(Slim Chance of) Shutdown Week

This Friday is the deadline to pass a budget or enter a government shutdown. The House released a continuing resolution (CR) over the weekend and is scheduled to be in session only until Wednesday. The House Rules Committee plans to meet today to consider the CR, which is expected on the House floor Tuesday.

While the proposed CR does not include several of the large funding cuts that have been discussed, it is not a clean CR. It would:

• Fund federal agencies through the end of the fiscal year (September 30);
• Limit spending in several, mainly domestic, areas; and
• Provide increases for defense spending.

The proposed CR includes the same health extenders that were passed in the December 2024 CR. However, it does not address the scheduled Medicare physician payment cut or other healthcare policies that have been under discussion.

House Democratic leaders strongly oppose the CR, so Republicans likely will need near-complete support (217 votes) from their caucus. President Trump indicated strong support for the CR on social media and asked that no Republicans dissent.

If the CR passes the House, the struggle will move to the Senate, where 60 votes are needed to avert a filibuster. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) is expected to oppose the CR, which would mean that Republicans need a minimum of eight Democrats to support it.

As with most key votes moving through the 119th Congress, we’ll have to watch to see what happens. While no one is advocating for a government shutdown, if the CR is unable to pass the House or Senate, that will be at least the short-term outcome.

The House will hold a few health-related hearings before Democrats head to their annual retreat at the end of the week. The Senate will hold nomination hearings to consider President Trump’s picks for key health agencies:

• Mehmet Oz, MD, as the administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services;
• David Weldon as the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention;
• Jayanta Bhattacharya as the director of the National Institutes of Health; and
• Martin Makary as the commissioner of the US Food and Drug Administration.

These are the only hearings scheduled for these nominees, and they likely will be voted out of their respective committees and confirmed.

Today’s Podcast

In this week’s Healthcare Preview, Debbie Curtis and Rodney Whitlock join Maddie News to discuss the status of government funding and next steps to avoid a shutdown later this week, as House Republicans work to garner votes for their recently released continuing resolution.