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The House overwhelmingly handed a 2020 National Defense Authorization that included a provision that will give 12 weeks of paid parental depart for federal staff. The measure is anticipated to cross the Senate, and President Donald Trump has mentioned he would signal the measure ― a precedence for his daughter and particular adviser Ivanka Trump ― into legislation.
Meanwhile, the bipartisan management of key well being care committees on Capitol Hill introduced compromise laws to handle “surprise” medical payments, however a deal on a remaining bundle is way from clear. The House handed Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s bundle to decrease prescription drug prices, however the measure is useless on arrival within the Senate, the place a bipartisan proposal from leaders of the Senate Finance Committee is pending.
This week’s panelists are Mary Agnes Carey from Kaiser Health News, Kimberly Leonard of the Washington Examiner, Joanne Kenen of Politico and Emmarie Huetteman of Kaiser Health News.
Among the takeaways from this week’s podcast:
The House handed a protection measure that features 12 weeks of paid parental depart — which represents the most important change to household depart coverage for the reason that Clinton administration. It additionally highlights a uncommon case of bipartisanship. The measure is on monitor to clear the Senate, and Trump has mentioned he would signal it into legislation. The laws would put parental depart advantages for federal workers extra in step with these for army personnel. Federal workers’ advantages are extra slim, although. There has been numerous discuss and now perhaps some Capitol Hill motion on the subject of shock medical invoice laws. Earlier this week, the bipartisan management of the House Energy and Commerce Committee and the Republican chief of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee (HELP) introduced a compromise measure to curb these often-high sudden payments. Midweek, the House Ways and Means Committee additionally introduced that it had come to phrases on an method. These are clear indicators of progress. What isn’t clear is when all of the events will coalesce. Key gamers, similar to HELP rating member Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, have but to signal on. If a plan doesn’t crystallize within the fast future, Congress will seemingly deal with it in the course of the first few months of 2020. Even because the podcast was being taped, the House was taking over H.R. three, the drug-pricing invoice backed by Pelosi. The measure is anticipated to cross the House simply with Democratic help. But Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has mentioned it is not going to get a vote on the Senate flooring. This is an attention-grabbing concern as a result of the issue of the excessive value of pharmaceuticals has the eye of Democrats, Republicans and the White House. House passage may create momentum within the Senate to handle the problem by way of one other measure, this one drafted by Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and rating member Ron Wyden (D-Ore.). The feud between Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Seema Verma and Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar continues. The two officers have been referred to as this week for White House conferences, however the battle has been open, public and vituperative, and coverage areas ― such because the administration’s plan for an Affordable Care Act substitute in addition to for prime drug prices ― have been affected. Open enrollment for protection below the Affordable Care Act, or ACA, expires Sunday. So far this yr, enrollment is a bit behind final yr’s tempo. Important reminders: There is computerized enrollment for individuals who don’t go for one other plan and, if historical past holds, there can be a last-minute enrollment rush earlier than the deadline.
Plus, for further credit score, the panelists advocate their favourite well being coverage tales of the week they suppose you need to learn, too:
Mary Agnes Carey: The Washington Post’s “A Stunning Indictment of the U.S. Health-Care System, in One Chart,” by Christopher Ingraham
Joanne Kenen: Politico’s “Impeachment Committee’s Rancor Forged by Decades of Abortion Battles,” by Alice Miranda Ollstein
Kimberly Leonard: Undark’s “Wheelchairs on Planes: Why Can’t Passengers Use Their Own Onboard?” by Michael Schulson. The story appeared on NPR Shots.
Emmarie Huetteman: The New York Times’ “The I.R.S. Sent a Letter to 3.9 Million People. It Saved Some of Their Lives.” by Sarah Kliff
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