Republican congressmen welcomed enactment of health care provisions vital to their constituents that were incorporated into H.R. 1892, the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018, signed into law by President Donald Trump on Feb. 9. U.S. Reps. Erik Paulsen (R-MN), John Katko (R-NY), and Ryan Costello (R-PA) said all Americans now should feel more secure since funding and stability have been addressed for important national health programs in the new law.
“While this agreement isn’t perfect, Congress is finally doing its job in a bipartisan way,” said Rep. Paulsen, who serves on the House Ways and Means Committee and is chairman of the bicameral congressional Joint Economic Committee.
Paulsen-supported provisions critical to senior citizens and children were included in the budget package, including the Medicare Access to Rehabilitation Services Act of 2017, H.R. 807, which he introduced on Feb. 1, 2017 to permanently repeal Medicare’s cap on outpatient therapy services. By repealing what Paulsen called “arbitrary caps,” seniors will receive the care they need without paying out-of-pocket expenses. The bipartisan H.R. 807 had 240 cosponsors as of Feb. 5, including Rep. Costello, who was an original cosponsor of the bill.
Additionally, the new budget law permits an additional four-year reauthorization of the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) from fiscal year (FY) 2024 through FY2027 and grants two more years of federal mandatory funding for the Community Health Center Fund (CHCF), two items Rep. Paulsen has supported for many years. In fact, Paulsen consistently voted for CHIP reauthorization in 2009, 2017, and this year, according to his office.
Paulsen said he’s pleased the spending measure boosts available funds for his home state’s 16 community health centers. The nation’s more than 1,400 health center organizations receive a combination of CHCF monies and discretionary funding passed by Congress during regular appropriations each fiscal year under the Health Center Program. Federal support expired last October and funding was expected to dry up by the end of March. The new spending measure increases overall funding for Federally Qualified Health Centers from $3.6 billion a year to $3.8 billion for FY2018 and $4 billion for FY2019.
“Minnesotans expect their elected representatives to govern and lead. ‘Compromise’ is not a dirty word and we should realize what can be achieved by finding areas of common ground,” Rep. Paulsen said on Feb. 9.
Rep. Katko applauded the five-year extension through Sept. 30, 2022 of the Medicare Low-volume Adjustment payment program, which provides an additional payment to a qualifying hospital for the higher incremental costs associated with a low volume of discharges. In Katko’s district, Oswego Health will receive additional funding of $1.4 million over five years beginning in FY 2019 under the program thanks to the budget agreement.
“Rural hospitals like Oswego Health face significant, unique challenges in providing care,” said Katko. “Throughout my time in Congress, I’ve worked alongside Oswego Health to ensure they are able to deliver the best quality care and was proud to support this budget, which provides significant support and funding certainty to Oswego Health and other rural providers.”
Oswego Health Executive Vice President Jeff Coakley praised Katko’s dedication to supporting quality health care in his district and said the new funds will allow Oswego Health “to continue providing high-quality health care to patients in our community. Rep. Katko has long been a champion of hospitals and health care in Central New York and we thank him for his help in securing this funding for Oswego.”
Rep. Costello also supported the budget’s provisions providing funding for community health centers and the CHIP extension, as well as the $6 billion allotted to fight America’s opioid health emergency, and the $4 billion targeted to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to reduce its health care maintenance backlog.
As a member of the Congressional Diabetes Caucus, Costello also pointed out that the spending agreement provides $300 million to the Special Diabetes Program (SDP), which he voted to support in 2017. The SDP supports innovations such as artificial pancreas-systems development and advanced eye and kidney therapies, among others.
“I have heard from constituents about the importance of each of these programs, and many others included in this bill, to their families and communities, and I was pleased to vote for it,” Rep. Costello said.