Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Stimulus Bill Rolling Toward Friday Vote In House
The House will vote on President Biden鈥檚 $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package on Friday, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said on Tuesday night. 鈥淭he House will vote on Friday on @POTUS鈥 #AmericanRescuePlan to end this pandemic and deliver urgently needed relief to America鈥檚 families and small businesses. The American people strongly support this bill, and we are moving swiftly to see it enacted into law,鈥 Hoyer tweeted. (Williams, 2/23)
A $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill continued to take shape Tuesday, with suspense building over whether a minimum wage increase would survive. House Budget Chairman John Yarmuth has assembled an initial 138-page draft manager's amendment full of changes to the 592-page version his committee approved on Monday, including the submissions of three committees that didn't mark up their portions previously. (Krawzak, 2/23)
More than 150 senior executives from some of the largest American companies across several major industries have lined up behind President Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package, according to a letter obtained by CNN. (Mattingly, 2/24)
Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) says that President Biden鈥檚 $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package likely won鈥檛 get any Republican votes on the Senate floor. And she pointed to聽Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and White House chief of staff Ron Klain as a major reason why bipartisan talks on the relief bill fell apart. (Bolton, 2/23)
Republicans are making a risky but calculated bet: that voters won鈥檛 punish them for opposing a popular $1.9 trillion coronavirus bill. With President Joe Biden and Democrats barely even seeking their input, Republicans are now gambling that there will be more backlash over schools staying closed, the Covid bill's massive price tag and a partisan process. And with the GOP closing ranks to oppose the aid package, it could become the first pandemic relief plan that garners zero support from Republicans 鈥 following a year with five bipartisan bills and more than $3 trillion spent on fighting the virus. (Zanona and Everett, 2/23)
In related news about the effects of covid 鈥
Growing behavioral health needs and existing workforce inadequacies are amplifying calls for Congress to provide additional resources to address a national mental health crisis exacerbated by COVID-19, the economic recession, and social isolation. (Raman, 2/23)
Children鈥檚 hospitals and pediatricians are calling on the Biden administration to prioritize children鈥檚 mental, emotional and behavioral health in addressing the COVID-19 pandemic. ... They also think Congress should provide new funding for activities at the state and local level to support children like telehealth, training for crisis response, and school-based services. (Gangitano, 2/24)