Sen. Baucus Says Temporary Federal Medicaid Payment Increase Could Be Included in Senate Economic Stimulus Package
Senate Finance Committee Chair Max Baucus (D-Mont.) on Thursday said a temporary funding increase for states' Medicaid programs could be included in the Senate's version of an economic stimulus package, CQ HealthBeat reports. However, according to CQ HealthBeat, "the signs are multiplying that congressional leaders view the increases as a secondary priority at best." Baucus said, "Medicaid is also on the table, but it's not as high up."A tentative agreement on a stimulus package reached by the House and the Bush administration does not include Medicaid funding. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said, "I expect that the (Finance) committee and other senators will work to improve the House package by adding funds for other initiatives that can boost the economy immediately, such as unemployment benefits, nutrition assistance, state relief and infrastructure investment" (Reichard, CQ HealthBeat, 1/24).
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said that she is not "totally pleased" with the House package and added that lawmakers should pass additional legislation if the economy worsens (Yachnin/Billings, Roll Call, 1/24). Pelosi said, "In the phone call we just had with the president I told the president that I hoped that we can use this model of bipartisanship to work together on unemployment insurance and Medicaid and other issues that spring from a weakened economy, and should our economy continue to worsen we will not hesitate to advance additional legislation, speaking for myself, to respond to economic pressures affecting the American people" (CQ HealthBeat, 1/24).
According to Roll Call, a mark up on the stimulus package has been scheduled by the Senate Finance Committee for next week, with the full Senate expected to complete work on the measure within 10 days. Reid said he expects the entire proposal to clear both chambers by Feb. 15, the deadline Democrats set for passage. If the Senate makes any changes to the bill, it will have to be returned to the House for approval before heading to the White House (Roll Call, 1/24).
NGA
Raymond Sheppach, executive director of the National Governors Association, said that temporarily increasing the federal medical assistance percentage for states' Medicaid programs is a priority for governors in the economic stimulus package. NGA in a statement on Wednesday said that "the nation's governors strongly support a combination of a $6 billion block grant and $6 billion in increased Medicaid funding to be included in any stimulus package enacted into law during the economic downturn of 2008. The increased Medicaid funds should come through increasing each state's [FMAP] ... and holding states harmless from scheduled FMAP decreases for the four fiscal quarters beginning April 1."
NGA said, "The revenue reductions and Medicaid increases that accompany all economic downturns, in combination with state balanced budget requirements, are forcing states to cut spending as the economy weakens," adding, "These actions will make the current downturn both longer and more severe. The governors' plan will neutralize these negative impacts" (CQ HealthBeat, 1/24).
Trade Adjustment Assistance Program
Senate Democrats on Thursday said legislation that would reauthorize and expand the expired Trade Adjustment Assistance program might be included in a second package that addresses broader economic issues than the first bill's focus on tax rebates and small-business incentives, according to CongressDaily. The TAA program expired in 2007 after Senate Republicans blocked a three-month extension of the program, but sufficient funding authority in the fiscal year 2008 omnibus appropriations bill will allow the program to continue. Legislation approved by the House in October 2007 would have expanded coverage to service-sector workers and more manufacturing workers, increased job-training funds, fixed gaps in health insurance tax credits and provided increased unemployment insurance and tax incentives to encourage redevelopment of communities with heavy job losses (Cohn, CongressDaily, 1/25).
