The Most Bipartisan Committee in Congress You’ve Never Heard Of

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Gridlock, gridlock, gridlock.  Thanks to deeply embedded polarization, Democrats and Republicans in Congress hardly work together in a bipartisan manner to pass legislation.   However, there’s one committee that has a proven track record of members working together across the aisle: the House Select Committee on Modernization of Congress. What it is: A bipartisan committee with an equal number […]

2022 Midterm Primaries Feature Incumbents versus Incumbents

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Redistricting has made for strange bedfellows. Thanks to population losses reported in the 2020 Census, seven states lost one seat apiece in the US House of Representatives.  Individual states redraw their district boundaries to create a new map of congressional districts, and the states that lost a congressional seat have their own set of unique challenges.  On top […]

Members of Congress Who Switched Parties

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Will Joe Manchin leave the Democratic Party?  Ever since the Democratic Senator from West Virginia blew up negotiations on the Build Back Better Act, pundits have been speculating that Manchin will leave the party to become an independent.  While Manchin has bluntly thrown cold water on the idea of leaving the party in the past, such a […]

What Will Congress Tackle in 2022?

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2022 is shaping up to be a busy year for Congress, with potential implications for health care policy.  Lawmakers’ challenging agenda is partly due to unfinished business from 2021, including spending for Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 and the Democrats’ $1.7 trillion social and climate spending package, the Build Back Better Act. At the top of […]

Why Is Congress Always Delaying Medicare Cuts?

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Health care providers breathed a sigh of relief nearly two weeks ago when President Joe Biden signed into a law a bill to override certain Medicare payment cuts scheduled to take effect next month.   Congress taking action to prevent Medicare cuts isn’t exactly new – in fact, it seems to have become a regular occurrence. […]

Can Members of Congress Get Christmas Presents?

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It’s tradition for many Americans to swap gifts during the holidays. But does the tradition of holiday gift-giving also apply in Congress, where Senators, Representatives, and their staff face ethics rules on the kinds of presents they can receive? In short, members of Congress can receive Christmas presents, although there are a lot of limitations. According to […]

Is Daylight Saving Time Bad for Your Health?

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Spring ahead, fall back.  Twice a year, we adjust our clocks to accommodate the shift between Standard Time and Daylight Saving Time (DST).  While the change on your wristwatch or phone may seem innocuous, the change for your internal clock may have bad implications for your health. A Brief History of Daylight Saving Time Daylight […]

What Will Congress Do about Pending PAYGO Cuts?

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The debt ceiling, appropriations, infrastructure, reconciliation – Congress has a lot on its plate right now.  On top of that, Congress has another item to address that health care stakeholders have been watching closely: an automatic 4% cut to Medicare starting on January 1, 2022. What’s going on?  In March, the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act passed and […]

Where Members of Congress Live These Days

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A group of West Virginians had something to say to Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) about the $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation bill, so they took their message directly to the Senator’s Washington, DC residence – by kayaking up to his houseboat on the Potomac River.  When legislators are conducting their business in our nation’s capital, just like anyone else, […]

The Senate Parliamentarian, Explained

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On September 19, Democrats’ plans to offer undocumented immigrants a legal pathway to permanent residency was torpedoed when the Senate Parliamentarian ruled against including immigration reform in their $3.5 trillion human infrastructure package.   As Democrats attempt to advance key priorities via budget reconciliation, the role of the Senate Parliamentarian has garnered much attention. Background: Democrats have […]