Before leaving Washington for the week, lawmakers in both chambers voted yesterday on a bill (H.R. 3823) to extend federal aviation programs before a Saturday deadline and provide tax relief for people affected by recent hurricanes. The six-month reauthorization of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) (H.R. 3823) also includes provisions to extend a few expiring public health care programs. Health care measures in the bill included short-term extensions of the Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education (THCGME) program and the Special Diabetes Program for Indians, as well as a three-year extension a of Medicare demonstration allowing patients with weakened immune systems to receive in-home care.
Month: September 2017
Today on the Hill: All Eyes Turn to Tax Reform as House Votes on FAA, Flood Insurance, Health Programs
The tax reform debate has officially begun in earnest, as the Senate has closed the door on a September vote on ACA ‘repeal and replace’ and the group of Republican leaders known as the “Big Six” released the most detailed look yet at the party’s plan to overhaul the nation's tax code. The tax plan is now expected to head to the committees of jurisdiction to be crafted into formal legislation. The pressure to pass a package will be particularly acute this fall as lawmakers begin to plan their campaigns for the 2018 midterm elections. Republicans are hoping that tax reform will prove to be a more consensus issue than healthcare, but the many “winners and losers” of any tax reform package will undoubtedly cause some divisions among Republican rank-and-file members.
This Week on the Hill: New Graham-Cassidy Draft Boosts Funding to States of Skeptic Senators; House Returns to MIECHV Reauthorization, FAA Stopgap
The last-ditch effort to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA) led by Republican Sens. Lindsay Graham (R-SC) and Bill Cassidy (R-LA) will take center-stage this week as Republican leaders try to beat the expiration of the 2017 fiscal year reconciliation instructions that allow for a bill to pass in the Senate on a simple majority vote rather than the typical 60 votes required of major legislation. A new draft of the bill (text) was released last night, including additional federal funding for the states of Alaska, Arizona, Maine, and Kentucky — home to four of the bill’s key skeptics in Sens. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), John McCain (R-AZ), Susan Collins (R-ME), and Rand Paul (R-KY). The new draft also rolls back more federal regulations regarding the health insurance industry, which is likely a nod to conservative senators Sens. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Mike Lee (R-UT). It is unclear whether the changes will be enough to convince all but two Republicans to vote in favor — especially considering the accelerated timeline — but it appears that all systems are go for a final push.
Health Policy Report
The Week in Review
In a shortened week in Washington, the most noteworthy development was the growing sense of momentum for the newest Republican repeal and replace bill introduced by Sens. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and Lindsey Graham (R-SC). While the whip count is still in flux, the bill (H.R. 1628) is expected to be called to the floor this week for a vote in attempt to get it to the President’s desk before the close of the fiscal year – and the final chance to use the fiscal 2017 budget resolution – at midnight on Sep. 30th. A full breakdown of the bill’s prospects is included in the roundup below.
Financial Services Report
Our Take
This past week the President appeared to cut a deal with Democrats on DACA, walk back his commitment to pull-out of the Paris Climate Agreement and announced his intention to wade into a nasty election in Alabama. Whether this is part of some calculated political agenda, or just because he “really likes” Senator Schumer, the fact is that this is a President who is trying to get deals done. It is not without irony that for so long Democrats (and those non-tea party Republicans), were complaining about how Washington was broken. Now, with a President who fancies himself the second-coming of LBJ’s deal making prowess, folks on the left and the right continue to express concern, while others are worried that this marks the end of the parties (unlikely).
This Week on the Hill: Last-Ditch Repeal and Replace Effort Gains Steam in Senate; Trump to Speak to UN
With the House in recess for the week, Beltway-watchers will be focused on the upper chamber where lawmakers will return today to continue consideration of the FY18 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) (H.R. 2810). A final cloture and up-or-down vote on the bill is expected this evening, after the chamber adopts a substitute amendment from Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) that constitutes the Senate’s version of the bill. Passage is expected, but it remains unclear how the two chambers will reconcile their visions for the annual defense policy measure. The Senate is also expected to approve the nomination of Noel Fransisco to be Solicitor General early this week.
Health Policy Report
The Week in Review
The week started on a somber note as the nation marked the 16th anniversary of the September 11th terror attacks and assessed the damage from Hurricane Irma’s landfall on the Florida coast. That latter event delayed the House’s return to Washington, although lawmakers were able to return on Tuesday to work on an immigration bill and a highly partisan FY18 appropriations bill. The first (H.R. 3697) of those two measures would make it easier for government officials to deport undocumented immigrants involved in gang activity and was approved on Thursday by a 233-175 margin. The appropriations bill was subject to hundreds of amendments and contains a number of policy riders deemed “poison pills” by Democrats. For that reason, last week’s narrow 211-198 vote is largely a messaging exercise ahead of the more substantive funding negotiations that will take place later this fall.
Financial Services Report
Our Take
This past week the President Trump that all Democrats had hoped for – the one who favors the art of the deal over ideology – finally made an appearance. Depending on your media consumption this was either the greatest thing or the end of days. As is often the case, the media hype misses the nuance of reality. The President’s deal was only a short-term punt of some serious issues that may not be resolvable by December 8th. So, while he changed the media narrative (especially in the New York Times and on MSNBC), this deal doesn’t change any of the politics around the substantive issues at stake. New Trump isn’t going to get Democratic support for a wall, nor will he get Republican support for a permanent DACA bill. Regardless, it was nice to see Washington “work” this past week and perhaps this ultimate outsider has a plan up his sleeve to keep it going.
Health Policy Report
Last Week in Review
The natural disaster in southeast Texas, and preparations for the now-arrived storm in Florida, forced a busy week from Congress in its return from the August recess as the body was forced to reckon with government funding and the debt ceiling weeks ahead of previously anticipated deadlines at the end of September. Surprisingly, this action took the form of a snap deal between President Trump and Democrat congressional Minority Leaders Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Chuck Schumer (D-NY) on a legislative package (a sweeping amendment to H.R. 601) providing a $15 billion down payment on Texas disaster relief and pushing back key deadlines for government funding, the debt ceiling, and the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) from the end of September to Dec. 8. The Senate passed the package on Thursday 80-17, with the House doing the same on Friday on a 316-90 vote.
Politico’s “Morning Money” Tipsheet Touts Jason Rosenstock’s Comments on the Debt Ceiling
This morning's "Morning Money" piece from Politico featured “hat tip” to comments made by Thorn Run’s Jason Rosenstock, who offered his take on the current state of play between both parties on the debt limit earlier this summer. “Democrats whose history under the Gephardt Rule shows they never wanted to make this a public issue, and who are tired of having to supply the votes and the campaign fodder for Republicans, have almost no incentive to bail out the GOP majority,” noted Rosenstock. “Republicans, in control of all three branches of Government for the first time during one of these crises, know that they can’t escape the blame for any repercussions from the stock market for failing to raise the debt limit. While few are publicly talking about it, the stars may be aligning so that this next extension is the final time Congress deals with this issue.”