First Lady Highlights Benefits of Health Reform for Children

By Jessica Portner

WASHINGTON--As she launched the Administration's drive to sell its health-care-reform proposal by testifying before several Congressional committees last week, Hillary Rodham Clinton emphasized the need to provide all Americans--particularly young ones--with high-quality, affordable care.

"On an emotional level, it's the most important thing to me because you can't look into a sick child's eyes ... and not care,'' the First Lady told the Senate Labor and Human Resources Committee.

In testimony punctuated by anecdotes about people bankrupted by medical bills and forced to make tragic choices about their health, Mrs. Clinton said: "No stories have moved me more than the stories of parents who have given up everything to take...