Good Ole' President, Huh?

WASHINGTON, Feb. 4 (UPI) -- U.S. President Obama signed into law a bill expanding a popular health insurance program for children Wednesday, calling it a first step to healthcare reform.

"This is a down payment on my commitment to cover every single American," Obama said before signing an expansion of the State Children's Health Insurance Program to roughly 4.1 million children who currently aren't covered by health insurance. The bill extends the program until 2013.

The additional $35 billion in costs would be funded by a 62-cent increase in the federal tax on cigarettes, which was one of the differences between the Senate and House bills. The House version included a 61-cent per-pack tax hike. "It is just one component of a broader effort to bring our healthcare system into the 21st century," Obama said of the state-run, federally funded program.

Obama used the signing ceremony to urge passage of his economic stimulus package. Healthcare initiatives contained in the stimulus package moving through Congress include computerization of medical records and extension of health insurance for the unemployed "so workers who lose their jobs don't lose their healthcare, too," he said.

The SCHIP bill also allows states to use federal funds to provide healthcare coverage to children and pregnant women who are in the country legally -- a provision most Republicans opposed -- amending current law that mostly bars legal immigrants from receiving State Children's Health Insurance Program coverage until they have been in the United States for five years.

Now I must say that I agree with all of this, up to providing for the families here illegally. I do not agree with that! Men come to the county and then bring in their families and have children so that they then can be made a legal citizen through their children. This is wrong! I am for people coming to our county the legal way! I do not think that our government should now fund for these babies to be born and have healthcare when their parents are illegal. There are so many of them that will now be covered and you know what that means more americans, who were born and raised here, will loose our coverage. Chris and I do not have healthcare, we go to a local hospital that has a healthplan we pay little for, and we are covered only at that hospital. However our children do have the state insurance that we also pay for.

I remember when I was pregnant with princess' and her biological father walked out on us, I was put on complete bedrest due to a staph infection that lasted three months, the first three months of my pregnancy. At that time I was in an apartment and was unable to work with a doctors order, I was unable to finish my school, and I needed help. I remember going down to the welfare department for the first time in my life and trying to get some kind of help with food stamps. I was told that I made to much money, 400 a month child support for speed racer. The lady looked at me and said "Honey don't you have a mom and dad that can help pay your bills?" I started crying and turned around to walk out of the room when I looked around and saw probably 15-20 mexicans who could not even speak enough english to talk to the lady at the desk, they had a person translating for them, and they were there to get their monthly benefits. I was floored. Her I am pregnant on bedrest, which means I CAN NOT work even if I wanted to, and I can get no help. But these people can and they are not even legal!