CAGW Names Sens. Baucus and Smith Porkers of the Month

    WASHINGTON, July 25 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Citizens Against
 Government Waste (CAGW) today named Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max
 Baucus (D- Mont.) and member Gordon Smith (R-Ore.) Porkers of the Month for
 July, 2007. They have led the effort to expand, instead of reform, the
 State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP).
     SCHIP was created in 1997, and approximately $40 billion has been spent
 over 10 years to help states provide health insurance coverage to children
 in low-income families who earned too much to qualify for Medicaid. The
 original eligible population was families with incomes at or below 200
 percent of the federal poverty level, which is about $40,000 for a family
 of four in 2007. Several states, using Medicaid waivers, have expanded the
 eligibility level to 300 percent of poverty and added new populations, such
 as pregnant women and other adults, costing taxpayers additional monies.
 The Bush administration's budget included a five-year $4.8 billion increase
 in SCHIP over current levels, which was estimated to provide coverage for
 the families within the program's original level of 200 percent of poverty.
     The Senate Finance Committee, led by Chairman Baucus, approved a $35
 billion expansion over current funding levels for SCHIP on July 19, putting
 the new price tag at $60 billion over five years. It will expand
 eligibility to families at 300 percent above the federal poverty line, or
 $61,950 for a family of four. The legislation phases out some adult
 coverage, but the bill could be amended on the Senate floor by lawmakers
 wanting to restore such eligibility and expand coverage to those families
 at 400 percent of poverty, or $82,600.
     Expanding access to federal government healthcare will dramatically
 increase the power of the government in all healthcare decision-making,
 including treatments, drug and physician availability, and medical
 research, paving the way toward universal healthcare. Families who
 currently have private coverage will have a strong incentive to switch to
 the SCHIP program, crowding out private insurance and raising the price for
 everyone else.
     To pay for SCHIP's higher costs, Sen. Smith proposed raising tobacco
 taxes up to $1.00 per pack, an increase of 61 cents or 156 percent. The
 Finance Committee bill includes such an increase, as well as a 20,000
 percent rise in cigar taxes, from five cents to $9.95 per cigar.
 Ironically, cigarette taxes target those SCHIP is supposed to help: the
 working poor, who are statistically more likely to smoke. Excessively high
 excise taxes lead many consumers to circumvent the tax by purchasing
 products out-of-state, online, or through illegal sales. It also reduces
 the number of smokers. Paradoxically, the Heritage Foundation found that
 the government needs 9 million more smokers in the next five years to pay
 for the program, and 22.4 million by 2017. Since that is unlikely,
 projected excise tax revenues will not materialize and all taxpayers will
 foot the bill for SCHIP in other ways.
     For pushing a program that is the first step in creating government-
 controlled universal healthcare, instead of enacting reforms such as
 adopting tax credits or converting SCHIP into a defined contribution to
 allow low- income families to purchase private health insurance, and
 increasing taxes in a manner that will not provide sufficient funding, CAGW
 names Sens. Max Baucus and Gordon Smith its July 2007 Porkers of the Month.
     Citizens Against Government Waste is the nation's largest nonpartisan,
 nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating waste, fraud, abuse, and
 mismanagement in government. Porker of the Month is a dubious honor given
 to lawmakers, government officials, and political candidates who have shown
 a blatant disregard for the interests of taxpayers.
 
 

SOURCE Citizens Against Government Waste