For Immediate Release
Office of the Press
Secretary
December 12, 2007
Message to
the House of Representatives
TO THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES:
I am returning herewith without my approval H.R. 3963, the "Children's Health
Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2007." Like its predecessor, H.R. 976,
this bill does not put poor children first and it moves our country's health
care system in the wrong direction. Ultimately, our Nation's goal should be to
move children who have no health insurance to private coverage --not to move
children who already have private health insurance to government coverage. As a
result, I cannot sign this legislation.
The purpose of the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) was to
help low-income children whose families were struggling, but did not qualify for
Medicaid, to get the health care coverage that they needed. My Administration
strongly supports reauthorization of SCHIP. That is why in February of this year
I proposed a 5-year reauthorization of SCHIP and a 20 percent increase in
funding for the program.
Some in the Congress have sought to spend more on SCHIP than my budget
proposal. In response, I told the Congress that I was willing to work with its
leadership to find any additional funds necessary to put poor children first,
without raising taxes.
The leadership in the Congress has refused to meet with my Administration's
representatives. Although they claim to have made "substantial changes" to the
legislation, H.R. 3963 is essentially identical to the legislation that I vetoed
in October. The legislation would still shift SCHIP away from its original
purpose by covering adults. It would still include coverage of many individuals
with incomes higher than the median income in the United States. It would still
result in government health care for approximately 2 million children who
already have private health care coverage. The new bill, like the old bill, does
not responsibly offset its new and unnecessary spending, and it still raises
taxes on working Americans.
Because the Congress has chosen to send me an essentially identical bill that
has the same problems as the flawed bill I previously vetoed, I must veto this
legislation, too. I continue to stand ready to work with the leaders of the
Congress, on a bipartisan basis, to reauthorize the SCHIP program in a way that
puts poor children first; moves adults out of a program meant for children; and
does not abandon the bipartisan tradition that marked the original enactment of
the SCHIP program. In the interim, I call on the Congress to extend funding
under the current program to ensure no disruption of services to needy children.
GEORGE W. BUSH
THE WHITE HOUSE,
December 12, 2007.
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