The Iowa Senate Human Resources Committee voted this week to approve a bill that would require nearly all families in the state to obtain medical coverage for their children by 2011. By mandating coverage for kids under an Iowa health insurance plan, it is hoped that almost all of the uninsured children in the state would be covered.

According to the report at Kaiser Daily Health, "the bill would provide coverage to children in low-income families through Hawk-I, the state's version of SCHIP." Between that and the mandate, the measure would extend coverage to nearly all of the 3% of Iowa children who are uninsured.

The biggest concern so far is, of course, cost. It hasn't been explained as to who would foot the bill, and how much it would cost taxpayers. And while extending coverage to children is a major selling point, it isn't the only costly portion of the Iowa health insurance bill.

The bill also would encourage use of electronic health records and require physicians and hospitals to submit "quality measures" that would be publicly reported. The measures are not defined in the bill, but they would include hospital infection and mortality rates.

Whether or not the bill will pass remains to be seen, as it moves now to the senate. Most state citizens hope that Iowa health insurance will indeed extend coverage to the children, offering them the chance to grow into healthy, happy adults.