There's good news though! Late last month, the House and Senate passed bills that could extend health coverage 4.2 million and 3.2 million previously uninsured children and pregnant women respectively.
Although these bills still leave millions of children without health coverage, they are a step in the right direction of reducing the number of uninsured children in America.
Unfortunately, our work is far from complete. These two bills will now "go to conference" where their differences will be resolved and the negotiated package will be put to a final vote by both houses of Congress. As if that wasn't enough of a hurdle, President Bush has already threatened to veto this child health legislation.
This alarming jump demonstrates that our children need a strong national safety net so that every child has access to the health coverage needed to survive and thrive. It is shameful that despite overwhelming public support and passage of bipartisan bills in both houses of Congress that would provide health coverage to millions more uninsured children, the President appears to be doing everything in his power to prevent children from getting the critical health coverage they need. Not only has President Bush threatened to veto these bills, more recently, the Bush administration issued harsh new rules for those trying to enroll in the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) - rules that will substantially increase the number of uninsured children.
Help your Members of Congress stand up to the President as children's health legislation comes up for a final vote in September - contact them today and let them know that every child matters and comprehensive health insurance for all children is important to you.
Children Still Neglected Two Years After Katrina
August 29th was the second anniversary of Hurricane Katrina and CDF President Marian Wright Edelman had this to say about the continued neglect and abandonment of Katrina's children:
It is a national scandal that many children are still plagued by the trauma of their horrific experiences of survival in the aftermath of the storm. Tens of thousands of children suffer from disorientation and isolation. Children living in the most flood-damaged areas of New Orleans still have severely limited access to health and mental health care, and the schools they attend are understaffed and poorly equipped. The story of New Orleans is illustrative of the broad unmet needs throughout much of the region.
Depressed, even suicidal, parents and children are still packed like sardines into cramped, flimsy, often unsafe trailers in camps next to nowhere. The education infrastructure is far from being repaired, with many school-age children still not back in school. While the government fails to fulfill its promises, untold numbers of children are falling farther and farther behind.
About 100,000 children still do not live where they did when the hurricane struck.
Only 55 public schools in New Orleans were open as of December 2006, 43 percent of the pre-Katrina number.
Before the hurricane, there were 3,200 physicians in Orleans Parish and surrounding parishes; CDF's report found only about 1,200 physicians there now.
CDF-Texas Launches 100% Campaign to Enroll Children in Health Coverage!
Last week, CDF-Texas celebrated "Back-to-School 2007" with a kick-off press conference and formal announcement of its 100% Campaign at Houston's Health Museum.
CDF's 100% Campaign is a partnership with the Houston Independent School District and local hospitals to identify every uninsured school child and link them with affordable health coverage through CHIP and Children's Medicaid.
CDF-Texas, the Gulf Coast CHIP Coalition and partners have also launched a series of community billboards and sign-up events, including our next Houston Area Children's Health Insurance Sign-Up event at 17 Fiesta supermarket locations on September 8th.
For more information and to learn about CDF-Texas ongoing activities, visit the CDF-Texas website.
Celebrate Young Adults Who Succeed Against Adversity
Meet Sergio Rodriguez, a Beat the Odds® award recipient from CDF-California (second from left). While Sergio attended high school, his mother suffered from a rare illness, forcing Sergio's father to tend to his wife after work. Sergio managed to excel in school while caring for the household and his siblings.
Today, Sergio is a sophomore at Santa Clara University studying engineering and remains involved with CDF-CA as a summer intern and is an active participant in CDF-CA's Young Adult Leadership Training (YALT)SM program. (That's him at the YALTSM quarterly meeting earlier this summer.) He plans on founding the third CDF Student Health OUTreachSM program in California, which involves recruiting and certifying volunteers to enroll children for health insurance. Sergio truly inspires us all.
Support Legislation to Help Children Being Raised by Grandparents and Other Relatives
Currently, there are more than 530,000 children in the foster care system. About one-fourth of these children are living with grandparents or other relative caregivers. Research shows that children raised in foster care with relatives fare well. When compared with children in foster care with non-relatives, children in relative foster care are: just as safe or safer, less likely to have multiple placements, more likely to stay connected with siblings, and less likely to change schools. Yet, these caregivers often take on the care of the children unexpectedly and face multiple challenges. The Kinship Caregiver Support Act (S. 661/H.R. 2188) provides access to important supportive services for relatives caring for children in foster care and those helping to keep children out of foster care.
Help celebrate Grandparents Day (September 9th) by supporting GrandFamilies (families where grandparents, great-grandparents, other relatives, or close family friends are raising a child) and the Kinship Caregiver Support Act the week of September 10. Mark your calendars....we'll be updating you soon with actions you can take that week.
VERY URGENT: DEADLINE
OCTOBER 14!!
PLEASE SIGN AND
CROSSPOST.
http://www.thepetitionsit
e.com/1/italian-dogs-righ
ts
VERY URGENT! Protect
travel rights for Italian
dogs!
Target: c.guida@rfi.it,
cosweb@rfi.it, ...
This one needs &
deserves many more
signatures. If you
could have seen ALL the
photos of this dog, it
would break your heart
even more.
http://www.thepetitionsit
e.com/68/justice-for-phoe
nixthe-emanciated-boxer-p
up
And this o...
Attention SOUTHEAST USA
Members ~ SPRING HILL
FL--Rescuer loses home -
beautiful felines seek
safety
Dear Friends All Far and
Wide...*S*
Can we please spread this
to one end of eastern
seaboard to the other? I
am pretty sure we c...
Message: GWSSF by angela h.
(0 comments
|
discussions
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—
Happy New Year for 2010
we are just know as GWSSF
now for everyone with any
Health problem or other
problems which become one
around the world for all
domination are welcome
from children upwards and
the families for
help and support an... more
Message: Happy New Year Dear Friends...Best Wishes in 2010 by Rosemary H.
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0 discussions
)
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My heartfelt gratitude
and appreciation for your
friendship this past
year... because of your
encouragement, courage
& inspiration i too
have continued
on, standing in
solidarity with you,
being a voice for the
voiceless... wanting
& try... more
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