What is wrong with this party? Senate Democrats are truly the embodiment of the “you shall not pass” war cry when it comes to anything abortion-related. First, they are blocking what was an extremely bipartisan bill to combat human trafficking until their staff missed a noncontroversial Hyde Amendment provision that was added as a clause (standard operating procedure for most spending bills) to the bill. Democrats knew this provision was going to be in the bill because Republicans told them months in advance. Hell, an aide to Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) found the provision but didn’t tell the senator before the bill went to the Judiciary Committee for a vote; it passed unanimously.
Now Senate Democrats have raised the abortion wall higher, shaking up Rep. Nancy Pelosi and House Speaker John Boehner’s deal on Medicare. It’s a step toward entitlement reform, and it’s odd to see such bipartisan agreement between Boehner and liberal stalwart Pelosi on a sustainable pace of Medicare growth. A feared method of controlling Medicare costs. It’s essentially condemned by the medical community and considered “failed policy.” So what is the Boehner-Pelosi bill?
By Appeal:
It’s no coincidence that most Americans haven’t heard much about a potential deal to eliminate the SGR and change Medicare. The long-standing bill is still being disputed, and the final details are still being worked out. But every day without a revolt over the SGR is a day closer to a deal.
It looks increasingly likely that lawmakers will agree to ditch annual tweaks to the formula for paying for Medicare-covered physician services and pay for them — at least in part — by making changes to private Medigap plans and forcing wealthier seniors to pay more.
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Of course, the “fixes” now being discussed aren’t the most ambitious changes ever. But they are “changes” that are right next to the word “Medicare.” Sources close to the negotiations say most of the real savings would come from lowering income thresholds for aspects of Medicare that are already means-tested, such as prescriptions and doctor visits, or from increasing the percentage that these wealthier seniors have to pay for their premiums. Currently, Medicare means-testing starts at $85,000 a year for individuals and $170,000 for couples.
Democrats have in recent years insisted that any real changes to entitlements would be tied to tax increases, but they have backed off that demand for the SGR. And that could be a turning point in future negotiations.
Such negotiations are unlikely to happen while Boehner is speaker. And of course, this deal could fall apart. But GOP leaders are promoting the yet-to-be-released bill as a victory for conservatives, especially given the long-term savings. Leaders acknowledge that the deal would boost deficits over the next 10 years. But supporters say skeptics should look further, and measure the proposal’s long-term savings against the fact that Congress typically doesn’t pay for the SGR anyway.
BUT Senate Democrats have a problem over the language of abortion (here we go again) on the issue of funding community health centers in low-income communities. Yet Rep. Nancy Pelosi’s office says the legislation does not boost existing restrictions on federal funding for abortion. So two leading pro-choice Democrats are arguing about… abortion? It came to this, I guess:
A nascent bipartisan House deal to change the way Medicare reimburses doctors for medical expenses stirred up trouble in the Senate on abortion Thursday, shining a airy on a sporadic public disagreement between the two top Democrats in Congress.
Some Democratic senators — including Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. — have expressed concerns that the House’s tentative agreement would enshrine in law restrictions on abortions at community health centers, which provide health care to millions of low-income Americans in every state.
Aides to House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat, said the Medicare contract’s provision covering abortions in health care facilities will expire after two years and does not change existing restrictions.
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The dispute comes as the Senate remains embroiled in a separate bipartisan abortion dispute that has hampered progress on a popular bill to aid victims of human trafficking.
There have been restrictions on abortions in community health centers for years. Senate Democrats say those restrictions were imposed by an Obama administration executive order that placed broad legal restrictions on abortions in community health centers, and there is no need to pass a law specifically targeting community health centers.
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Pelosi spokesman Drew Hammill said the proposed language “does not change current policy for health centers and will have no operational impact at the health center level.”
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The roughly $200 billion deal between Pelosi and House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, would block a 21 percent cut in Medicare payments to doctors that would otherwise go into effect April 1. It would change how doctors are reimbursed for Medicare services in the future and provide modern money for a health program for low-income children.
The measure also includes $7 billion for health centers over the next two years. The Obama health care law of 2010 provided additional money for health centers, but that additional funding ends Oct. 1, and the $7 billion would keep health centers at current levels.
In a letter to her democratic colleagues, which she obtained Town hallRep. Pelosi assured her members that the abortion provision is nothing modern and is not an extension of the Hyde provisions, as they have expired:
Dear Fellow Democrat,
I am pleased to see the progress we are making on bipartisan legislation to replace the broken SGR formula for Medicare physician payments – finally ending our annual “Doc Fix” amendment cycle, providing certainty for our seniors and stability for providers. This modern system moves from a volume-based system to one that rewards value, ensuring payment accuracy and improving the quality of care for seniors.
This emerging bipartisan, bicameral agreement includes crucial victories for low-income seniors, children, and families. This package will improve the quality of care for many older Americans by providing additional funding for initiatives that aid low-income seniors pay Part B premiums. At the same time, we are funding access to health care for indigent children by expanding the Children’s Health Insurance Program at the same rates provided in the Affordable Care Act. This funding is set to expire at the end of the current fiscal year.
Finally, in this modern agreement, we were able to expand funding for community health centers (CHCs) by $7.2 billion for two years on the same terms that Members have previously supported and voted on nearly every year since 1979. It is crucial to note that this proposal is expiring, unlike the Senate provision in the human trafficking bill that codifies Hyde. This proposed provision does not change current CHC policy and would have no operational impact at the health center level.
Still, who would have thought that Boehner and Pelosi would be named in a tweet by Planned Parenthood criticizing them for attacking women with “#HydeAndSneak.” Also, the Pelosi-Reid conflict over abortion.
.@SenatorReid stands up for women against #HydeiStealth attacks. Ask Senator McConnell, @SpeakerBoehnerAND @NancyPelosi do the same!
— Planned Parenthood (@PPact) March 20, 2015
