The Senate’s finest hours were not those spent in July 26, 2017 health care policy debate, which resumed July 27 at 10:00 am EDT. The bipartisan demagoguery did not diminish, but some Senators on each side rose above that...more
Watching from afar the Scouts attempting to earn their orienteering merit badges, we could see it on the boys’ faces. They were lost; they were scared. They should have reached their destination an hour ago. Soon, these...more
Screenplays, new business ventures and major legislation typically have problems in Act II. Hopes were raised so high in Act I. Now, things seem to drag on and on, pointlessly. Friends tell you to give up or start over...more
During the week reviewed, no new bill was introduced which, if passed, would repeal or replace the Affordable Care Act, and little else happened at the three main ACA enforcement agencies – DOL, HHS and IRS.
Department...more
Nothing resembling a repeal/replace consensus bill emerged from any committee in either chamber during the survey period. Instead, in a Fox News interview broadcast just before the Super Bowl, the President confessed that...more
On January 13, the House passed the 2017 budget resolution (S. Con. Res. 3), which should be found on President Trump’s desk Monday morning. As previously explained, this sets the stage for a filibuster-proof, budget...more
On January 5, the House passed the “Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny Act of 2017” (H.R. 26), streamlining the process for Congressional review and rejection of administrative agency rules, including a...more
As of Thursday morning, January 5, the general direction and pace of ACA repeal / replace legislation is discernible (details below), but the details are not. News reports suggest that, despite persisting, material...more
We didn’t take ten weeks off because there was nothing to talk about. Rather, we concluded around Labor Day that anything useful to be said about ACA compliance, pre-election, would be interpreted as political advocacy, so...more
“None,” is our best guess, practically speaking. Congress passed much of what became the consolidated Affordable Case Act under “budget reconciliation” rules, which preclude a filibuster and enable a bill to pass the Senate...more