Today Congressman Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL) made the following statement regarding the reauthorization of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), which passed the House this afternoon. 

“I am pleased that House leadership finally brought to the floor an SCHIP bill that I could support.  Although the bill still has imperfections, it does address some of my previous concerns by allowing coverage for legal immigrant children residing in the U.S. and by also reducing the massive tax increase to Florida’s family-owned businesses that would have caused them to close their doors. 

“We must not lose sight of the focus of the program, which is to maximize enrollment for currently eligible, uninsured, and low-income children so that they have access to quality healthcare,” said Diaz-Balart.