Month: June 2018

Health Policy Report

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The Week in Review

Last week, a planned focus on immigration bills in the House of Representatives escalated when the Trump Administration’s “zero tolerance” policy was exposed for its forced separation of thousands of immigrant families seeking asylum and the resulting bipartisan backlash. On Wednesday, President Trump signed an executive order that will keep families together at the border through their immigration proceedings, but the order does nothing to direct the reunification of families already separated and continues to create legal uncertainty. Meanwhile. the House’s more conservative immigration proposal failed in a 193-231 vote on Thursday, but the 193 yeas actually outperformed expectations, giving proponents of a Republican immigration deal hope that a bill unifying the party on the issue remains within reach. The so-called compromise immigration measure is expected to be considered this week as House leadership hopes to court remaining Republican holdouts, however inconsistent tweets from President Trump introduced a new wrinkle this weekend by raising doubts as to his support for taking the vote.

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Financial Services Report

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Our Take

One of the hot topics percolating around DC is what will happen in November.   While we are still months away from the elections, and still really two months until Labor Day when the majority of voters have traditionally started to focus on them, it does not prevent all kind of prognostications.  While we aren’t making any predictions right now, it is worth noting that as of this writing, by many metrics the nation’s economy seems to be doing well – and that may temper a Democratic wave in the fall.  It is also worth noting that yesterday was the 78th anniversary of the signing of the Smoot-Hawley Tariffs into law.   While it would be unfair to make a direct comparison with the disastrous effect of Smoot-Hawley and last week’s tit-for-tat announcements of tariffs between the US and China – given the significant differences in our economy versus 1929 and the level of the trade barriers announced – it is worth noting that sometimes the economy can be a fickle creature, and if these decisions have negative ramifications the effect might impact both the GDP and the GOP. 

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Health Policy Report

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The Week in Review

Although it feels like a month ago, the first ever meeting between the active heads of state of North Korea and the United States occurred last Tuesday when President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un met for a summit in Singapore. The two leaders formalized the signing of a joint statement outlining the broad parameters of a future relationship between the two countries, largely mirroring previous agreements between North Korea and the international community and offering few details for denuclearization of the Korean peninsula. However, both leaders seemed pleased with the outcome of the meeting, with President Trump saying that the joint agreement was “tremendous” and that he expects the denuclearization process to start “virtually immediately.”

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TRP’s Chapman and Rosenberg Discuss the Transformation of DC Lobbying in Journal Article

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An article written by Thorn Run Partners’ Stuart Chapman and Andrew Rosenberg was featured in the Political Science Applied  journal last month. The piece, entitled “Lobbying Congress in Today’s Washington,” examines the shift in the perception of lobbyists in Washington, D.C., from “legislation crafters,” to intricate policymakers rooted in advocating for a client’s cause. Chapman and Rosenberg outline the transformation of modern lobbying, suggesting a form of legislative action that is guided by policy specialists who use expansive knowledge, strong communication with various organizations, and recruit the interests of stakeholders in the drive for change. The authors note that this approach to advocacy operations has helped Thorn Run achieve sector-leading growth, making TRP far from a one-dimensional firm.

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Financial Services Report

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Looking Ahead

Near Term

  • The House is taking up a series of bills designed combat the continuing opioid epidemic. 
  • The House Financial Services Committee will hold two hearings, including one Comptroller Otting this week.   The Committee is also scheduled to hold another mark-up on Thursday.
  • The House Appropriations Committee is scheduled to mark-up the Financial Services and General Government (FSGG) bill this week. 
  • The Senate will continue its debate over the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) including potentially debating amendments increasing the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) power to clamp down on foreign investment in the U.S. by China and others that could pose national security risks, and to restore the Commerce Department’s penalties on the Chinese telecommunications firm ZTE for violating U.S. sanctions against Iran and North Korea.
  • The Senate Banking Committee is also slated to hear from Comptroller Otting as well as vote on two nominees to the Federal Reserve Board.
  • The Federal Reserve Board is expected to announce the results of its stress tests this week.
  • The FSOC is meeting on June 15th and will review the designation of Prudential, as well as hear about an application to get out Dodd-Frank’s “Hotel California” provision.  

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Health Policy Report

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The Week in Review

A busy week in Washington came to a close as the House wrapped up its work last Friday on an appropriations “minibus” (H.R. 5895) that would authorize FY 2019 funding for Energy and Water Development, Military Construction-Veterans Affairs, and Legislative Branch (MilCon-VA) appropriations. House GOP leadership also worked to move forward with a White House plan to cut roughly $15 billion in leftover spending from the massive $1.3 trillion omnibus spending bill passed earlier this year. Prior to its submission, the rescissions package (H.R. 3) was revised by the administration to withdraw proposed cuts from Federal Highway Administration, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), while maintaining a $7 billion cut to leftover funding from the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). The measure cleared the lower chamber, however, the package faces long odds of approval in the Senate as Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has signaled little interest in moving the Trump-backed proposal.

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TRP’s Shea McCarthy Quoted in Inside Health Policy on HHS’ Decision to Embrace ‘Silver-Loading’

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In an Inside Health Policy article published on Wednesday, June 6, Thorn Run Partner’s Vice President Shea McCarthy discussed HHS Secretary Alex Azar’s recent indication that the HHS will not block “silver-loading” of insurance plans for 2019. As Mr. McCarthy explained, “while the Trump administration’s approach to ACA implementation has led many advocates to embrace the notion that HHS would seek to undermine Obamacare at all costs, Secretary Azar’s decision to embrace the practice of ‘silver-loading’ sends a slightly different signal.” As he pointed out further, the administration likely recognizes the political implications of significant premium increases coming during the height of election season, and may be sensitive to the fact that they could invite further scrutiny by taking additional steps that would increase costs.

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Health Policy Report

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The Week in Review

Both chambers enjoyed a week-long recess for the Memorial Day holiday, and return this week for a month-long work period.

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