Overview
House Republicans Introduce Amendments to American Health Care Act: Last night, House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady (R-TX) and Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Greg Walden (R-OR) introduced technical and policy amendments to the American Health Care Act. The amendments would change the date of the repeal of the Affordable Care Act’s tax provisions from 2018 to the beginning of 2017. Among other changes, the amendments would reduce the threshold for the tax deduction for medical expenses from the current 10% of adjusted gross income to 5.8%. Speaker of the House Paul Ryan (R-WI) said in a statement, “With this amendment, we accelerate tax relief, give states additional options to spend health care dollars how they choose, strengthen what were already substantial pro-life protections, and ensure there are necessary resources to help older Americans and the disabled.” The House could vote on the American Health Care Act as early as March 23.
RECENT PUBLICATIONS
Demystifying Reconciliation: Understanding the Process, Its Benefits, and Its Limitations: The so-called "reconciliation" process on Capitol Hill is soon to play a central role for many of the legislative priorities of the new Congress. Despite its buzzword popularity, however, and the hope among many that it serves as a panacea to congressional gridlock, reconciliation is a limited process that needs to be thoroughly understood by anyone seeking to take advantage of the benefits it offers. Click here to read more.