Campaign for Children Praises Decision to Drop Graham-Cassidy Vote; Urges Immediate CHIP Extension

WASHINGTON—The First Focus Campaign for Children welcomed the announcement by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) today not to hold a vote on the Graham-Cassidy healthcare bill, putting an end to their efforts to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA) for now.

Bruce Lesley, First Focus Campaign for Children President, said:

“We’re glad to see the most damaging of all the repeal and replace bills suffer the same fate as the others. The American people have spoken again. Put simply, they want a healthcare solution that both sides can agree on. One that prioritizes the well-being of children and families and improves the lives of Americans.

As it turns out, there’s an urgent and immediate opportunity to improve the lives of nine 9 million low-income American children and pregnant women by extending funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), which expires on Saturday.

CHIP is a popular, bipartisan, and successful 20-year-old program that has been awaiting action by Congress that was delayed by attempts to repeal and replace the ACA.

But the 9 million kids who rely on CHIP can no longer wait – it’s time for Congress to step up and protect children’s health coverage and pass the bipartisan CHIP extension bill (S.1827) before the deadline at the end of this week."