August 3, 2007
Health Bills Promote Senior Smoking to Fund Kid Care
by Scott Ott

(2007-08-04) ?? With child health care bills emerging from the House and Senate each relying on increases in the federal cigarette excise tax to help provide $7 billion a year or more, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-NV, today offered an amendment designed to ??guarantee an un-ending funding stream for children??s health by encouraging older Americans to take up smoking.?

??Without a growing population of smokers,? Sen. Reid said, ??We won??t have enough cash to fund these increases in the Children??s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), and we would have to raise other taxes. This bill would provide federal matching dollars to create an advertising campaign through the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) to get more seniors to consider the joys of tobacco in their waning years.?

??Kids know that smoking is bad because it cuts life short,? said Sen. Reid. ??But if you??re almost at the end of your days anyway, why not smoke? Not only will septuagenarians get the satisfying buzz of nicotine, but they??ll have the warm feeling of knowing their addiction is helping to keep poor kids healthy.?

The majority leader said he envisions ??a thousand points of light, as grandmas and grandpas ignite a movement toward better health for children.?
ohkelly Reviewed by ohkelly on . Health Bills Promote Senior Smoking to Fund Kid Care August 3, 2007 Health Bills Promote Senior Smoking to Fund Kid Care by Scott Ott (2007-08-04) ?? With child health care bills emerging from the House and Senate each relying on increases in the federal cigarette excise tax to help provide $7 billion a year or more, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-NV, today offered an amendment designed to ??guarantee an un-ending funding stream for children??s health by encouraging older Americans to take up smoking.? ??Without a growing Rating: 5