First Edition: March 20, 2015
Today's early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
The Associated Press:
House, Senate Panels Adopt Balanced-Budget Plans
Republicans in Congress advanced balanced-budget plans bristling with cuts in Medicaid and other benefit programs Thursday, determined to make a down payment on last fall’s campaign promise to erase deficits by the end of the decade. ... Yet the GOP’s focus also extended to deficit reduction, repeal of the health care law, an overhaul of the tax code and other budget priorities long advocated by conservatives in control of both houses of Congress for the first time in nearly a decade. (3/19)
The Washington Post:
Congressional GOP Struggles To Approve Budgets, Signaling Trouble Ahead
Budget resolutions do not have the force of law and don't require the president's signature, but they do set the rules for the remainder of the year in funding federal agencies and, if both chambers pass the same document, allow for fast-track procedures to approve certain legislation without having to overcome a Senate filibuster. The GOP budgets, which aim to be balanced in a decade through cuts and changes to Medicare and other domestic spending, will not receive any Democratic votes because they are viewed as overly punitive. Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) said also said the GOP proposals would cut Pell grants for college tuition, slash nutrition programs and lead to higher medical and drug costs for seniors. (Kane and DeBonis, 3/19)
Los Angeles Times:
GOP Uses A Little 'Parliamentary Contortionism' To Advance Budget
Even more important for the GOP, the budget process gives Republicans their best procedural tools for passing other measures -- including a repeal of Obama's healthcare law -- on a simple majority vote, circumventing Democratic filibusters. Though Obama could still veto such bills, the promise of passing a bill to undo the Affordable Care Act has become a strong pull to convince the deficit sharks to go along with the extra military spending, without contingencies. Obama has sharply criticized the overall GOP blueprint as more of the same trickle-down economics that provide tax breaks in hopes of spurring economic growth, while deeply cutting domestic programs, including Medicare. (Mascaro, 3/19)
The Associated Press:
Budget Spat Leaves House GOP Leaders Facing New Discord
House Republican leaders confronted that truth again this week when fiscal conservatives unexpectedly blocked a leadership plan for the new federal budget. ... GOP Rep. Tim Huelskamp of Kansas, a frequent Boehner critic, taunted the speaker for recently working with the House’s top Democrat to seek a long-term solution to Medicare reimbursement rates for doctors. When reporters asked Huelskamp on Thursday about Boehner’s fallback plan to tackle the latest budget quarrel in the Rules Committee, the Kansan asked sarcastically: “Did Nancy Pelosi approve that one? Oh, no, that’s the doc fix.” (Babington and Kellman, 3/20)
The Washington Post:
Error In House Budget Understated Spending Cuts By $900 Million
A correction to the House Republican budget released this week could mean far deeper cuts for federal employees than the original document suggested, further alarming government workers and their unions already upset about hits they have taken in recent years. The initial version called for the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee to identify $100 million in savings over a decade from mandatory spending programs within its jurisdiction, which includes the federal-worker retirement and health plans. But the amount was supposed to be $1 billion — 10 times larger than first advertised. (Hicks, 3/19)
The Wall Street Journal:
Long-Sought ‘Doc Fix’ Funding Agreement Reached
House Republican and Democratic leaders Thursday rolled out legislation to permanently fix a formula for calculating Medicare reimbursements to doctors and other health-care providers, a deal supporters say will stand a chance of passage given its bipartisan support. The legislation, set for a floor vote next week, would replace the current formula, which was established by a 1997 budget law that tied pay increases for doctors and other providers to increases in economic growth. (Hughes, 3/19)
The New York Times:
McConnell Makes Changes, But Senate Gridlock Remains
The battle of wills may foreshadow new nastiness over the coming months as Congress turns to writing a budget, fixing the Medicare payment formula for doctors and shoring up the nation’s highway system. The emerging bipartisan House solution to the Medicare payment system is already being quietly opposed by Mr. Reid. Unlike Speaker John A. Boehner’s power in the House, which had seemingly been limited to thwarting Mr. Obama’s agenda while Democrats controlled the Senate, Mr. McConnell’s newly won status came with a charge to alter his party’s image from obstructionists to policy architects in service to its candidate for the White House. (Steinhauer, 3/20)
The New York Times:
Kasich Looks To Republican Primaries, ‘Ohio Story’ In Hand
As chairman of the House Budget Committee when Mr. Gingrich was speaker and Bill Clinton was president, Mr. Kasich drove legislation to balance the federal budget. Recently, he wrapped up a six-week national tour, lobbying lawmakers in states like South Dakota and Montana to adopt a constitutional amendment that would require a balanced budget. ... But Mr. Kasich delights in poking his own party. He enraged conservatives by expanding Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, and quoted the Bible in explaining his decision. (Stolberg, 3/19)
Los Angeles Times:
Blacks, Latinos Lag Behind Whites; 'Leaving So Many Behind,' Report Says
Improved health factors are generally the result of better healthcare insurance as mandated by Obamacare. Blacks went from 78.2% to 79.8%, helped in part by statistics showing a decrease in unhealthy life factors such as binge drinking. Latinos experienced a lower death rate and better health care coverage, improving their standing from 102.4% to 106.9% when compared to whites at 100%. A ranking of less than 100% means that blacks or Latinos were doing less well than whites, but a figure larger than 100% meant that the groups were doing better than whites. (Muskal, 3/19)
The Washington Post's Wonkblog:
Support For Government Help Has Fallen Among Those Who Rely On It Most
Blacks are still far more supportive of governmental redistribution than the population as a whole. The elderly used to be as supportive, but now they are more likely to be opposed. What's more, opposition is growing among these groups to the kinds of redistributive policies that benefit them in particular. Blacks have become more opposed to the idea that the government should help members of racial minorities. The elderly are increasingly adamant that the government should not provide health insurance -- despite their fondness for Medicare, a federal program. (Ehrenfreund, 3/19)
Los Angeles Times:
Judge Rejects Amgen Request To Block Sandoz's Copycat Drug
A federal judge rejected Amgen Inc.'s effort to temporarily block a competitor from releasing a copycat version of one of its top-selling biologic drugs. The Thousand Oaks biotech company had accused Novartis subsidiary Sandoz of violating the law in its effort to sell a version of Amgen’s infection-fighting drug Neupogen in the United States. (Pfeifer, 3/19)
The Associated Press:
Police Shootings Of Mentally Ill Reveal Gaps In Care
Police crisis intervention efforts and diversion courts are helpful in stemming the violence, but those on the front lines say states need innovative programs and more must be done to get people early and provide preventative care to curtail explosive moments of crisis. (Warren, 3/19)
The Associated Press:
Delegates To Consider Mental Health Units In Law Enforcement
The legislation as amended would establish behavioral health units within the Baltimore City and Baltimore County police departments. The units would be comprised of at least six officers who are trained to handle incidents involving people with mental disorders or who exhibit substance abuse signs. The officers, according to the bill’s language, could help those individuals get treatment rather than risk an unnecessary or violent encounter with law enforcement. (3/20)
The Washington Post:
D.C. Home Health-Care Workers Organize To Seek $15 An Hour
D.C.’s at least 6,000 home health-care workers work for about 26 health-care agencies. They were organized by Service Employees International Union 1199, the regional chapter of a national labor union that put on Wednesday’s event, though few of the workers are members of the union. D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D) and the Rev. Graylan Hagler, a longtime activist and pastor of Plymouth United Congregational Church, where the event took place, also spoke at the event. (Stein, 3/19)
The Associated Press:
Delaware State Employees Win Reprieve On Health Care Costs
Bowing to pressure from Democratic lawmakers, Gov. Jack Markell’s administration has agreed to delay proposed health care cost increases for state government workers and retirees. A state panel was set to vote Friday on proposals for new or higher deductibles, and higher copays for drugs, lab tests, outpatient surgeries and hospital stays, aimed at addressing an estimated $60 million deficit in Delaware’s state health insurance plan. (3/19)
The Associated Press:
NY Senate Panel Backs Oxygen Therapy For Wounds
The New York Senate Health Committee has advanced legislation to ensure Medicaid coverage for topical oxygen therapy for chronic wounds, which the state health department has tried to curtail. Supporters say it's used by about 400 patients now, and they've obtained a temporary court order prohibiting the department from discontinuing coverage. (3/19)