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PeachCare Needs a Policy, not a Partisan, Solution

By Hank Johnson

AS I SAID ON THE FLOOR OF CONGRESS last week, fourteen states, including Georgia, continue to face  serious funding shortfalls for their S-CHIP Programs.  Hundreds of thousands of children stand to lose their health care coverage if Congress does not come up with an immediate solution.

Georgians: without courageous political action at the state and federal levels, we are on the brink of losing PeachCare.

It is precisely because PeachCare affects the lives of so many young Americans that those involved in the policy process must rise above politics.  No solution can be achieved if one party blames another.  No improved policy will come out of partisan attacks.

Not all federally funded social programs are effective.  They are by nature experimental, and we should not hesitate to re-evaluate those whose performance disappoints.  But -- and I cannot emphasize this enough -- PeachCare works.  It has been an overwhelming success.  It has improved and in some cases saved the lives of thousands of Georgia's children.

We must not allow such a wonderful program to die.  That's why I, and many others in the Georgia delegation, am doing all I can in Washington to secure the funding necessary for PeachCare's survival.

But I can't do it alone.

I am hopeful Governor Perdue and the Georgia General Assembly will join with me, the Georgia Congressional Delegation, and the Democratic Leadership to achieve a policy victory, not a partisan one.

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Full post as published by Hank Johnson's Blog on February 12, 2007 (boomark / email).