Senate Health Committee Sets Early September Hearings on Healthcare

August 23, 2017

HealthNetwork

Lamar Alexander (R-TN) and Patty Murray (D- WA), the ranking members of the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions (HELP), announced in a press release on August 22, 2017 that they would be holding hearings as soon as they were back in session in September on the issue of how to stabilize the healthcare market for the upcoming open enrollment period, which starts on November 1^st.

The first hearing scheduled by the HELP committee is on September 6^th. The committee will be speaking to state insurance commissioners from around the country to get input about how to stabilize premiums and help people who need insurance on the marketplace.

The second hearing is set for September 7^th at 9:00 a.m., when they will speak to state governors from around the country about how to stabilize premiums and help the people of their state.

Senator Alexander said that the committee wanted to hear from the state insurance commissioners and governors because they are “closest to the problem”. He also said that any 2018 stabilization package that Congress passes will include the CSR payments and that the goal is to get something in place for the 2018 open enrollment period. Insurance carriers have to sign contracts with the federal government by September 27^th in order to sell plans on the federal marketplace for 2018.

The HELP committee, is made up of many outspoken people like Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Susan Collins (R-ME), who both voted against the Obamacare Skinny Replacement Plan and the BCRA in the Senate, Rand Paul (R-KY), who made a run for the Republican nomination last year, Al Franken, who announced last Friday on Bill Maher that bipartisan efforts to fix the market are on their way, Tim Kaine (D-VA), who was Hillary Clinton’s running mate, and of course we all know Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Bernie Sanders (D-VT). The full list of members are below:

Democrats: