{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://gabbard.house.gov/news/press-releases/rep-tulsi-gabbard-lawmakers-call-congressional-leadership-pass-bipartisan", "Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, Lawmakers Call on Congressional Leadership to Pass Bipartisan Legislation to Protect Our Keiki & Extend CHIP Funding", "2017-12-12", "2017", "2017-12", "Democrat", "House", "HI", "Tulsi Gabbard", "G000571", "gabbard.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Washington, DC\u2014Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (HI-02) and a coalition of 99 Members of Congress called on the House and Senate leadership to urgently extend funding for the Children\u2019s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) without the inclusion of harmful provisions that would reduce healthcare coverage among those who receive insurance under the Affordable Care Act, Medicare, and Medicaid.\nIn a letter to Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Speaker Paul Ryan, and Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, the lawmakers called for bipartisan legislation to extend funding for CHIP, which provides insurance coverage to nearly nine million uninsured, low-income children across the country, including over 25,000 children in Hawai\u2018i. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) and Georgetown University\u2019s Center for Children and Families, Hawai\u2018i is one of ten states that will exhaust its CHIP funding by the end of this year if Congress does not act immediately.\nCongresswoman Tulsi Gabbard said:\n\u201cCongressional leadership has failed to reauthorize funding for the Children\u2019s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) \u2013 putting at risk the health and care of nearly nine million low-income keiki across the country, including over 25,000 in Hawai\u2018i. Coupled with Medicaid, these programs have played a fundamental role in lowering the uninsured rate among children down to a record low of 4.5 percent.\n\u201cIf Congress fails to act, Hawai\u2018i will exhaust its CHIP funding by the end of this month, leaving thousands of children unable to visit a doctor for routine checkups, receive immunizations, prescriptions, emergency services, and more. We cannot continue to stand idly by as parents and families stay up at night worrying how to pay for the healthcare of our country\u2019s children. Congress must ensure the health and well-being of our future leaders\u2014our children\u2014and extend CHIP funding immediately.\u201d\n\u00a0\nBackground:\nCongresswoman Tulsi Gabbard previously called on Congress to reauthorize funding for the Children\u2019s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) after federal funding expired on September 30, 2017.\nRead the full text of the letter here.\n\u00a0\nFollow Rep. Tulsi Gabbard on social media:\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://gabbard.house.gov/news/press-releases/rep-tulsi-gabbard-lawmakers-call-congressional-leadership-pass-bipartisan"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.8660100176930428, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}