Orrin Hatch: “this week the Senate will focus on how to reauthorize and finance the CHIP program. Therefore, I would like to take some…”

“this week the Senate will focus on how to reauthorize and finance the CHIP program. Therefore, I would like to take some time on the Senate floor today to lay the groundwork for that process by examining the history of the CHIP program and the successes it has had over the last decade. The Balanced Budget Act of 1997--BBA 97--created CHIP as Title XXI of the Social Security Act. Today, all 50 States, the District of Columbia and five territories have CHIP programs. As is allowed by the law, 17 States use Medicaid expansions, 18 States use separate State programs and 21 States use a combination approach of both their Medicaid program and the State program. The CHIP program is financed through both the federal and State governments and is overseen by the States. States receive an enhanced federal match for the CHIP program. This federal match is significantly higher than the federal match that States receive through the Medicaid program. The Medicaid federal medical assistance percentage, known as F-MAP, ranges between 50 percent and 76 percent in fiscal year 2006; the CHIP F-MAP ranges from 65 percent to 83.2 percent. Through BBA 97, approximately $40 billion in federal funding was appropriated for the CHIP program. Overall, States have spent $10.1 billion dollars since it was first implemented through September 30, 2005. Today, approximately 6.2 million children have their health insurance coverage through the CHIP program.”