House Lawmaker Offers Amendment To Block DOJ From Defending Health Law
Rep. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., has offered this amendment to the appropriations bill that provides funding to the Department of Justice and other agencies. It's part of the GOP's ongoing effort to target the health law. Also, during a House hearing, Republicans questioned spending levels at the Department of Health and Human Services.
Politico Pro: House Amendment Would Stop DOJ From Defending Health Law
The House of Representatives took up an amendment Wednesday afternoon that would bar the Justice Department from using funds to defend the health reform law. The amendment by Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), which is being offered to the appropriations bill for the Commerce and Justice departments and science and related agencies, is the latest in a series of GOP appropriations riders that have targeted the health reform law (Feder, 5/9).
Politico: GOP Grills HHS On Rising Payroll, Travel Costs
Too-big-to-fail banks? Meet "too-big-to-control" government. That's the label House Republicans slapped on the Department of Health and Human Services on Wednesday during a hearing on the agency's spending (Chaney, 5/9).
But the Republican plan to replace the health law still appears in flux --
The Hill: GOP Shies Away From Offering Health Care Reform Alternative
Republicans might not offer a comprehensive plan to replace President Obama's health care law if the Supreme Court strikes it down this summer. House Republicans had said they would have a health care bill ready to go by the time of the ruling to present a clear alternative to the Democrats' Affordable Care Act. But now, with the high court's ruling just weeks away, some conservatives are urging the party to abandon that strategy, fearing voters will recoil from another sweeping revamp of the health care system (Baker, 5/10).