Pallone Responds to CMS Letter on CHIP

Washington, D.C. --- U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) Chairman of the Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health, responded to a letter sent late this afternoon to State Health Officials (SHO) from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) regarding crowd-out provisions under the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP).

“The latest letter issued by CMS is not worth the paper it’s printed on. First and foremost, this letter does nothing to roll back the harmful policies from the August 17th letter, which, if enacted would jeopardize access to health care coverage for millions of low-income children. Furthermore, this letter perpetuates what I view to be an illegal process that bypasses Congress, blocks opportunity for public comment, and undermines the intent of CHIP. I will continue to fight this Administration tooth and nail when it comes to their attempts to rob low-income children of their health insurance.”