It should be about the health of kids, not punishing the parents

The “frame” the Democrats should be using about Bush’s veto of SCHIP, and the pusillanimous Republicans who are too afraid to override the veto: It’s about insuring the health of kids who are now at risk, not the parents or the insurance companies. These are children who can’t buy their own health insurance. A bipartisan majority in Congress has found there are too many kids in families with below-average incomes who aren’t getting covered by any health insurance. Children not getting healthcare when they most need it because they aren't insured is a threat to us all. Some Republicans would say it’s selfish parents with lower middle class incomes who won’t go deep into debt to buy insurance on their own. We say it’s tough to pay $15,000 a year for health insurance when your total income is $40 or $50,000. And sometimes it’s impossible because of pre-existing conditions. President Bush and his supporters in Congress are willing to jeopardize the health of these kids in order to punish their lower middle class parents. Above all, he says, he wants to protect the business of the insurance companies. Is that what America wants?

Yes, they are paying a price already, but it should be a devastating price.