Contact Your Senators Today To Extend CHIP

Contact Your Members of Congress

Please consider reaching out directly to your members of Congress and urging them to extend CHIP funding for five years.

Senator Grassley: (202) 224-3744

Senator Ernst: (202) 224-3254

Talking points

Please feel free to use the talking points below to call your legislators. To find your senators, go to Senate.gov and “Find Your Senators” in the upper left-hand corner. To find your representative, go to House.gov and “Find Your Representative” in the upper right-hand corner. Their official .gov websites will have their DC Office contact information.

  • Hello. I am pediatrician from Iowa and a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics. I am calling today to urge Senator Grassley and Senator Ernst to support the Keep Kids’ Insurance Dependable and Secure (KIDS) Act of 2017 that would extend current level funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) for five years.
  • CHIP funding expired on September 30th. This missed deadline has real implications for real children and families. With every day that passes after the deadline, millions of children and families are left with more uncertainty about whether or not they will be able to access the health care they rely on.
  • Without certainty from Congress on CHIP funding, states will be forced to make drastic cuts to the program. This could mean slashing enrollment, reducing benefits, and imposing higher costs for families. States will be forced to begin these actions as soon as October 1st.
  • CHIP is a bipartisan success story. The program was created in 1997 and has been championed by lawmakers on both sides of the aisle since its very beginning.
  • Nearly 9 million children across the country are enrolled in the program. CHIP stands on the shoulders of Medicaid to cover children in working families who are not eligible for Medicaid and lack access to affordable private coverage.
  • The program is designed around what children need. It offers benefits that are age-appropriate, including dental coverage and mental health and substance abuse services, which may not be covered by a family’s employer-sponsored insurance.
  • CHIP plans include networks of pediatricians, pediatric medical and surgical subspecialists, and children’s hospitals, which are especially critical for children with special health care needs.
  • Please take immediate action to extend current level CHIP funding for five years. I also urge you to keep Medicaid intact in any future health care proposals as it is a lifeline for millions of Americans and must be protected.
  • Thank you for all you do for children.

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