Political Quotes

“it is hard to believe that, here in the world's richest country, one in seven American children does not have health insurance. Yet, in the midst of our Nation's longest and strongest economic expansion, the health of over 11 million of our children is being jeopardized. In the Houston region, over a quarter million children are uninsured. In my Congressional district, at least 70% of children in the Aldine Independent School District rely on the school nurse for primary healthcare services or as their initial healthcare provider. Our children deserve better. Congress created Medicaid, and later the new Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), to offer coverage for low-income children. These two programs are an investment in good health--an investment that pays dividends in the long term because prevention saves taxpayers money. They have reduced the percentage of uninsured children and parents in the United States. And, they have increased access to quality health care services. Medicaid provides health insurance coverage for more than 40 million individuals--mostly women, children, and adolescents--at an annual cost of about $154 billion in combined federal and state funds.”