The Budget Deal & Healthcare

What's the story?

The spending deal approved by Congress in the wee hours of Friday morning has several significant healthcare provisions. Here's a rundown of the highlights.

The deal eliminated the Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB), which was a controversial part of Obamacare that was supposed to keep Medicare costs reined in. This is the "death panel", which never really existed, but got folks all riled up back in 2010.

Because Medicare spending never reached the level to trigger the convening of the IPAB, the deal has disbanded it before it came into existence. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) says eliminating the panel will cost $17.5 billion over 10 years because no mechanism is in place to rein in spending, except…Congress.

The deal funds community health centers through 2019 at an increased level over 2017. Community health centers provide healthcare to approximately 27 million Americans, and are widely supported by both parties.

The deal extends funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) for an additional four years. The last spending deal had already funded it for six years, which means now CHIP is funded for a decade. According to the CBO, this means it will actually more than pay for itself in cost savings to the government via other programs.

The deal would provide relief to some Medicare beneficiaries with, according to the New York Times, "high prescription drug costs who hit a gap in coverage… Drug manufacturers would be required to give larger discounts to beneficiaries in the coverage gap, starting in 2019." To help pay for this, the bill reapportions some funds set aside for public health initiatives around diseases like diabetes.

The deal would raise Medicare premium costs for high income recipients (incomes over $500,000 or $750,000 for a couple filing jointly). It also cuts off Medicaid to lottery winners.

What do you think?

Do you support these measures? Maybe you support some and not others? If so, what do you think is constructive here, and what is not?

Tell us in the comments what you think, then use the Take Action button to tell your reps!

Take Action

— Asha Sanaker

(Photo Credit: thebluediamondgallery.com / Creative Commons)