Edolphus Towns: “esteemed colleagues on both sides of the aisle, I stand before you today, one happy man. I am happy that I have the…”

“esteemed colleagues on both sides of the aisle, I stand before you today, one happy man. I am happy that I have the opportunity to vote in favor and hopefully bear witness to the passage of this momentous bill, the State Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act. Our great leader, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., once famously remarked, ``Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in health care is the most shocking and inhumane.'' I wholeheartedly agree with Reverend King's sentiments and I would like to take his statement one step further. I contend neglecting adequate health care for all of our children is perhaps the most disgraceful and appalling atrocity this nation faces. Today we have an opportunity to take one step towards rectifying the wrongs of our past. Today we have the opportunity to vote in favor of a bipartisan piece of legislation that would expand health care to more than 11 million children nationwide and preserves the coverage of 7.1 million children through 2013. This fine piece of legislation will reduce the number of uninsured children in my state by 66%; reducing the number from 400,000 to approximately 267,000. I don't know about you, but that's the type of change I can believe in. The State Children's Health Insurance Program catches the most overlooked segment of our population--those families and children that earn too much to qualify for Medicaid but too little to afford private health insurance.”