Washington, D.C. – Colorado U.S. Senators Michael Bennet (D), a member of the Senate Finance Committee, and Cory Gardner (R) today lauded a five-year bipartisan agreement in the Senate Finance Committee to provide health insurance for vulnerable children through the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). In Colorado, CHIP was essential in driving the percent of uninsured children to an all-time low of 2.5 percent.
“Ensuring Colorado’s kids have access to affordable quality health care is common sense,” Bennet said. “Last night’s announcement is a promising step forward in extending the CHIP program and ensuring its viability for the future. Millions of our most vulnerable children have benefited from CHIP, and we must continue to build on its success so every kid can lead a healthy life and meet their fullest potential.”
“Republicans and Democrats have a responsibility to come together to extend the CHIP program that covers thousands of Colorado children,” Gardner said. “Senator Bennet and I are going to keep working with our colleagues on both sides of the aisle to ensure this agreement crosses the finish line and is signed into law.”
The current reauthorization for CHIP funding is set to expire on September 30, 2017. The agreement to extend funding reached in the Finance Committee includes a five-year commitment to the federal-state partnership. In addition to the 90,000 children in Colorado covered by CHIP, about 600 pregnant woman are covered by the program.