- Home
- Advocacy
- Latest News and Practice Data
- House Adopts Budget Reconciliation Resolution to Address Health Care Priorities
On August 24, the House of Representatives passed a $3.5 trillion budget resolution that includes several health care provisions through the budget reconciliation process. It passed on a 220-212 party-line vote.
The Senate had adopted the budget resolution earlier in the month, so the House's action is a step before committees in that chamber can start to write legislative text for their respective sections of the reconciliation package.
Instructions in the budget resolution include requests for several health care provisions that the CAP will track in the weeks and months ahead. They include measures to increase health care coverage and benefits, expand Medicare, address health care equity and disparities, mitigate health care professional shortages through investments in graduate medical education, and pandemic preparedness. In addition, the budget resolution calls for expanding childcare and paid leave, extending strengthened household tax credits passed last year, creating universal pre-kindergarten, and making significant investments to address climate change.
The House also adopted a rule setting debate parameters for the Senate-passed infrastructure bill and voting rights legislation. The measure includes a commitment to vote on the infrastructure bill by September 27. The Senate has already passed the bipartisan infrastructure bill. September will be busy for Congress as they need to pass appropriations legislation to keep the government funded before the fiscal year ends on September 30, as well as a measure to raise or suspend the debt limit by mid-October.
The CAP will provide additional updates on these legislative activities in future editions of Advocacy Update.