Orrin Hatch: “I personally pay tribute to the other Members who have also worked so hard on the SCHIP bill; in particular, Senator…”

“I personally pay tribute to the other Members who have also worked so hard on the SCHIP bill; in particular, Senator Kennedy. I remember back in the early days, when it was a lonely thing for Senator Kennedy and I to go around the country talking about helping the poor kids, the only ones left out of the health care system. It took a leading liberal such as Senator Kennedy and this poor, old beaten-up conservative to be able to do that. I am grateful we were able to come up with a bipartisan bill that the House was kind enough to work with us on. That was one of the rare bipartisan efforts this year that I would like to see more of in the Congress. I sure hope somehow or another we can get the CHIP bill not only authorized but passed and signed into law so these 10 million kids have a future from a health care standpoint.”