Murray makes big concession in bipartisan health talks

[riversedge]

Source: axios.com





Caitlin Owens 3 hrs ago


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From a senior Democratic aide: Murray has agreed to "significant state flexibility" in order to reach an agreement. Conversations are continuing, but it remains to be seen how Alexander wants to proceed. "But there's certainly still a place for those who want a bipartisan agreement on the Republican side to go."

From a Senate GOP aide: "No agreement yet on a deal that could pass."

Why this matters: The two GOP senators whose votes may matter the most for the latest repeal and replacement push, Lisa Murkowski and John McCain, have made it clear that they want health care legislation to be bipartisan. If Murray and Alexander can strike a deal, it would give these holdouts — and potentially others — evidence that the two parties can, in fact, come together on health care.......................................

Link to tweet

Read more: https://www.axios.com/murray-makes-big-concession-in-bipartisan-health-talks-2486922713.html

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Seems this committee is doing the regular order that McCain wants.


Caitlin Owens 8 hrs ago

Shifts on ACA repeal put new pressure on push for bipartisan fix

The uncertainty surrounding Senate Republicans' latest repeal-and-replace bill is putting more pressure on Democrats to reach a deal to stabilize the Affordable Care Act.

Sens. Lamar Alexander and Patty Murray have been working on a plan to tweak the ACA through a mix of looser regulations and more reliable funding. And Alexander's hand in those talks may be getting stronger as a side effect of the momentum behind a repeal bill sponsored by Sens. Lindsey Graham and Bill Cassidy.

Why: Sens. Lisa Murkowski and John McCain are publicly rooting for the stabilization effort to succeed, and Graham-Cassidy can't pass without at least one of them.
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Murkowski has actively participated in the four hearings the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee has held on stabilization, often staying longer than most other members.
On Sunday, McCain mentioned this effort by name on Face the Nation, saying Republicans shouldn't "ram" their proposal through.

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Who we're watching: Murray. If she can strike a deal with Alexander — which hinges on giving states more flexibility through innovation waivers — it could deeply influence McCain and Murkowski's decision..............................................

[cbreezen]

1. Don't know how this will work out, but...

I'm a fan of "the mom in tennis shoes".

[riversedge]

2. Its crunch time on ACA stabilization- The Senate HELP Committee is expected to release its propos

It’s crunch time on ACA stabilization https://www.axios.com/vitals-2486505861.html?rebelltitem=2&utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=twsocialshare&utm_campaign=organic#rebelltitem2

It’s crunch time on ACA stabilization


https://www.axios.com/vitals-2486505861.html

The Senate HELP Committee is expected to release its proposal this week to stabilize the ACA's marketplaces. The broad outlines of that plan are still in line with what we've reported previously:

A commitment to fund the law's cost-sharing subsidies
Changes to the process by which states can obtain "innovation waivers"
Perhaps broader access to cheaper, less comprehensive insurance plans

Key term to know: A quick note of clarification on the cost-sharing subsidies, since we keep talking about an agreement to "fund" them, and some Republicans have referred to that step as a "bailout" of the law:

Bailouts inject new money into some system or institution, but that's not what would be happening here. A commitment to fund the ACA's cost-sharing subsidies would not require any new spending. These subsidies are being paid today, and have been since 2014.

The Congressional Budget Office has already said this proposal would maintain the status quo, and therefore would not create any new costs to the government.

Reality check: The $0 price tag is a big part of the reason this idea is on the table in the first place. HELP Chairman Lamar Alexander is working hard to keep this deal as narrow as possible. And this is something Congress can do, without spending any new money, to help bring some stability to the states.

[MFM008]

3. I'm calling her

To make sure she stands firm on the ACA.
We dems do to much compromising .