This week in Washington: Mnuchin and Pelosi continue discussions for COVID-19 stimulus package.
House
Bipartisan Members Defend Preexisting Condition Protections, Disagree on Definition
On Oct. 20, the House Ways & Means oversight subcommittee had a bipartisan group of members pledge support for protecting people with preexisting conditions. The members disagreed on what defines preexisting condition protections. Republican members of the committee said preexisting conditions protections only work if coverage is affordable and said non-Affordable Care Act (ACA)-compliant products like short-term plans, which do not have to cover preexisting conditions or other essential health benefits, are a sufficient alternative. Find more information here.
Senate
Alexander Defends NIH Dr. Fauci after President Trump’s Negative Comments
On Oct. 19, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-TX) defended the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), Dr. Anthony Fauci, after President Trump called Fauci a “disaster,” in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Alexander called Dr. Fauci one of the country’s most distinguished public servants.
Read more on healthcare policy in McGuireWoods Consulting’s Washington Healthcare Update.