Congress Eyes 2010 Endgame – Seeking Compromise on Must Pass Legislation - December 8, 2010

Both chambers of Congress are working to adjourn for the year by next Friday, Dec. 17, and the framework of must pass legislation is coming in to focus. In particular:

• Tax Extenders: Yesterday, President Obama announced a compromise on an extension of most Bush Era tax cuts. While some Democrats in both chambers are protesting the $900 billion agreement, it seems likely to pass in the coming days.
• “Doc Fix”: Congressional negotiators have released legislation to extend the Medicare physician Sustainable Growth Rate “Doc Fix” for one year. The proposal would be fully offset to changes in Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies for people purchasing health insurance through state exchanges. The “Doc Fix” bill also includes a provision which fixes a technical error in the ACA to allow freestanding children’s hospitals to receive 340B drug discounts for “Orphan Drugs.” The current draft of the legislation does not include an extension of 340B discounts to the inpatient setting of some safety net hospitals.
• Appropriations: The House will attempt to pass full-year Continuing Resolution (CR) to fund the Federal Government through the end of the current fiscal year – Sept. 30, 2011. Senate leaders still hope to pass an omnibus spending bill instead of a CR, and have indicated that they will substitute an omnibus bill for the CR passed by the House. If the Senate is successful at passing an omnibus, it would likely be sent to the House for passage. If the Senate is unable to pass an omnibus, it will likely attempt to pass a full-year CR, though some Senate Republicans are arguing for a short-term CR, funding the government into February and allowing a new Republican House majority to affect FY 2011 appropriations.