Washington, D.C. -  Sens. Frank R. Lautenberg (D–NJ) and Sherrod Brown (D–OH), and Representatives Allyson Schwartz (D–PA–13), Diana DeGette (D–CO–1) and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL-18) today introduced a bill to protect health coverage for children with chronic medical conditions.  The Children’s Health Protection Act of 2009 would help ensure that children suffering from debilitating and life threatening illnesses have access to comprehensive and affordable health care coverage – and would prohibit employers and insurers from imposing pre-existing condition limitations on children before they reach the age of 25. Already 75 Democratic and Republican House members have signed on in support of the bill.

“Children with chronic medical conditions deserve quality, affordable, reliable health care,” said Sen. Lautenberg.  “No child should ever be denied health care because of pre-existing conditions.  Our bill would help ensure children have the health coverage they need.”

“No child should be denied health insurance because of a pre-existing condition,” said Brown. “This bill will allow families with sick children to focus on medical care, not medical bills. This bill would prevent insurers from blocking children who need medical care the most.”

“Denying health coverage to children that are most in need – those with health conditions or other illnesses – is fundamentally wrong. Our plan, the Children’s Health Protection Act, ends a failed policy that has enabled insurance companies to deny millions of children the healthcare they need and deserve. This bill brings us one step closer to meeting our promise of keeping all children as healthy as they can be, by working toward ensuring that every single American child has access to quality, affordable health coverage,” U.S. Rep. Schwartz said.  

“Every child in this country deserves access to quality health care,” said U.S. Rep. DeGette, Vice Chair of the Committee on Energy and Commerce. “Congress and the White House got off to a great start by expanding the Children’s Health Insurance Program, but gaps still remain. This legislation goes a long way by reaching children who otherwise would have difficulty in accessing our health care system.”

“It is unconscionable to deny health insurance to a child with a pre-existing condition, yet this occurs every day to one too many children in our country. This legislation seeks to remedy that by assuring that employers or insurers will not deny coverage to children with a pre-existing condition. Medical care should not be denied in the greatest country on earth, especially to our young ones. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation and do our children right by it,” said U.S. Rep. Ros-Lehtinen.

“Senators Lautenberg and Brown and the Representatives have taken an important step in protecting chronically ill children at risk of having no health insurance by introducing this legislation,” said Nancy Davenport-Ennis, Founder and CEO of NPAF. “NPAF is proud to work with these leaders in any way that we can to help ensure that this vital legislation is enacted and to ensure that children across the nation are protected.”

Approximately 20 percent of school-aged children suffer from a chronic disease including cancer, diabetes, asthma and heart disease.  These chronic diseases are frequently considered pre-existing conditions for the purposes of health insurance coverage.  The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 limited when insurance companies could deny children health coverage due to a pre-existing condition.  However, a loophole in the law permits an insurance company to limit coverage to a child who goes without health coverage for more than 63 days.

The Children’s Health Protection Act of 2009 will close that loophole and prohibit insurers from imposing pre-existing condition limitations on children under the age of 25.  This bill is aimed at helping the nine million American children who are uninsured obtain the insurance they need to ensure prompt treatment for their chronic conditions.  In addition, it would potentially help millions of children who are at risk for becoming uninsured if their parents lose their job and health insurance in this economic crisis. 

The bill is supported by national advocacy organizations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Lung Association and the Lance Armstrong Foundation.  A complete list of supporters is below:

Academy of Radiology Research
American Academy of Pediatrics
American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association
American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network
American Heart Association/ American Stroke Association
American Lung Association
American Public Health Association
American Society of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology
Association of Community Cancer Centers
Association of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Nurses
Association of Pediatric Oncology Social Workers
Breast Cancer Network of Strength
Cancer Leadership Council
Chai Lifeline
Children’s Cause for Cancer Advocacy
Coalition for Imaging and Bioengineering Research
Families USA
First Focus
Friends of Cancer Research
Gilda’s Club
Hope Street Kids
Huntington’s Disease Society of America
International Myeloma Foundation
Kids With Heart National Association for Children’s Heart Disorders, Inc
Lance Armstrong Foundation
Leukemia & Lymphoma Society
Lupus Foundation of America
Lymphoma Research Foundation
Mended Little Hearts
Men’s Health Network
National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners
National Children’s Cancer Society
National Patient Advocate Foundation
National Psoriasis Foundation
Oncology Nursing Society
Ovarian Cancer National Alliance
Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation
Pediatric Stroke Network, Inc
Pediatrix Medical Group
Prevent Cancer Foundation
RESULTS
Sarcoma Foundation of America
Spina Bifida Association
The Wellness Community

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