It would be just the second piece of legislation Bush has vetoed during his six years in office, said Karen Crompton, executive director of Voices for Utah Children, the state's leading child welfare advocacy group.

A veto might be an answer to political squabbling, but it is no answer for ensuring the health of children, Crompton said.

"Arguing over whether CHIP is a step toward socialized medicine or questioning if working families are really doing enough to acquire private insurance is simply a distraction," she said.

Crompton noted that Bush supported and signed into law the Medicare prescription drug benefit that mandated universal benefits at a cost of $400 billion over the next five years and $1 trillion over the next 10 years.

"Both ends of the age spectrum need to be prioritized for health care, not just senior citizens," she said.

"The politics of the situation are not in our hands and they're beyond our interest," Mark Gilbert, the Denver-based regional administrator for the CMS, said after Monday's meeting.

"The main goal for all of us is at the least ensuring the continuity of care for kids in the program no matter what."

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E-mail: jthalman@desnews.com