Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Sinema, Holding Up Health Care Bill, Draws Democrat Focus
The Washington Post: Democrats Scramble For Sinema’s Support On Climate, Health And Tax Bill
Senate Democrats are discussing whether to dial back some of their proposed taxes targeting wealthy investors and billion-dollar corporations, part of a new scramble to win the support of Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) and advance their broader economic agenda swiftly. One week after brokering a deal that secured the must-have vote of Sen. Joe Manchin III (D-W.Va.), top party lawmakers have set their attention on assuaging the other centrist in their ranks. They have actively engaged Sinema in private negotiations in recent days, opening the door for possible revisions to the health-care and climate-focused bill known as the Inflation Reduction Act. (Romm and Stein, 8/3)
The New York Times: Kyrsten Sinema Is The Final Holdout On Democrats’ Climate Deal
Top Democrats on Wednesday were quietly weighing what potential changes to the bill, particularly to its tax provisions, might be needed to win Ms. Sinema’s support, as the Arizona senator was preparing her own wish list. While she voted for the initial $3.5 trillion budget blueprint that allowed Democrats to begin work on the legislation, Ms. Sinema has not offered explicit support for many pieces of the current package, most notably much of the tax increases included to pay for it. Doubt about Ms. Sinema’s support has centered on her past opposition to a proposal aimed at limiting the carried interest preferential tax treatment for income earned by venture capitalists and private equity firms. (Cochrane, 8/3)
Politico: Electric Cars, Drug Costs And More: 5 Battles Democrats Could Lose On Their Marquee Bill
Democrats are bracing for potentially huge changes to their party-line climate, tax and health care bill as it’s run through strict Senate rules that will determine which parts they can keep, which need makeovers and which they’ll have to chuck in the garbage. Both Republican and Democratic aides are still consumed by an aggressive slate of meetings with the Senate’s nonpartisan parliamentarian, who will decide whether each piece of the legislation gels with rules that allow Democrats to evade a GOP filibuster of their marquee domestic bill. And so far, the rules referee has been noticeably silent as to what stays and what goes. (Emma and Levine, 8/3)
