July 2016
Senate Appropriations Committee passes Labor-HHS-Education bill with significant cuts to public health
On June 10, the Senate Appropriations Committee approved the fiscal year 2017 Labor-HHS-Education appropriations bill by a bipartisan vote of 29-1. While the bill would provide a boost of $2 billion to the National Institutes for Health, it would also cut other important public health programs. Specifically, the bill would reduce funding for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention by $118 million, the Health Resources and Services Administration by nearly $35 million and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality by $10 million.
Notably, it would eliminate the Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health program and cut $30 million each from CDC heart disease and diabetes programs. Additionally, the bill continues to include language that would stifle federal gun violence research — continuing a 20-year trend — and fails to provide any additional funding for this critical research.
On the positive side, the bill fully allocates the Prevention and Public Health Fund for public health and prevention activities and does not contain any significant policy riders aimed at dismantling the Affordable Care Act. Also, the bill would provide some additional resources for efforts to combat the opioid epidemic and antibiotic resistance.
You can view the bill and the accompanying report by visiting the Senate Appropriations Committee website. As of this writing, the House Appropriations Committee has not yet released its version of the health spending bill.
On June 10, the Senate Appropriations Committee approved the fiscal year 2017 Labor-HHS-Education appropriations bill by a bipartisan vote of 29-1. While the bill would provide a boost of $2 billion to the National Institutes for Health, it would also cut other important public health programs. Specifically, the bill would reduce funding for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention by $118 million, the Health Resources and Services Administration by nearly $35 million and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality by $10 million.
Notably, it would eliminate the Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health program and cut $30 million each from CDC heart disease and diabetes programs. Additionally, the bill continues to include language that would stifle federal gun violence research — continuing a 20-year trend — and fails to provide any additional funding for this critical research.
On the positive side, the bill fully allocates the Prevention and Public Health Fund for public health and prevention activities and does not contain any significant policy riders aimed at dismantling the Affordable Care Act. Also, the bill would provide some additional resources for efforts to combat the opioid epidemic and antibiotic resistance.
You can view the bill and the accompanying report by visiting the Senate Appropriations Committee website. As of this writing, the House Appropriations Committee has not yet released its version of the health spending bill.
Senate rejects amendments to reduce gun violence in midst of worst mass shooting in U.S. history
On June 20, the U.S. Senate voted against advancing two commonsense amendments to reduce gun violence supported by APHA and other public health groups. The first amendment, offered by Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., would have expanded criminal background checks for all gun purchases, including those sold at gun shows and on the internet. The amendment was blocked by a vote of 44-56.
The second amendment, sponsored by Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., would have made it more difficult for known or suspected terrorists to purchase a gun. The Feinstein amendment was blocked by a vote of 47-53. Prior to the votes, more than 50 public health and medical organizations sent a letter to the full Senate urging support for both the Murphy and Feinstein amendments.
Following the first round of votes, the Senate also voted to “table” or kill an amendment by Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, which would have excluded only those individuals on the federal No Fly List or the Selectee List from purchasing guns. The motion to table the amendment failed by a vote of 46-52, and it is unclear as to whether the bill will receive an actual vote by the full Senate.
On June 20, the U.S. Senate voted against advancing two commonsense amendments to reduce gun violence supported by APHA and other public health groups. The first amendment, offered by Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., would have expanded criminal background checks for all gun purchases, including those sold at gun shows and on the internet. The amendment was blocked by a vote of 44-56.
The second amendment, sponsored by Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., would have made it more difficult for known or suspected terrorists to purchase a gun. The Feinstein amendment was blocked by a vote of 47-53. Prior to the votes, more than 50 public health and medical organizations sent a letter to the full Senate urging support for both the Murphy and Feinstein amendments.
Following the first round of votes, the Senate also voted to “table” or kill an amendment by Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, which would have excluded only those individuals on the federal No Fly List or the Selectee List from purchasing guns. The motion to table the amendment failed by a vote of 46-52, and it is unclear as to whether the bill will receive an actual vote by the full Senate.
Congress fails, again, to pass Zika funding
In the early morning hours of June 23, House Republican Leaders brought the conference report for H.R. 2577, the combined FY 17 Military Construction-VA appropriations and Zika funding bills, to the House floor for a vote without any debate. The conference report was agreed to without the support of any of the Democratic House or Senate conferees. The bill passed the House by a mostly party-line vote of 239-171.
The Zika funding portion of the bill would provide $1.1 billion in funding to various federal agencies— including CDC, the National Institutes for Health, the United States Agency for International Development and others— to help combat the Zika virus. Unlike the original version of the bill passed by the Senate earlier in June, which also provided $1.1 billion, but in emergency funding thus requiring no offsetting cuts to other health programs, $750 million of the conference package would be offset by cutting other health programs including funding intended to set up health exchanges in the U.S. territories, the Nonrecurring Expenses Fund at the Department of Health and Human Services and unspent funding from the 2014 Ebola outbreak. The bill contains another controversial provision that would suspend Clean Water Act permits for pesticide applications for 180 days.
In addition, many Democrats have objected to funding restrictions around $95 million in Social Services Block Grants for areas with active Zika transmission such as Puerto Rico that appear to exclude family planning clinics. After the House vote, the White House issued a veto threat for the bill, stating that the funding level is inadequate and that the proposal would come at the expense of cuts to other important health programs. The Senate voted not to invoke cloture on H.R. 2577, the House-passed conference report, with a vote of 52-48 — 60 votes were required to end the debate and move to a final vote.
In the early morning hours of June 23, House Republican Leaders brought the conference report for H.R. 2577, the combined FY 17 Military Construction-VA appropriations and Zika funding bills, to the House floor for a vote without any debate. The conference report was agreed to without the support of any of the Democratic House or Senate conferees. The bill passed the House by a mostly party-line vote of 239-171.
The Zika funding portion of the bill would provide $1.1 billion in funding to various federal agencies— including CDC, the National Institutes for Health, the United States Agency for International Development and others— to help combat the Zika virus. Unlike the original version of the bill passed by the Senate earlier in June, which also provided $1.1 billion, but in emergency funding thus requiring no offsetting cuts to other health programs, $750 million of the conference package would be offset by cutting other health programs including funding intended to set up health exchanges in the U.S. territories, the Nonrecurring Expenses Fund at the Department of Health and Human Services and unspent funding from the 2014 Ebola outbreak. The bill contains another controversial provision that would suspend Clean Water Act permits for pesticide applications for 180 days.
In addition, many Democrats have objected to funding restrictions around $95 million in Social Services Block Grants for areas with active Zika transmission such as Puerto Rico that appear to exclude family planning clinics. After the House vote, the White House issued a veto threat for the bill, stating that the funding level is inadequate and that the proposal would come at the expense of cuts to other important health programs. The Senate voted not to invoke cloture on H.R. 2577, the House-passed conference report, with a vote of 52-48 — 60 votes were required to end the debate and move to a final vote.