The National Impact - 3/5/10
Healthcare Reform Update: Congressional Leadership Makes Final Push to Pass Legislation
Congress and the President continue to work towards passage of final healthcare reform legislation. Recently the President has attempted to revive the stalled legislation and the Democratic Congressional leadership is working to finish work on reform and get final bills to the President in the next few weeks.
Last week, the President released his own proposal for how the House and Senate could compromise on the bills each chamber has passed. The proposal focused on certain controversial differences between the bills, including Medicaid financing, the subsidies available to individuals and families to purchase insurance, and taxing high-cost health plans offered by employers. The proposal also included provisions from certain Republican member-sponsored bills, such as alternatives for resolving medical malpractice disputes and including health savings accounts in the exchange.
The President’s proposal was developed to fit within the reconciliation rules, in which certain budget-related provisions could be passed by the Senate with a simple majority of votes rather than the 60 votes normally required. Last week the President also hosted an all-day summit with Senators and Representatives from both parties to discuss reform legislation and ideas.
At this point, it appears that the House will attempt to approve the Senate-passed bill and then both chambers would vote on a separate “reconciliation bill” of fixes to the legislation. After passage, both bills would go to the President for his signature. The House is now seeking to approve the Senate-passed bill before March 18th and Senate Majority Leader Reid (D-NV) has stated he hopes to unveil the separate reconciliation bill early next week.
While a number of hurdles to passing final reform remain, Democratic leaders are increasingly hopeful that the President will soon be able to sign final healthcare reform legislation into law.
As the process moves forward, we will continue to fight to ensure that all of the strong addiction and mental health provisions in the House and Senate bills will be a part of final legislation.
SAAS and LAC Meet with Drug Czar Gil Kerlikowske, Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy
On February 24th, Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) Gil Kerlikowske met with SAAS during the Winter Membership Meeting. Director Kerlikowske spoke to the membership about the goals and priorities for his office in the coming year, and expressed strong support for ensuring that the millions of Americans in need of drug and alcohol prevention and treatment receive the services and care they need. Director Kerlikowske also took questions from the membership relating to SAAS policy priorities and engaged the membership in a discussion about the needs of the field. Director Kerlikowske said he welcomes SAAS support and input into ONDCP-related policy proposals. SAAS and LAC will continue to work with top ONDCP officials on issues that are important to the addiction services field.
SAAS CEO Becky Vaughn Meets with SAMHSA Administrator Pam Hyde
SAAS has had the opportunity to meet with Pam Hyde, SAMHSA’s new Administrator, on a number of occasions, including a private meeting earlier this week. On Tuesday, Administrator Hyde and SAAS Director Becky Vaughn met to discuss SAMHSA’s vision and plans moving forward, including implementation of Administrator Hyde’s top priorities for reducing the impact of drug and alcohol addiction. SAAS and LAC will continue to meet regularly with Administrator Hyde and other SAMHSA officials.
SAAS Members in Washington for Winter Meeting, Hill Visits
Last week SAAS held its annual Winter Membership Meeting in Washington, DC, which included a public policy briefing from the Legal Action Center staff and a day of Congressional hill visits.
During this critical period in Washington SAAS members met with their Congressional delegations to advocate for increased federal funding for the full continuum of drug and alcohol prevention, treatment, recovery supports and research, and for inclusion of addiction services and providers in final national healthcare reform legislation. The winter meeting also provided an opportunity for members to network with one another and to discuss the short and long term goals of the addiction services field.
Join the Campaign!!
These advocacy efforts are just the beginning. As a friend of the substance use disorder field and as someone who believes in the power of advocacy and the reality of recovery, we know that you will find the National Advocacy Campaign for Smarter and More Effective Drug and Alcohol Policies as exciting as we do. In order to make the work of the campaign possible, please consider joining the effort to change alcohol and drug policies. Become a member by making a contribution. To join the campaign, click here. Thank you for your support!
