By a vote of 273-156, the House failed yesterday to override President Bush’s veto of H.R. 976, the Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act, which would have reauthorized and expanded the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) beyond its current expiration date of Nov. 16, 2007.
Although the override had not been expected to pass, the bill did have bipartisan support. However, the roll call was nine votes short of the necessary two-thirds majority (with four not voting). The Senate passed the bill in late September with a veto-proof majority.
According to The Washington Post, another round of negotiations will likely follow in order to develop a scaled-down version of the bill that would be acceptable to more House members.
The bill apparently has significant public support. According to The New York Times, 81 percent of respondents to the most recent CBS News poll supported expanding the program, with three-quarters of those saying they would be willing to pay higher taxes to finance it.
