New York Times Examines ‘Aggressive’ Use of Regulations by President Bush To Advance Health-Related, Other Policies
The New York Times on Saturday examined how President Bush "has been particularly aggressive" in the use of federal regulations, rather than legislation, to advance his agenda in health-related and other policy areas. The Bush administration has used regulations because Senate Democrats have "stymied" legislation "eagerly sought by the White House and business groups," such as bills on medical malpractice, according to the Times.
Such use of regulations also has a lower profile than legislative actions because new rules appear in the Federal Register, a "dense publication" in most cases only read by government officials and those "directly concerned with government business," the Times reports. Some actions the Bush administration has taken on health-related regulations include:
- A Mine Safety and Health Administration regulation proposed in March 2003 that "would dilute the rules intended to protect coal miners from black-lung disease";
- A proposed regulation dropped in May 2003 that would have required hospitals to establish facilities to protect staff members from tuberculosis;
- A Department of Labor regulation dropped in June 2003 that required employers to maintain a record of ergonomic injuries experienced by workers; and
- A provision in the fiscal year 2004 budget proposed by Bush to eliminate 77 Occupational Safety and Health Administration enforcement and related positions and add two staff members to help employers comply with agency rules (Brinkley, New York Times, 8/14).