By a vote of 225-204, the House passed the Children’s Health and Medicare Protection Act (H.R. 3162) on Aug. 1, reauthorizing and expanding the State Children’s Health Insurance Program. The bill would provide $50 billion over five years, to be paid for mainly by Medicare Advantage payment cuts and an increase in the federal tobacco tax of 45 cents per pack. Among other things, the bill would also halt a scheduled reduction in physician Medicare payments. The Senate is expected to pass its own, less expensive ($35 billion over five years) SCHIP bill by the end of this week, although the president has threatened to veto both the House and Senate versions of the bill. Read the bill.
