WASHINGTON, DC -- With hundreds of thousands of low-income children in 14 states at risk of losing their health insurance, U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI) scored a major victory for families in Rhode Island by providing emergency budget relief to the State Child Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). Over the weekend, Reed prevented the Senate from wrapping up its legislative business for the year, blocking several key bills until Congress addressed the SCHIP funding shortfall. This move will help alleviate pressure on Rhode Islands state budget by providing $18 million to stave off cuts in the coming months until a long-term solution can be found to address SCHIP's funding needs. Nationally, SCHIP provides health insurance to over 6 million children in low- and moderate-income families who are just above the cut-off for Medicaid eligibility. In Rhode Island, approximately 11,000 kids are covered under the SCHIP portion of RIte Care (the state's Medicaid and SCHIP program), along with 11,000 adults and a few hundred pregnant women. Without Reed's efforts, Rhode Island would only have had enough money to maintain coverage through sometime in February. Reed's work gives the state needed funds and temporarily averts more drastic measures such as having to increase state funding or cut back RIte Care by reducing eligibility, increasing beneficiary premiums, reducing benefits or reducing provider payments through May 2007. "Millions of low-income families nationwide and thousands of Rhode Islanders depend on SCHIP for their health care needs. This program has been a great success. I am pleased we were able to successfully negotiate a deal to address the immediate funding gaps in this important program until the SCHIP program can be reauthorized next year," said Reed, a member of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee. "Once again, Senator Reed has come through on behalf of children and families at risk of being left behind by the current health care system," said Mark E. Reynolds, Chief Executive Officer for Neighborhood Health Plan of Rhode Island. "This news is a sign of hope that the priorities Rhode Islanders have concerning health care access will be at the forefront of the national agenda." "We applaud Senator Reed for his extraordinary effort to extend SCHIP funding for Rhode Island. While we work toward health insurance for all residents, we cannot afford to lose a penny of federal funding for SCHIP or Medicaid and we know we can count on Senator Reed's leadership on this vital issue. With this guarantee of federal funds we expect Rhode Island policy makers to assure that the RIte Care program remains intact," said Linda Katz, Policy Director of The Poverty Institute. The program was facing a total shortfall of about $927 million nationwide, putting 600,000 children in at least 14 states at risk of losing health insurance in 2007. Reed forged an agreement with his fellow lawmakers that would redistribute leftover fiscal year '04 and fiscal year '05 SCHIP funds in states with excess funds to states that have funding shortfalls in early 2007, such as Rhode Island, Georgia, New Jersey, and Maryland. "By securing this commitment from Congress, we can ensure that thousands of children, pregnant women, and families will continue to have access to quality health care until the Congress can reauthorize the SCHIP program next year," said Reed.