LEGISLATIVE AND REGULATORY UPDATE
Week in Brief
AHCA: American Health Care Act (AHCA) passes the House; President Trump Speaks at White House Ceremony Celebrating House Passage of the Bill.
WHITE HOUSE UPDATE
May 1
Mental Health: President Trump Proclaims May 2017 as National Mental Health Awareness Month.
LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
May 1
FY2017 Appropriations: Senate Committee on Appropriations Majority and Minority Both Release Summary of FY2017 Omnibus Appropriations Bill. House Committee on Appropriations Majority and Minority Both Release Statement on FY2017 Omnibus Appropriations Bill. Senate Committee on Finance Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-OR), Senate HELP Committee Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-WA), Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Greg Walden (R-OR), and Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI) also Issue Statements on FY 2017 Omnibus Appropriations Bill.
AHCA: Energy and Commerce Ranking Member Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) Responds to President Trump’s Statement on the AHCA’s Coverage for Americans with Pre-Existing Conditions.
May 2
FY2017 Appropriations: HELP Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-TN) Applauds Increased Medical Funding and the Reintroduction of Year-round Pell Grants in the FY2017 Omnibus Appropriations Bill.
CHIP Reauthorization: Chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-OR) Release Statement in Advance of CHIP Reauthorization Hearing.
FDA User Fee Reauthorization: House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health Holds Hearing Examining Four Bipartisan Bills, Including the FDA User Fee Reauthorization Act.
VA Appeals Process: Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Chairman Johnny Isakson (R-GA) and Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) Announce Veterans Appeals Improvement and Modernization Act of 2017 (The Proposed Act). House Committee on Veteran Affairs Chairman Mike Bost (R-IL) and Ranking Member Elizabeth Esty (D-CT) also Introduce Legislation to Modernize the Appeals Process at the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Medicaid Abuse: The Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Holds Hearing Examining Waste, Fraud, and Abuse in Medicaid’s Personal Care Services (PCS) Program. Energy and Commerce Ranking Member Frank Pallone Jr. (D-NJ) Offers Remarks.
May 3
U.S. Surgeon General: Senate HELP Committee Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-WA) and Other Top HELP Committee Democrats Send Letter to President Trump Regarding Dr. Vivek Murthy’s Dismissal.
AHCA: House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Greg Walden (R-OR) Issues Statement on AHCA Amendment.
May 4
AHCA Vote:
- House: Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady (R-TX), Ways and Means Committee Ranking Member Richard Neal (D-MA), Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Chairman Phil Roe (R-TN), Budget Committee Ranking Member John Yarmuth (D-KY), Energy and Commerce Committee Ranking Member Frank Pallone (D-NJ), Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Greg Walden (R-OR) and Health Subcommittee Chairman Michael C. Burgess (R-TX),and Budget Committee Chairman Diane Black (R-TN) Release Statements on the AHCA Passage through the House.
- Senate: Committee on Finance Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-UT), Committee on Finance Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-OR), HELP Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-TN), and HELP Committee Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-WA) Release Statements on the AHCA Passage through the House.
REGULATORY UPDATE
Department of Health and Human Services
May 4
OIG: HHS OIG Publishes Report, CMS Validated Hospital Inpatient Quality Reporting Program Data, But Should Use Additional Tools to Identify Gaming.
Other Updates
GAO: GAO Issues Reports,
- Medicaid Managed Care: Compensation of Medicaid Directors and Managed Care Organization Executives in Selected States in 2015 (May 1st).
- Medicaid Personal Care Services: More Harmonized Program Requirements and Better Data Are Needed (May 2nd).
- Medicaid Demonstrations: Federal Action Needed to Improve Oversight of Spending (May 3rd).
May 3rd
Drug Costs: BlueCross BlueShield Issues Report, Rising Costs for Patented Drugs Drive Growth of Pharmaceutical Spending in the U.S.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Congressional Hearings/Markups
HELP Committee Executive Session
S. ___, Recognize, Assist, Include, Support, and Engage (RAISE) Family Caregivers Act and S.934, Food and Drug Administration Reauthorization Act
• May 10 |10:10 a.m.
G-50 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington DC 20510
Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs
Examining the Veterans Choice Program and the Future of Care in the Community
• May 10 |2:30 p.m.
Russell, SR-418
Washington DC 20510
For more information about this issue of Power Play: Washington Week in Review or more legislative and regulatory updates, contact the Powers Pyles Sutter & Verville Government Relations and Public Policy group at (202) 466-6550.