After sequential failures of developing a workable and stable health reform law, perhaps the problem is not health reform, rather a systemic failure in the legislative process, or congress' flagrant disregard for a long standing set of rules. The process is clearly dictated,
How our laws are made.
Perhaps the most important phase of the legislative process is the action by committees. The committees provide the most intensive consideration to a proposed measure as well as the forum where the public is given their opportunity to be heard. A tremendous volume of work, often overlooked by the public, is done by the Members in this phase. There are, at present, 20 standing committees in the House and 16 in the Senate as well as several select committees. In addition, there are four standing joint committees of the two Houses, with oversight responsibilities but no legislative jurisdiction. The House may also create select committees or task forces to study specific issues and report on them to the House. A task force may be established formally through a resolution passed by the House or informally through organization of interested Members by the House leadership.
In the Senate, introduced measures and House-passed measures are referred to the one committee of preponderant jurisdiction by the Parliamentarian on behalf of the Presiding Officer. By special or standing order, a measure may be referred to more than one committee in the Senate
One of the first actions taken by a committee is to seek the input of the relevant departments and agencies about a bill. Frequently, the bill is also submitted to the Government Accountability Office with a request for an official report of views on the necessity or desirability of enacting the bill into law. Normally, ample time is given for the submission of the reports and they are accorded serious consideration. However, these reports are not binding on the committee in determining whether or not to act favorably on the bill. Reports of the departments and agencies in the executive branch are submitted first to the Office of Management and Budget to determine whether they are consistent with the program of the President. Many committees adopt rules requiring referral of measures to the appropriate subcommittee unless the full committee votes to retain the measure at the full committee.
Public hearings are a major step in the process.
LATE BREAKING NEWS:
No vote for Graham-Cassidy ACA repeal bill
Estimates from non-government agencies agreed that about 30 million people would probably lose coverage under Graham-Cassidy. The Congressional Budget Office released a preliminary report on Graham-Cassidy on Monday, finding it would result in millions losing coverage, particularly after 2020. The agency said a regular analysis would require several more weeks.
The healthcare industry was fiercely opposed to the proposal, including groups representing doctors, hospitals, payers and patients. All 50 state Medicaid directors also signed on to a letter slamming the bill, as did 36 current and former state insurance commissioners.
A few healthcare executives also took the unusual step of speaking out specifically against the plan. Cleveland Clinic CEO Toby Cosgrove said in a statement the bill would “threaten the financial viability of hospitals nationwide.” Kaiser Permanente CEO Bernard Tyson said Graham-Cassidy’s block funding would “erode coverage of needed medical services and pose major issues for state budgets.”
A variety of polls showed the public was not generally fond of the proposal either. At a Senate hearing Monday afternoon, hundreds of people protesting the bill stood in the hearing room and surrounding hallways chanting: “No cuts to Medicaid. Save our liberty.”
PERHAPS CONGRESS IS BEGINNING TO LISTEN TO THE RIGHT PEOPLE
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