Political Quotes

On the recordFebruary 4, 2009
Today, February 4, 2009, will go down as a historic milestone in America's long journey towards universal health coverage. In a few hours, with a bipartisan vote, the House will pass an expansion of the Children's Health Insurance Program, extending health insurance to 4 million more American youngsters, keeping a promise that President Obama made to the American people to get this much-needed change accomplished. He did it in 2 weeks' time. I would just say, contrast that with the 2-year rancorous partisan debate that divided this country over the issue. The new Congress and the new President are delivering on this incredibly important step towards extending health coverage to children--strengthening their dental coverage; strengthening their mental health coverage; locking in for States like Connecticut eligibility so that working families' children will be insured and will be covered. Building on that success, extending health IT technology to our health care system, which is included in the stimulus package, extending people with unemployment Medicaid coverage, we are going to move forward as a country towards universal health coverage. Today will go down in history as an important step forward to accomplish that much-needed goal.
Said by
Joe Courtney
Democratic · Connecticut

Editor's note · Context

Discussing the expansion of the Children's Health Insurance Program and its significance for health coverage.

Share

More from Joe Courtney

Sep 25, 2024

One of the most ridiculous and, really, almost offensive narratives that is out there is that America is a nation in decline. You see it on social media. You see it at rallies that are being held all across the country. I would suggest to…

govinfo.gov
May 13, 2025

for the last 5 months, across the country, people have been waiting with bated breath to see what this big, beautiful bill is that the Republicans have been working on behind closed doors, much of it down in Florida putting it together…

govinfo.gov
Mar 16, 2026

I think all of New England and the mid- Atlantic States owe a huge thanks to Judge Royce Lambeth, the Reagan appointee who lived up to his oath and twice asserted the power of the judiciary, a coequal branch of government, to rein in the…

govinfo.gov
Jun 24, 2025

today is June 24, and it is almost exactly a month ago that in this House, the misnamed One Big Beautiful Bill Act was passed in the dead of night after hours and hours of debate while the American people were asleep at home. With the rush…

govinfo.gov

Other voices in this conversation