SCHIP?

Vote to resurrect child health care bill underscored by partisan wrangling

ANDY MEEK | The Daily News

SCHIP OFF THE OLD BLOCK: Gov. Phil Bredesen talks to Journi Prewitt, 7, and others at a recent stop in Memphis to promote the state's CoverKids health care program, which is Tennessee's version of SCHIP.

For the past two weeks, battle lines have taken shape in Congress over what might at first seem like an unlikely topic: a piece of legislation dealing with a federally funded children's health insurance program.

After tinkering with the scope and eligibility requirements of the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), lawmakers earlier this month saw a bipartisan bill they passed - which renewed the program before it was due to expire - rebuffed by a presidential veto. That veto is headed for a congressional showdown Thursday.

Which is why, for the past two weeks, Tennessee's local, state and national political leaders have been making their voices heard, whichever side of the battle line they stand on.

A range of opinions

A few examples include Bob Corker, one of Tennessee's two Republican senators, who was quoted in The Wall Street Journal Friday supporting the plan. Republican U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn, whose district includes parts of Memphis, appeared the same day on CNBC to discuss her opposition to SCHIP.

"When you look at this bill, the things that people do not like about it, my goodness - you're talking about taxing tobacco in order to provide this health care," Blackburn said, referring to the increases in cigarette and cigar taxes that were to fund the $35 billion SCHIP expansion.

Tenn. Gov. Phil Bredesen and a contingent of other top Democratic leaders in the state recently urged Republican members of the U.S. House of Representatives from Tennessee to support an override of the veto.

Shelby County Mayor A C Wharton Jr. has been in constant - almost daily - contact with the region's representatives in the nation's capital, he said.

And at a recent Fred Thompson campaign event in Webster County, Iowa, the former Tennessee U.S. senator and University of Memphis graduate now running for president called the new SCHIP plan a move toward government-run health care for all.
"The real fight to me - the way I see it as an analyst - the real fight is the one that has not been brought out into the open. And it's that American people of different political persuasions disagree about the role of government in health care."
- Dr. Cyril Chang
Professor of economics at the University of Memphis

"Both Congress and the president wish to continue this program - nobody wants to roll back this program and deny children insurance," said Dr. Cyril Chang, a professor of economics at the University of Memphis. "That's agreed upon, irrespective of what the talk shows say."


What it's really about

Yet here's the rub: A staffer for one of Tennessee's two Republican U.S. senators said, at its core, the back-and-forth over SCHIP actually represents a power struggle between the White House and the Democratic leadership in Congress over who now controls the national agenda.

That, Chang said, means tomorrow's vote in the House of Representatives to override the presidential veto is really a proxy fight over a larger issue. Democrats are trying to paint Republicans into a corner over a perceived insensitivity to the needs of children.

Republicans are arguing that a vote to expand the health care program is tantamount to funding another costly entitlement the nation can ill afford.

"The real fight to me - the way I see it as an analyst - the real fight is the one that has not been brought out into the open," Chang said. "And it's that American people of different political persuasions disagree about the role of government in health care.

"The issue with SCHIP is how much more money to spend and how many more kids to cover. And do you mandate that you cover poor kids first before you cover others? One argument is that there are poor kids out there who are hard to find. Do you exhaust all avenues to find them before you cover others who need it?"


Clashing ideologies

The House of Representatives will vote Thursday in an attempt to override the presidential veto. The Senate passed its version of the SCHIP bill with a veto-proof majority - and the 'yes' votes of both Republican senators from Tennessee, Corker and Lamar Alexander.

Whatever happens, the debate's eventual resolution carries major ramifications for Shelby County.

Currently in limbo are such elements of the SCHIP expansion as an amendment that would provide funding for the Regional Medical Center at Memphis.

"It also provides an opportunity to direct funding toward pregnant mothers," said Rep. Steve Cohen, D-Memphis. "We have a tremendous problem in Memphis with infant mortality and premature births, and this funding for pregnant women could be a weapon against that problem."

The health care program in Tennessee that would be funded by SCHIP is CoverKids, the benefits of which include health coverage for children younger than 19 whose families are below an income threshold of about $50,000 a year for a family of four.

Through the end of September, 631 people in Shelby County were enrolled in CoverKids, according to state figures. That's up from a little more than 400 in August.

The statewide total as of Monday is roughly 13,000.

"Any time we can broaden the blanket of health care coverage for children, we should," Wharton said. "And keep in mind, the (SCHIP) bill doesn't dictate that the state of Tennessee expand its coverage to some of the higher income limits elsewhere. That's to be handled state by state.

"But to the degree that it gives the states latitude to include more, I welcome that."

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http://www.memphisdailynews.com/Editori ... x?id=99350



Psalm 91

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TX U.S. Sen. Hutchison Urges Immediate Bipartisan Negotiation on SCHIP

Posted: Oct 28, 2007 12:17 AM

From news release:

All 18 GOP Senate SCHIP Supporters Sign Letter to Bicameral Leadership

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX), chairman of Senate Republican Policy Committee, Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN) and the entire block of 18 Republican Senators who originally supported the SCHIP bill in the Senate today sent a letter to the Congressional leadership urging immediate bipartisan negotiation. Earlier today in the House of Representatives the SCHIP bill failed to reach the 290 vote threshold to override a presidential veto. The final vote count in the House was 273-156.

"Today we sent a letter to the leadership in Congress to say please sit down with the President and let's have a win for the poor children in our country," said Sen. Hutchison. "The key here is that we can expand the coverage to all the children who are eligible and I think that should be the goal."

"This SCHIP bill has been demagogued to death," said Corker. "It's not a perfect bill. I think everyone knows that $5 billion is far too little to fund the program and that the $35 billion could be trimmed and the program still be whole. So let's put the partisanship and rhetoric aside and find a number that responsibly funds SCHIP and strengthens the program so that children from low-income families have access to health insurance."

Along with Senators Hutchison and Corker, the letter was signed by Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA), the Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Committee, and Sens. Lamar Alexander (R-TN), Kit Bond (R-MO), Norm Coleman (R-MN), Susan Collins (R-ME), Pete Domenici (R-NM), Orrin Hatch (R-UT), Richard Lugar (R-IN), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Pat Roberts (R-KS), Gordon Smith (R-OR), Arlen Specter (R-PA), Olympia Snowe (R-ME), Ted Stevens (R-AK), John Sununu (R-NH) and John Warner (R-VA).

TEXT OF THE LETTER:

** Addressed to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, and House Republican Leader John Boehner

Dear Leaders:

As Republican members of the Senate who supported and voted for H.R. 976, the State Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) Reauthorization Act of 2007, we urge continued action on a bipartisan basis to build on our efforts in order to arrive at a bill to reauthorize health insurance for low-income children. We remain committed to reauthorizing this important program, and we urge you to continue seeking thoughtful input from both sides of the aisle.

As you are aware, the House today voted to sustain the President's veto of the CHIP compromise that passed the House and Senate. Like any good compromise, Members on both sides of the aisle had reservations about certain provisions in the final bill, yet we voted in favor of this legislation because we believed it provided the funding necessary to continue this important program and improve many of its weaknesses. In light of recent events, however, we believe that it is imperative that we all work together without delay to arrive at a reauthorization bill that can be passed by Congress and become law.

Now that the veto of H.R. 976 has been sustained, we must move forward with legislation that can resolve our differences and reauthorize the program. While our support for that legislation has been registered, it is our hope that the next phase of this effort will be productive and not degenerate into gridlock and partisanship.

Our votes represented a promise to help low-income children, and we are committed to remaining true to that promise. By voting in favor of H.R. 976, we have demonstrated our willingness to work on a bipartisan basis. We strongly believe that health coverage of low-income children must remain the number one goal of the CHIP program.

Low-income children and states need a stable and improved program rather than a series of temporary extensions. We look forward to continuing to work on this important effort.
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http://www.kten.com/Global/story.asp?S=7233528

http://www.kten.com/global/story.asp?s= ... =Printable

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blackburn.house.gov

blackburn
Contact: Matt Lambert 202.225.2811


Blackburn Votes Against Medicare Cuts, Health Care for Illegal Immigrants


Washington, Aug 1 -

Washington, D.C. -- Congressman Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) today voted against the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), which would force $193 billion in total Medicare cuts for seniors and offer government funded healthcare to illegal immigrants.

"The SCHIP program was created by a Republican Congress in 1997 in order to care for lower income children. The liberal leadership of this House has distorted it by expanding the program and offering government run healthcare for illegal immigrants, while paying for it on the backs of our seniors," Blackburn said.

"The Democrat-led proposal would expand SCHIP to people up to 25 years of age and allow for increased eligibility by covering children in families with incomes up to 400 percent of the Federal Poverty Level. In 2007, that would mean income levels of approximately $82,000 for a family of four. So, according to the IRS, you are wealthy enough to pay the Alternative Minimum Tax (ATM) and according to HHS, you are poor enough to be eligible for SCHIP."

According to the Congressional Budget Office the current bill would:
• Cut Medicare Advantage Plans $157.1 Billion over 10 years
• Cut Medicare Provider Payments $37.1 Billion over 10 years
• Increases Taxes by $53 Billion over 10 years
• Expands SCHIP as a Permanent Entitlement with no sunset provision by $159.9 Billion over 10 years

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http://blackburn.house.gov/News/Documen ... ntID=70713