On Wednesday, February 9, 2022, the Senate Finance Committee considered the nominations to fill two critical positions at the Department of Health and Humans Services: the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) and the Administration on Children Youth and Families (ACYF). Rebecca Jones-Gaston was nominated by President Biden for the ACYF position on November 18,
On Thursday February 10, 2022, the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) held a subcommittee hearing on Recruiting, Revitalizing, and Diversifying: Examining the Health Care Workforce Shortage. Witnesses were: Dr. Margaret Flinter, Senior Vice President and Clinical Director, Community Health Center, Inc., Middletown, CT who focused on the loss of primary
Last week the House of Representatives approved a fourth continuing resolution (CR) with the hope that it will allow a deal and eventual enactment of 12 appropriations for the fiscal year that started on October 1, 2021. Not long after the House action, the top four appropriators announced an agreement that will allow appropriators to
On February 8th, 2022, Vice President Kamala Harris, Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen, and American Rescue Plan Coordinator Gene Sperling hosted a press event for the Child Tax Credit and Earned Income Tax Credit Day of Action. Sperling opened the event by giving the history of the Child Tax Credit and an overview of
Last Tuesday and Wednesday two key congressional committees began a set of bipartisan discussions on the challenges of access to mental health and substance use services. On Tuesday the Senate HELP Committee held their first hearings and on Wednesday the House Ways and Means Committee focused hearings on the behavioral health challenges. The subject and
On Tuesday, February 1, 2022, the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions held a hearing entitled “Mental Health and Substance Use Disorders: Responding to the Growing Crisis.” Chairwoman Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) highlighted that millions of people across the country face mental health disorders, while 130 million Americans live in areas with
Discussions and negotiations continued between the top four appropriators on an agreement to complete action on the current federal fiscal year 2022. Public comments were reserved but positive. The one item that seemed certain is that there will be at least one more CR once the current one expires on February 18. If a deal
On Monday, January 24, 2022, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) updated their live sight designed to help families get the remaining part of their 2021 CTC. There are two important live tabs: the Get Your Child Tax Credit and Check Your Eligibility. The CTC has been federal law since the mid-1990s, but last year’s expansion
Two Senate Committees and one House Committee are focusing on the challenges of access to mental health and substance use services in the next few weeks. The Senate HELP Committee, the Senate Finance Committee and the full House Ways and Means Committee are all focused on the subject and what can be done. The HELP
Marking the first year of his term in office, President Biden held a nearly two-hour press conference on Wednesday, January 19, 2022, that touched on everything including the possibility of a revamped Build Back Better reconciliation bill. Since last December when Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) pulled his support for the $1.7 trillion package, talks have