Senator Bill Cassidy, the ranking member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), has recently introduced legislation aimed at reauthorizing funding for community health centers. According to his office, negotiations with Senator Bernie Sanders on this issue have reached a deadlock.
Lawmakers are currently working on the reauthorization of the Community Health Center Fund (CHCF) and other crucial federal health programs. The CHCF, established under the Affordable Care Act, currently provides the majority of funding for community health clinics.
Congress is facing the impending September 30 deadline to avoid a government shutdown, which puts funding for these programs at risk.
Senator Sanders, who chairs the HELP committee, is advocating for a significant increase in funding for community health centers. He is requesting $130 billion over the next five years for the centers and an additional $60 billion to support the growth of the healthcare workforce.
Senator Cassidy has criticized this funding proposal, expressing doubt about its chances of passing. Sources familiar with the negotiations reveal that Senator Sanders is unwavering in his commitment to his funding plan.
Senator Cassidy’s bill, introduced on Thursday, aims to increase annual funding for community health centers from $4 billion to $4.2 billion for the next two years. This legislation aligns with a bill passed by the Energy and Commerce Committee in the House, which received unanimous bipartisan support in May.
“This bill reflects the overwhelmingly bipartisan legislation passed out of committee in the House,” Cassidy stated. “It is our best chance to avert a funding crisis in the few legislative days we have left before the end of the fiscal year.”
Rachel Gonzales-Hanson, CEO of the National Association of Community Health Centers, has shown support for Cassidy’s bill.
“Health centers need certainty and predictability to plan, and that is why we need Congress to enact bipartisan legislation to extend funding before the September deadline,” Gonzales-Hanson said.
Senator Sanders’s office has refuted claims of stalled negotiations, stating their disagreement with and disputing that characterization.
“As every American knows, this country faces a massive and dangerous shortage of doctors, nurses, mental health providers, and dentists,” said Mike Casca, spokesperson for Senator Sanders. “Chairman Sanders will continue working in a bipartisan way to address these crises.”
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