Passage of Stopgap Shutdowns Potential Midnight Shutdown
On November 21, President Trump signed a continuing resolution bill funding the government through December 20, 2019. This stopgap measure provided Congress four additional weeks to reach an agreement on a Fiscal Year 2020 spending bill. The continuing resolution (H.R. 3055) cleared the Senate and was signed into law just hours before the midnight deadline.
The funding bill contains funding extensions for many health care programs, such as community health centers and teaching health centers that operate graduate medical education programs, and extends the community mental health services demonstration program. It also delays again the nearly $4 billion in Medicaid Disproportionate Share Hospital (DSH) cuts.
Congress now has less than two weeks to pass an omnibus spending bill for FY ’20 or pass another CR. Senate leaders are predicting an additional CR will be needed through February or March of 2020. Throughout 2019, the National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health (NOSORH) has called on the Senate to increase the funding for the State Offices of Rural Health (SORH) grant program. Please contact NOSORH if you are interested in reaching out to your Senators.
Congress Mulls Rural Health Package Before Year-End
With just weeks remaining in 2019, NOSORH has been meeting with House and Senate staff on a possible year-end rural health package. The long-awaited package of rural health legislation would come out of the Senate Finance and House Ways and Means Committees.
On the House side, the Ways and Means Committee released a Request for Information in November to interested rural stakeholders. NOSORH submitted extensive comments to the committee and is working with the Co-chairs of the Ways and Means Rural Health Taskforce on next steps. The chairs of the task force are Reps. Terri Sewell (D-AL), Jodey Arrington (R-TX), Danny Davis (D-IL), and Brad Wenstrup (R-OH).
Senate Rural Health Caucus Introduces Bill
On November 20, the Co-chairs of the Senate Rural Health Caucus, Senator John Barrasso (R-WY) and Tina Smith (D-MN), introduced the Strengthening Our Rural Health Workforce Act of 2019. The bill, S. 2902, seeks to establish a new National Rural Health Care Workforce Commission. The Commission would develop both short and long-term goals to improve the rural health workforce and help coordinate work to achieve these goals across federal agencies and at the national and state levels. The legislation would also award grants for States to translate the new Rural Health Workforce recommendations into reality. A summary of the bill can be found here. The bill has been referred to the Senate HELP Committee.
Congress Celebrates National Rural Health Day
On November 21, Rep. Abby Finkenauer (D-IA) introduced H. Res. 719, a resolution in support of National Rural Health Day. The resolution expresses that Congress supports the goals and ideals of National Rural Health Day, celebrates rural health care providers and rural Americans and commits to advancing legislation to improve health care in rural America. The resolution had the bipartisan support of 12 other House members. Approximately 40 members of Congress and various other congressional committees tweeted their support of NRHD on November 21.