Procedural Rules Raise Bar for Kids’ Insurance Renewal
House and Senate Democrats will not have the ability to use the budget reconciliation process to expedite approval of legislation to expand the State Children's Health Insurance Program because the Senate parliamentarian has ruled that the use of process for that purpose is not germane, CongressDaily reports.
House and Senate negotiators next week will begin the reconciliation process for the fiscal year 2008 budget resolution. Among other proposals included in the budget resolution, Democrats seek to increase funds for SCHIP by $50 billion over five years and block scheduled reductions in Medicare physician reimbursements.
As a result of the decision by the Senate parliamentarian, the passage of legislation to implement those proposals will require 60 votes in the Senate, rather than a simple majority (Cohn/Johnson, CongressDaily, 4/11).