ACA Round-Up: Bipartisan Market Stabilization Efforts Stall; Iowa 1332 Waiver Application Advances; And More

On September 19, 2017, Senator Lamar Alexander (R-TN), Chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pension (HELP) Committee, announced that after two weeks of bipartisan hearings on individual market stabilization, Republicans and Democrats “have not found the necessary consensus . . . to put a bill in the Senate leaders’ hands that could be enacted.” Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), the ranking member of the HELP committee, released a statement thanking Senator Alexander for undertaking the bipartisan process. She noted that however that: We identified significant common ground and I made some tough concessions to move in Chairman Alexander’s direction when it comes to giving states more flexibility. I am disappointed that Republican leaders have decided to freeze this bipartisan approach and are trying to jam through a partisan Trumpcare bill, but I am confident that we can reach a deal if we keep working together—and I am committed to getting that done Apparently, Republican leaders have decided to concentrate their efforts for the time being on passing the Graham-Cassidy legislation. Perhaps bipartisanship will return to the fore if those efforts fail, but in the meantime the individual market continues to face continuing uncertainty and instability in some parts of the country. A bipartisan group of ten governors, some of whom had testified in the hearings, urged a bipartisan approach rather than pursuit of Graham-Cassidy in a letter to Senate Majority Leader...
Source: Health Affairs Blog - Category: Health Management Authors: Tags: Following the ACA Insurance and Coverage Medicaid and CHIP 1332 waivers ACA repeal and replace Graham-Cassidy health plan star ratings Iowa market stabilization Source Type: blogs