Healthcare Policy Priorities Take Center Stage as Congress Barrels Towards Shutdown

A federal government shutdown is hanging over the heads of members of Congress, as leaders of the two national political parties battle it out over a range of healthcare policy issues, the resolution of which hangs in the balance. Republicans in both the House of Representatives and the Senate are demanding that Democrats agree to what’s called a “clean CR”—a continuing resolution meant to fund the federal government through October 31; but Democrats in both houses are demanding that the Republicans agree to reverse some of the most damaging elements included in the tax and immigration bill passed in July, including around Medicaid cuts and the expiration of subsidies for health insurance purchased on the ACA health insurance market exchanges. If a CR of some kind is not passed through both houses of Congress in one week on October 1, the federal government will go into a shutdown.

As the Washington Post’s Riley Beggin and Marianna Sotomayor reported on Tuesday afternoon, Sep. 23, “Congressional Republicans have proposed a funding extension through Nov. 21, which does not include additional policy priorities except for new funding for security in each branch of government in the wake of Charlie Kirk’s killing. While Republicans have the majority in both the House and Senate, they need some Democratic support to pass a funding extension in the Senate. Democrats are hoping to use that leverage to force Republicans to support Democratic priorities, particularly on health care.”

But on Tuesday, President Donald Trump announced on his social media platform Truth Social that he was canceling a planned Thursday meeting with Democrats from both houses, declaring that it “could not possibly be productive.” The President had proposed a meeting with Democratic leaders back on Saturday.

As Roll Call’s David Lerman reported on Tuesday, “President Donald Trump abruptly canceled his meeting with top Democratic leaders that had been planned for Thursday to search for a deal that might avert a partial government shutdown next week. Less than 24 hours after agreeing to sit down with Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., the president reversed course, saying there was nothing to discuss until Democrats abandon their demands for massive spending and other ‘radical’ policies. ‘After reviewing the details of the unserious and ridiculous demands being made by the Minority Radical Left Democrats in return for their Votes to keep our thriving Country open, I have decided that no meeting with their Congressional Leaders could possibly be productive,’ Trump wrote on his Truth Social media platform. Scratching the meeting increases the likelihood that a partial shutdown will be triggered when the new fiscal year begins on Oct. 1. The Senate rejected a House-passed continuing resolution last week as well as a Democratic alternative that sought to extend expiring health insurance subsidies.

As the Post’s Beggin and Sotomayor reported, “Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-New York) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-New York) have argued that Trump's unwillingness to meet with them indicates he wants a government shutdown. (Demetrius Freeman/The Washington Post) Democrats have proposed their own funding extension that would keep the government open through Oct. 31, but it would also include several policies Democrats have been seeking. That legislation would extend Affordable Care Act subsidies put in place under the covid-19 pandemic, restore some funding that has been frozen by the Trump administration, reverse cuts to Medicaid enacted under the GOP’s tax and immigration bill and return $491 million to public broadcasting that was rescinded in July. Trump argued that the Democrats’ demands would cost over $1 trillion and would enable undocumented immigrants to receive health care. He suggested that he would be “happy to meet with them” if they drop their demands. “I look forward to meeting with you when you become realistic about the things that our Country stands for,” Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social.

“Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (New York) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (New York) sent a letter to Trump over the weekend requesting to speak with the president. Trump had tentatively agreed to meet Thursday, before saying via social media that he had canceled the meeting,” the Post reporters wrote. “Schumer and Jeffries argue that Trump’s unwillingness to meet with them indicates that he wants a government shutdown. ‘Trump is running away from the negotiating table before he even gets there,’ Schumer said in a statement. ‘While Americans face rising costs and a Republican health care crisis, Trump would rather throw a tantrum than do his job.”

House Minority Leader Jeffries told Nicolle Wallace on MSNBC on Tuesday afternoon that “The bill is deeply unpopular because the American people have now come to the conclusion that the Republicans have no interest in helping the American people; in fact, they are working for the billionaires. So this fight is an extension of” that earlier battle. “Republicans have the responsibility to help make sure the government can continue to run It’s our obligation as Democrats to find common ground with the Republicans to keep the government open. But this CR is a dirty bill, and continues the harm [to healthcare], and we’re not going to go along to get along. What’s important to understand is that Republicans have engaged in an unprecedented assault on the healthcare of Americans this year. Millions of Americans are going to lose coverage and we’ll see huge [health insurance] cost increases.”

Referencing the tax and immigration bill passed in July, Leader Jeffries told Wallace that “Hospitals, nursing homes, and community health clinics are already closing because of the One Big Ugly Bill. And more than 20 million Americans are going to experience in a matter of weeks increased premiums, copays, and deductibles.” Indeed, he added in a reference to mandatory Medicare budget sequestration that looks set to be triggered by the tax and immigration bill’s passage, “The country actually faces a $500 billion cut to Medicare at the end of the year. So cancel the cuts, lower the costs, save Medicare; that’s the fight we’re waging on behalf of the American people. And we’re willing to sit down at any time with anyone. But we’re not simply going to bend the knee to Donald Trump; that’s immoral. And House Republicans have canceled votes for Monday and Tuesday; they don’t even want to show up.”

There is very little time for the two parties to resolve the impasse. As The Hill’s Mike Lillis wrote on Tuesday afternoon, “House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) announced Tuesday that Democrats will return to Washington early next week, when the House is formally in recess, to highlight the decision of Republican leaders to cancel the final days of session before a scheduled government shutdown. ‘This is the height of irresponsibility and further evidence that Republicans are determined to shut the government down,’ Jeffries wrote in a letter to fellow House Democrats. ‘Democrats will be in town and prepared to get the job done. Donald Trump has now chickened out and cancelled the meeting,” Jeffries wrote in his letter. “Clearly, GOP extremists want to shut down the government because they are unwilling to address the Republican healthcare crisis that is devastating America.’”