CONGRESS IS BACK FOR A FOUR-WEEK STRETCH

Congress is back in session this week, with the House in today and the Senate returning tomorrow. They are back for a four-week stretch until the Memorial Day recess break. Congress has already moved many of the major bills on tap this year, including foreign aid funding. Congress still needs to address the Federal Aviation Administration Reauthorization bill in the next two weeks. Congress also will begin work on the annual appropriations bills for FY 2025. Expectations are that Congress won’t complete that work this summer and will instead enact a continuing resolution by September 30 that will move final passage of the FY 2025 government spending bills – along with healthcare extenders and other policies – to a lame duck session after the election. While Congress will continue holding hearings and each body will work on moving legislative initiatives forward, major legislative activity is expected to be limited as members of Congress turn their focus to the pending elections.

This week both the Senate and the House will hold hearings with UnitedHealth Group CEO Andrew Witty to discuss the Change Healthcare cyberattack. On Wednesday, he will appear in front of the Senate Finance Committee and the House Energy and Commerce Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee.

The House Energy and Commerce Heath Subcommittee will hold a legislative hearing on Medicaid access and home and community-based services (HCBS). This hearing comes on the heels of the Biden Administration’s release of the Ensuring Access to Medicaid final rule. The rule has a particular focus on HCBS, including direct care worker compensation requirements, HCBS waitlists, grievance process development, critical incident reporting definitions and HCBS quality reporting. The final rule also seeks to increase transparency in payment rates. 

TODAY’S PODCAST

Debbie Curtis and Rodney Whitlock join Priya Rathakrishnan to discuss this week’s congressional hearings on the Change Healthcare cyberattack and Medicaid access proposals.