There was an article in the Columbus Dispatch today about how the federal SCHIP debate may affect Ohio. Earlier this year the General Assembly passed legislation championed by Gov. Ted Strickland to expand eligibility for Ohio's children's health care program to those in families making up to 300% of the federal poverty level. Now there is some uncertainty about whether this expansion can take place.

The governor's spokesman claims, "If the rules are not taken out, it could be problematic to our ability to provide health care to more children." Of course, the governor's spokesman failed to point out that, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation, almost 70% of the uninsured in Ohio are already eligible for Medicaid or the state's children's health insurance program.

The state is already having trouble providing health care for those eligible for the program. It makes little sense to dilute these efforts by expanding the program to middle-class kids. You'll have a hard time finding this type of thinking mentioned in this debate, however.