Thousands of Pennsylvania Children with No Health Insurance? Santorum Votes against Children Getting the Same Quality Insurance Taxpayers Provide to Him

Santorum's Words
“Look, I understand that there is a difference between being a parent in an upper or middle-class neighborhood and being a parent in a low-income community. I understand that financial resources matter.”
It Takes a Family – pg. 375

Santorum's Actions
He does? You wouldn’t know it from his December 2005 vote to cut Medicaid and impose new rules that could adversely affect low-income children and families (Roll Call Vote #363, S.1932, 12/21/2005, passed 50-50 with the Vice President casting the tie-breaking vote in favor). Medicaid is a crucial program for children.

• Young children are more likely than older children to have Medicaid as their source of health coverage. An estimated 35-40 percent of U.S. births are financed by Medicaid, with continuing coverage throughout the first year of life for most infants. In addition, approximately one-third of children ages 1-5 years are covered by Medicaid.
• Medicaid is important to both low-income white and minority children. In 2004, an estimated 80 percent of poor black children under age 6 were covered by Medicaid.
• Children make up half of all Medicaid enrollees, but represent less than 20 percent of the total spending—primarily because they use less expensive primary and preventive services.
• Millions of uninsured children are eligible for but not enrolled in publicly financed health coverage through Medicaid and SCHIP (the State Children’s Health Insurance Program). Effective outreach and enrollment policies can make a difference in coverage levels, and states have adopted promising practices.

According to the Georgetown University Health Policy Institute, Santorum’s vote in favor of this bill could lead to new and higher charges allowed for children and parents, new state options to deny care for non-payment even when the parents have no ability to pay for service, and make the process of applying for and renewing Medicaid more complicated. The changes to the Medicaid program for children and families were aimed at producing federal budget savings and promoting state flexibility, not at strengthening and improving coverage for children and families. As such, they represent a potential setback in coverage for low-income children and their parents. While Pennsylvania lawmakers have the opportunity to keep these adverse consequences from harming Pennsylvania’s children and families, they got no support from Rick Santorum.

By contrast, Rick Santorum gets taxpayer supported health care benefits from the federal government far more generous than those of many Pennsylvania families. He receives annual physical exams, immunizations, hospital care, and prescription drugs. His wife received free pre-natal care when pregnant.

What is Santorum's health care proposal? Health Savings Accounts (HSAs). Click here to read more about how these HSAs will not help provide insurance or quality care to those currently uninsured.

There are other options in the U.S. Congress that would insure every child in America such as the Kids First Act (click here to learn more). This bill currently resides in the Senate Finance Committee of which Santorum is a member. He could hold hearings on it today and call for a up or down vote. However, what did Senator Santorum say when asked about it? "Fiscally Reckless"

To summarize:

High Quality Comprehensive Health Coverage
Good Enough for Him...	...But Not for Her
Comprehensive Taxpayer Subsidized Health Insurance	"Fiscally Reckless"

Click below to help spotlight Rick Santorum's record on child health care and what he has and hasn't gotten done in providing the best possible care to every child: