Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Alexander-Murray Bill Would Reduce Deficit By Nearly $4B, Have Little Effect On Number Of Insured
The Wall Street Journal: Bipartisan Senate Health Bill Would Reduce Deficit By About $4 Billion Over Decade
A bipartisan Senate health bill would reduce the deficit by almost $4 billion over the next decade without significantly affecting the number of people who have coverage, the Congressional Budget Office found in a report released Wednesday. Sens. Lamar Alexander (R., Tenn.) and Patty Murray (D., Wash.), the bill’s co-sponsors, said the findings strongly bolster the case for their legislation. But a standoff between the White House, which wants more provisions to undo the Affordable Care Act, and Democrats, who reject such provisions, has left the measure stalled for now, with no clear path forward. (Armour and Peterson, 10/25)
The Hill: CBO: Bipartisan Health-Care Bill Would Reduce Deficit By $4B Over 10 Years
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) said in its report Wednesday that the bill would not substantially impact the number of people with health insurance. (Hellmann, 10/25)
Modern Healthcare: CBO: Bipartisan Bill To Stabilize Insurance Would Reduce Budget Deficit
Passing the Alexander-Murray bill actually would reduce the budget deficit because insurers—which have already set their 2018 premiums higher due to uncertainty about CSR funding—would have to rebate excess revenue to the government. Those rebates would total an estimated $3.1 billion from 2018 through 2027, the CBO said. But the bill's fate is in doubt after Trump and some Republican senators insisted that any package that funded the CSRs also include conservative provisions Democrats are almost certain to reject. (Meyer, 10/25)
Bloomberg: Bipartisan Obamacare Bill Saves Little Money On Technicality
“If CSRs are not paid, premiums in 2018 will go up an average of 20 percent, the federal debt will increase by $194 billion over ten years, due to the extra cost of subsidies to pay the higher premiums, and up to 16 million Americans may live in counties where they are not able to buy any insurance in the individual market,” Alexander and Murray said in a joint statement shortly after the CBO released its report. (Tracer and Wasson, 10/25)
Reuters: U.S. Lawmakers Will Not Tackle Healthcare This Year, Ryan Says
Republican lawmakers will not take up a bipartisan plan to stabilize Obamacare insurance markets or try again to repeal and replace the law this year, House of Representatives Speaker Paul Ryan said on Wednesday, signaling his party was shelving the matter until the 2018 U.S. congressional election year. ... "I think that is something we should do next year," Ryan said in an interview with Reuters when asked about prospects of the House passing a bipartisan bill that would reinstate federal subsidies to private insurers to help lower-income people buy medical coverage through the Affordable Care Act, dubbed Obamacare. (Chiacu, Cowan, Brice and Abutaleb, 10/25)
CQ: Advocates Push Passage Of Health Deal As Open Enrollment Nears
Democrats concerned about the confusion surrounding individual health insurance are urging a vote on bipartisan legislation to stabilize the marketplaces as a sign-up period next week creeps closer. Still, it appears increasingly likely that lawmakers won’t consider such a proposal until closer to the end of the year. And many experts say that the bill’s impact for 2018 would be modest, anyway. (McIntire, 10/25)
And in other news from Capitol Hill —
The Hill: Democrats Introduce Public Option Health Care Bill
Congressional Democrats are introducing legislation to allow states to set up a public option for health-care insurance. The legislation, spearheaded by Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) and Rep. Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M), is the latest idea from Democrats as the party tries to plot its next steps after blocking the GOP effort to repeal and replace ObamaCare. (Carney, 10/25)
