This week in Washington: President sends budget request to Congress.
House
House Passes Bill to Extend Medicare Sequester Moratorium
On April 13, the House of Representatives voted 384-38 to pass a bill that would eliminate the 2 percent cut to all Medicare payments, known as sequestration, until the end of 2021. In addition, the legislation would make several changes to the rural health clinic provisions included in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021. The bill would…
This week in Washington: House and Senate return from congressional work period.
House
House Energy and Commerce Hearing on Substance Use to Consider 11 Bills
On April 14 at 10:30 a.m., the House Energy and Commerce Committee Subcommittee on Health will hold a hearing titled “An Epidemic within a Pandemic: Understanding Substance Use and Misuse in America.” The subcommittee will discuss the 11 bills listed below.
H.R. 654, the “Drug-Free Communities Pandemic Relief Act”
H.R. 955…
In This Issue: Department of Education hosts National Safe School Reopening Summit, Senate HELP Committee holds confirmation hearing for Cindy Marten, and earmarks make their return to Congress.
National Safe School Reopening Summit
On March 24, 2021, the Department of Education hosted the National Safe School Reopening Summit. According to the Department of Education, the summit is part of a larger effort to help support and provide resources to schools as they work to reopen. In his…
American Jobs Plan
On Wednesday, March 31, 2021, the Biden Administration released their American Jobs Plan, which constitutes the first of two sections of a larger infrastructure package. This section contains roughly $2.5 trillion in federal spending over eight years, with the majority of that coming in one-time investments.
Takeaways
$621 billion for surface transportation modernization, including $115 billion for bridges, roads, highways and main streets and $20 billion for road safety
Modernizes 20,000 miles…
This week in Washington: The House and Senate are in recess.
Representatives Propose a Permanent Extension of CHIP Funding
The House Energy and Commerce Committee is looking at ways to strengthen the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and expand Medicaid coverage. A proposal by Reps. Vern Buchanan (R-FL) and Lucy McBath (D-GA) to permanently extend the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) funding is under discussion as part of the committee’s agenda. CHIP is set to expire in…
About 475 million people worldwide have received a COVID-19 vaccine, and a return to normalcy draws closer. What remains unclear, however, is how state and federal governments will regulate and reimburse for telehealth when temporary telehealth policies expire at the end of the public health emergency.
Read on for a summary of proposed federal regulatory and legislative trends and state legislation that offer clues into telehealth’s post-pandemic future.…
This week in Washington: Becerra confirmed 50-49 to be Secretary of Health and Human Services
House passes Medicare Sequester Moratorium
On March 19, the House of Representatives passed legislation to extend the Medicare sequester moratorium through the end of the year. The vote was 246-175. However, the bill is not certain to pass the Senate. This legislation was necessary to keep the cost of the American Rescue Plan, the COVID-19 relief package from triggering further cuts…
This week in Washington: Budget reconciliation package passes and is signed into law; Becerra’s nomination for HHS secretary advances in the Senate.
House
House Passes Final Budget Reconciliation Bill
On March 10, the House passed the final version of the Senate budget reconciliation bill. One Democrat voted with the Republicans, who were united against the bill. President Biden signed the bill into law on March 11.
Medicare Sequester Moratorium
The House of Representatives will take up…
Earmarks are making a return to Congress. House Democrats have announced their intention to bring back earmarks after a moratorium lasting a decade. Removing the moratorium will give more power to individual lawmakers, especially Congressional members on the appropriations committees and the committees drafting the new infrastructure bill. It also provides stakeholders an opportunity to advocate for provisions and shape policy that is not necessarily included in the President’s budget.
Earmarks are defined as any…
American Rescue Plan
On Wednesday, March 10, Congress passed President Biden’s stimulus and COVID-19 relief package, the American Rescue Plan. The $1.9 trillion package provides additional funding for vaccination efforts, COVID-19 testing, state and local governments, stimulus checks, unemployment assistance, rental assistance, education, child care, and small businesses.
Notably, the final bill is not the same bill that originally passed the House of Representatives on February 27. Because the Senate used the budget reconciliation process…