EDITORIAL: Continuing lapses: Perkins loans, children’s health funds should be stable parts of the federal budget

Oct. 08--As Congress has focused, repeatedly and unsuccessfully, on repealing Obamacare during the past months, other priorities have lapsed. This includes finding the funding even for programs that are almost universally supported by both senators and representatives.

As the government's fiscal year came to a close Sept. 30, several such programs expired. They did because despite being popular and necessary, lawmakers have been unable to agree on how to permanently fund them. Thus, they exist only through the mechanism of continuing resolutions -- promises to keep them going temporarily.

Two years ago, legislation to continue the Perkins Loan program had the support of 99 of 100 senators. But that wasn't enough. Because of the Senate's archaic rules, Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., was able to stop the bill, letting the program expire. Alexander, chairman of the Senate Education Committee, is not a Perkins fan.

Eventually, he relented, but only after forcing changes that killed the program for graduate students and limited the extension to two years, meaning it was again on the block this year. This time, Alexander was joined by House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., in opposing passage of an extension.

They argued the program makes higher-education funding "more complicated" for students and parents. Sure, having to read about another funding option and fill out the application forms is more complicated than not doing that, but if the alternative is not having enough money to attend college, those students would probably accept that trade-off.

Perkins is a need-based program. It only provides a few thousand dollars, but with the cost of higher education these days, in many cases, that makes all the difference.

What would be an even bigger deal is the expiration of the Children's Health Insurance Program -- another important effort that helps primarily those from low-income households. That program, commonly called CHIP, helps 9 million children whose families make just a bit too much to be Medicaid eligible gain health coverage. It also was allowed to lapse Sept. 30.

The good news in the case of CHIP is twofold.

First, the program has enough funding to last a while in many states (it's co-funded by state and federal governments, like Medicaid). In some states, it could last another two years. In New Hampshire, CHIP is used to fund the state's Healthy Kids Silver program, which assures every Granite State child has access to care. How long that program could survive without CHIP is uncertain.

The second piece of good news is that because taking health care away from children is a really bad look, pressure has already been mounting to restore CHIP's funding.

This isn't the first time Congress has let the program expire. It did so in 2007, but reauthorized it within weeks, under pressure. That could happen again. Already, some lawmakers have proposed legislation to fund it for another five years. But as was the case with the Perkins Loan program two years ago, it would not come without a price.

The bill put forth by the House Energy and Commerce Committee would fund the program, but in exchange it would cut back an increase in that funding over the next two years that was called for under the Affordable Care Act. It would also raise Medicare premiums on seniors.

Similar legislation, but without the added costs, sailed through the Senate. If the full House backs its committee's version, the two will have to be reconciled before anything can be passed. But again, it seems unlikely lawmakers will want to head home for the holidays having yanked health care away from 9 million children, so we remain optimistic.

Ultimately, however, the best move members of Congress could make would be to simply fund CHIP, and programs such as Perkins, in the regular budget. By setting them aside as continuing resolution items, they only set themselves up to look bad over and over again.

Meanwhile, those who really need help are left unable to count on it, if it eventually arrives at all.

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