Amodei Report: Washington Edition

I hear from constituents on a daily basis that they don’t want Congress to repeal Obamacare – they want us to fix it. Well, the American Health Care Act (AHCA) is absolutely a fix. Passing this bill is the first step in a long journey of dealing with true health care reform. My staff and I remain focused on any proposed legislation in the House and the impact it will have in Nevada. Below, I have provided clarification and my analysis on two specific portions of the AHCA, in addition to another important measure the House successfully passed today.

Following Regular Order

I will continue to be a critic on the lack of regular order displayed in the House. However, in regards to supporting or not supporting the AHCA, my issue was always to ensure that Nevadans would not be kicked off Medicaid, or that the State Legislature would not have to make up for a quarter of a billion dollar shortfall in 2019 because of this legislation. Following extensive discussions with state and federal officials, I concluded that Nevadans would not be put at risk and it was time to get moving on fixing American’s healthcare.

Sadly, because regular order was not followed throughout this process, it has taken my staff and I weeks, standing our ground, to finally get someone's attention and receive assurances from federal offficials that Nevadans will not lose their insurance or be subjected to massive tax hikes in the 2019 Legislative Session. 

Essential Health Benefits (EHB’s) Portion of the AHCA (MacArther Amendment)

All plans offered in the Marketplace cover the same set of Essential Health Benefits (EHB’s). Every health plan must cover the following services:

• Ambulatory patient services 
• Emergency services
• Hospitalization 
• Pregnancy, maternity, and newborn care 
• Mental health and substance use disorder services, including behavioral health treatment 
• Prescription drugs
• Rehabilitative and habilitative services and devices 
• Laboratory services
• Preventive and wellness services and chronic disease management
• Pediatric services, including oral and vision care 

For those worried about the AHCA allowing states to opt out of covering EHB’s through a waiver, I want to point you to a measure in the Nevada State Legislature (S.B. 394) which allows all EHB’s to be kept in place. The bill has already cleared some major legislative hurdles. Given the present legislative climate, I expect it to pass. However, any decision for Nevada to eliminate those EHB’s will be made by the Governor and the State Legislature, not the federal government. 

H.R. 2192 – to amend the Public Health Service Act to eliminate the non-application of certain State waiver provisions to Members of Congress and congressional staff

With a vote of 429-0 today, Members of the House unanimously voted in favor of striking down exemptions under the American Health Care Act for Members of Congress, making a clear statement to the American people that Congress wants the same healthcare options we are attempting to give you because we believe it’s better than what you have right now.

As always, thank you for subscribing to the Amodei Report. I look forward to continuing to keep you up to date on important health care updates in addition to the issues you care about most.