Joe Baca: “I rise in support of H.R. 5613, the Protecting the Medicaid Safety Net Act of 2008. After unsuccessful attempts at S…”

“I rise in support of H.R. 5613, the Protecting the Medicaid Safety Net Act of 2008. After unsuccessful attempts at S- CHIP over the last several months, over 33,000 children in my district are still uninsured. Now the most vulnerable of beneficiaries of Medicaid, children and the disabled, are faced with a major crisis. This bill has bipartisan support, this is not about politics. It's about helping hardworking families and the poorest among us. This bill includes a moratorium of 7 CMS regulations, preventing the stripping of over $20 billion in Federal Medicaid funding over the next 5 years to States for vital programs and services. These programs and services will only shrink and shrivel if they are put against the wall to eat up these costs. Even school districts, like Rialto Unified School District from my district, will face difficult challenges in providing direct health services to the 30,000 students it currently serves. Cutting these valuable services at a time when many States, including California are facing record budget deficits is not an option. The poorest amongst us on Medicaid are most affected. We cannot turn our backs during these troubling times of increasing foreclosures and rising gas prices. Cancer does not distinguish between incomes, why should health care coverage? I support H.R. 5613, and urge my colleagues to do the honorable thing and vote for this bill.”