GOP Leaders Negotiate Budget Differences During Congressional Recess
Top House and Senate Republican budget negotiators are working over this two-week break to iron-out differences between the two chambers' budget blueprints, including changes to the Medicare program. But wariness remains, according to one Washington Post report, about whether lawmakers will be able to use momentum from the pending Medicare physician pay measure to fashion other compromise legislation.
Reuters:
U.S. Congressional Budget Leaders Haggle During Recess
Top Republican budget writers in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives were working over a two-week congressional recess to iron out differences between their budget plans passed last week, including ideas for changing Medicare. Aides said House Budget Committee Chairman Tom Price and his Senate counterpart, Mike Enzi, want Congress to approve a combined budget by April 15 - just three days after lawmakers return to Washington from their Easter and Passover break. (3/31)
The Washington Post:
Congress Congratulates Itself For The ‘Doc Fix’ Deal, But Can It Happen Again?
The heretofore “do-nothing” Congress is on the cusp of becoming a “did-something” Congress, and Capitol Hill couldn’t more pleased with itself. As Congress prepared to leave Washington for a two-week Easter break, lawmakers celebrated a bipartisan deal that would end the dreaded yearly ritual known as the “doc fix” while extending popular federal health-care programs for low-income families. (DeBonis, 3/31)
And a Democrat introduces a bill for Medicare to cover hearing aids --
The Hill:
Dem Wants To Fill Medicare Gap For Hearing Aids
Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.) has introduced legislation so that seniors can use their Medicare coverage to pay for hearing aids. The Michigan Democrat argued that allowing Medicare to cover hearing aids would help more seniors afford the devices. Digital hearing aids can cost around $4,000, while other hearing aids are priced at less than $1,000. (Marcos, 3/31)
