Philadelphia - This Monday, October 29, while President Bush meets with members of the Pennsylvania Republican delegation in a private fundraiser in the Philadelphia suburbs, members of Congress from across Pennsylvania will gather with doctors, children’s advocates, and young children to call on the President to put down his veto pen and sign the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) into law.

At this press conference, local children will deliver more than two thousand postcards signed by kids explaining the importance of SCHIP. They will ask the members of Congress to deliver their postcards to President Bush.

Background on SCHIP: During its 10 year existence nationally, SCHIP has been one the greatest success stories in U.S. healthcare – a true public-private partnership. In Pennsylvania, 165,000 children have health coverage thanks to SCHIP, including tens of thousands of children from Philadelphia and the surrounding counties. Renewal of SCHIP has wide bipartisan support, including support by 8 in 10 Americans. If SCHIP is not continued, millions of American children could lose their health insurance, including thousands of kids in Philadelphia and Montgomery County. These children will not be able to get the preventative care they need, forcing parents to instead seek care in costly emergency rooms. Even worse, some children may go without proper care and treatment.

WHO:  

Congresswoman Allyson Schwartz (D-Montgomery County/Philadelphia)
Congressman Chaka Fattah (D-Philadelphia)
Congressman Robert Brady (D-Philadelphia) 
Congressman Chris Carney (D-Dimock)
Congressman Patrick Murphy (D-Bucks County)
Pennsylvania doctors
Children’s advocates 
Pennsylvania families

WHERE: 

Parent Infant Center
Corner of 42nd & Locust Streets, Philadelphia
(Outside in front of the playground) 

WHEN: 

Monday, October 29, 2007
9:30 a.m. 

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