Senate Fails To Take Up Legislation That Would Delay Medicare Physician Fee Cut
The bill is similar to a measure (S 3101) proposed by Senate Finance Committee Chair Max Baucus (D-Mont.) that also failed to receive enough votes to invoke cloture (Edney, CongressDaily, 6/27). The final vote on Thursday was 58-40; however, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) changed his vote to no to ensure he could reintroduce the bill under procedural rules (Armstrong [1], CQ Today, 6/26). Sen. Judd Gregg (R-N.H.) offered a 30-day extension of the current pay level, but Reid objected (Edney, CongressDaily, 6/26). According to CongressDaily, "Democrats hoped the impending deadline and unexpected overwhelming support in the House would put enough heat on GOP senators to support cutting off debate" (CongressDaily, 6/27). Missing Votes
Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain (Ariz.) and Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) were not present for the vote. Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Sen. Barack Obama (Ill.) voted for cloture on the measure. McCain was in Ohio campaigning during the vote and Kennedy is undergoing cancer treatments after recently having a brain tumor removed. According to the New York Times, "McCain's absence made it likely that Democrats would seek to hold him at least partly responsible for the outcome." The Times reports that a McCain spokesperson said he had no immediate comment (Herszenhorn, "The Caucus," New York Times, 6/26). Session Extension
Reid on Thursday told senators to clear their calendars for the weekend and prepare for another cloture vote on Sunday, according to a spokesperson for the lawmaker. According to CongressDaily, Senate Republicans have objected to bringing the legislation to the floor on Friday. Meanwhile, Reid said that he cannot file for cloture until midnight due to other legislative efforts (CongressDaily, 6/26). A Sunday vote could push final action on the bill into next week (Armstrong [2], CQ Today, 6/26). Baucus said that the House measure is the Senate's only option to avert the fee cut before the Fourth of July recess because the House has already left for recess. "There is no alternative," Baucus said, adding, "This is the only train in the station" (Armstrong [1], CQ Today, 6/26). Reid said that the Senate is "going to finish Medicare" before it adjourns for the recess (Armstrong [2], CQ Today, 6/26). White House Reiterates Veto Threat
The White House on Thursday again threatened to veto the measure because it makes cuts to indirect medical education payments and imposes limitations on so-called private fee-for-service plans under Medicare Advantage. The Bush administration said that the bill would "reduce access, benefits and choices for many of the approximately 2.25 million beneficiaries who have chosen to enroll in" the plans (Armstrong [1], CQ Today, 6/26). The measure would cut about $14 billion over five years from payments to some plans under MA (Lueck, Wall Street Journal, 6/27). Although Finance Committee ranking member Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) voted against cloture, he said, "I personally think the White House has drawn lines in the sand that are unreasonable." Compromise Bill
Baucus and Grassley reached a tentative agreement on a compromise bill earlier this week, but it was abandoned in the Senate after the House approved its measure by a veto-proof margin. According to CongressDaily, "The compromise would have avoided a promised veto of the House-passed measure" (CongressDaily, 6/27). Republicans "were upset" that they did not have the option to vote on the compromise legislation, according to CQ Today (Armstrong [1], CQ Today, 6/26). However, CQ Today reports that "there may not be enough time" for the bill to pass the Senate and the House before the recess. CQ Today reports that Reid "could ultimately ... accept Gregg's plan for a 30-day extension of the current doctor payment rates" (Armstrong [2], CQ Today, 6/26). Retroactive Patch
Congress also has the option of returning after the recess and passing a bill that would retroactively restore the physician payment levels and block the cut. However, such a move "will likely create an administrative headache" and "ha[s] long been seen as an undesirable outcome," according to CQ Today (Armstrong [1], CQ Today, 6/26).
NPR's "Day to Day" on Thursday reported on the Medicare physician fee cut (Rovner, "Day to Day," NPR, 6/26).
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Senatul nu reuºeºte sã aibã acces la legislaþie care ar întârzia Medicare Medic Taxa Cut - Senate Fails To Take Up Legislation That Would Delay Medicare Physician Fee Cut - articole medicale engleza - startsanatate