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One-Year SGR Patch

Mar 31 2014

Mr. President, first I wish to address legislation that passed the Senate earlier this evening. The sustainable growth rate is such an important issue to the people from the state of Kansas. I come from a state in which senior citizens are a very prevalent portion of our population, and access to health care is so dependent upon whether or not Medicare reimburses a physician, a hospital, a home health care agency or a nursing home in an adequate amount. I fear that in the absence of that adequate Medicare reimbursement we will see a lot fewer doctors, and hospital doors will close.

I have been an advocate of and in fact I never voted to create the sustainable growth rate, and I suppose I should explain what that is. In the broadest of terms it means there is a formula that ultimately reduces the reimbursement a physician receives under Medicare. It has become a very dramatic thing. This year I believe it is around a 24 percent reduction that will occur April 1, tomorrow, if the sustainable growth rate formula is not altered.

The reality is that Congress has altered that formula to avoid those reductions, because we know when a health care provider is not compensated in a way that covers the cost of providing the service, most likely we are going to have fewer health care providers. Hospitals will not be there, physicians will no longer be in practice, and, particularly in areas of our country that are rural where, again, a significant portion of the population is senior citizens whose medical bills are paid, in part, through Medicare.

My discouragement, my dissatisfaction, is once again the Senate has demonstrated its dysfunction by passing a very short-term fix to this long-term problem. If history is any indication, we will be back one year from now in the same predicament. We have made alterations 16 times previously. This is the 17th time in which we have done a short-term fix to a long-term problem. To me, it is one more symptom of our inability as a Senate to function in a way that benefits the American people: in this case, patients who are served by physicians who will be harmed.

In instances across Kansas, our hospitals are now employers of physicians, and so they have entered into a contract with a physician. When the reimbursement rate for the physician is reduced, it means less revenue to the hospital and a tighter squeeze to the many hospitals that barely hang on by a thread.

I express my appreciation to Senator Wyden, the chairman of the Finance Committee, for his efforts to find a long-term solution, a permanent repeal of the SGR and again express my willingness to him and to others to work with Democrats in the Senate, to work with Republicans in the Senate, to find the necessary numbers of us who will come together to support legislation that would permanently end the SGR, and that we would not be then asked a few months from now to come back once again to solve the problem.

We know the problem is there. We know we will have to find a solution. The consequences of failing are so great, but we were unwilling to take the necessary steps today to pass a permanent repeal and an elimination of the SGR formula.

Again, to Senator Wyden, he and I have had conversations since last Thursday about my willingness to have conversations with Republican Members of the Senate to find the necessary votes to pass legislation for a permanent repeal. I expressed that offer again to Senator Wyden, that we are still interested in doing that, and that the country, its health care providers and their patients, deserve better than what we were able to do today.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) – member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies – today expressed concern with a proposed Clean Water Act rule released this week by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). The new rule would expand their authority of waters regulated by the Clean Water Act including small streams and wetlands.

“Unfortunately, the EPA continues to draft and implement unreasonable rules that increase burdens for farmers and ranchers in Kansas and across the country,” Sen. Moran said. “The proposed rule would expand federal authority to almost all waters in the United States including small streams and wetlands on private property that dry up during the summer months. This is yet another example of federal government overreach and unnecessary intrusion into the lives of Americans, and I encourage Kansas producers to make their voices heard.”

The new rule is subject to a 90-day comment period. To comment on the proposed rule, visit epa.gov/uswaters.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) joined U.S. Senator Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) this week in introducing the EPA Employment Impact Analysis Act, a bill to prohibit the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from finalizing any major regulations until the agency analyzes the economic impact of its current air regulations as required under Section 321(a) of the Clean Air Act.

“The EPA’s continued efforts to create and implement new rules before the full cost of its existing Clean Air Act regulations are known is hindering economic growth and increasing the cost of doing business in the United States,” Sen. Moran said. “Once again, American businesses are being put at a competitive disadvantage and are losing access to world markets because of government overreach. Our government should not be an adversary when it comes to the success of a business in the United States. Today I introduced legislation to stop the EPA from implementing any more job-killing regulations until the economic impact of its current regulations are fully known so businesses in Kansas and across our country may be optimistic about the future of the American economy.”

The EPA Employment Impact Analysis Act cites a number of examples where the EPA concluded that a regulation would result in the creation of jobs, yet National Economic Research Associates (NERA) Economic Consulting, using a “whole economy” model, reported that the same regulation would result in thousands of job losses. Examples include: 

  • Utility MACT rule (77 Fed. Reg. 9301): EPA’s analysis of the Utility MACT rule estimated that implementation of the final rule would result in the creation of 46,000 temporary construction jobs and 8,000 net new permanent jobs. NERA’s whole economy analysis found that the rule would have a negative impact on the income of workers in an amount equivalent to 180,000 to 215,00 lost jobs in 2014, and 50,000 to 85,000 lost jobs each year thereafter. 
  • Cross State Air Pollution rule (76 Fed. Reg. 48208): The EPA’s analysis of the Cross State Air Pollution rule estimated that implementation of the final rule would result in the creation of 700 jobs per year. NERA’s whole economy analysis found that the rule would result in the elimination of 34,000 jobs from 2013 to 2037.
  • Boiler MACT rule (76 Fed. Reg. 15608): EPA’s analysis of the Boiler MACT rule estimated that implementation of the final rule would result in the creation of 2,200 jobs per year. NERA’s whole economy analysis found that the rule would result in the elimination of 28,000 jobs per year from 2013 to 2037. 

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) issued the following statement today after learning from U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services Director Dan Ashe that the Lesser Prairie Chicken (LPC) will be listed as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act:

“Listing the Lesser Prairie Chicken under the Endangered Species Act will have real consequences on many sectors in communities across Kansas including agriculture, oil and gas development, ranching, transportation and wind energy. I am confident there are ways to address conserving the species while not hampering economic growth and farming and ranching activities. As conservation efforts are considered, producers deserve the flexibility to implement plans that fit their operations. Additionally, it will be imperative to account for ongoing species recovery developments. I am committed to working with U.S. Fish and Wildlife to make certain the measures implemented are based on sound science and common sense, as well as represent the best interest of producers.”

Background
Sen. Moran has worked to avoid the Lesser Prairie Chicken’s listing. On June 13, 2013, Sen. Moran sent a bipartisan letter requesting a six-month delay to the LPC listing decision in order to provide the maximum amount of time to consider the LPC listing allowed under federal law. This resulted in an extension that allowed time for evaluation of the science behind the listing decision and for the five-state plan to demonstrate results. That letter was a follow-up to a letter on Feb. 20, 2013, requesting an extension to the comment period for the proposed threatened listing, which Director Ashe agreed to provide within a week of the request.

 

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Washington, D.C. – At South by Southwest (SXSW) Interactive – a conference for startup companies and tech enthusiasts held in Austin, Texas, last week – there was ongoing chatter about Kansas City’s reputation as a growing tech hub and hotbed for startup companies. Since then, the buzz has been echoing on both sides of the Atlantic.

“The rest of the world is now learning what we’ve known for some time: KC is a great place for entrepreneurship and innovation,” U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) said. “Kansas City’s economy benefits from the innovations of our region’s fast-growing startups and a willingness among long-standing area companies to invest in the community. Companies like Sprint, Cerner and Hallmark, as well as Kansas City’s own Kauffman Foundation and a number of individual community leaders, recognize that innovation is the key to economic growth. Their efforts have helped Kansas City leverage its local resources to become America’s most entrepreneurial city.”

 

Research published by the Kauffman Foundation shows that from 1990-2010, Kansas City had the third highest increase overall among the largest U.S. metropolitan areas in high-tech startup density. Kansas City ranked first for the highest increase among the largest metropolitan areas in high-tech startup density from 1990-2010 in the United States when based only on information and communications technology.

 

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), member of the Senate Banking Committee, issued the following statement today regarding the release of the legislative text of the bipartisan housing finance reform agreement announced last Tuesday by Chairman Tim Johnson (D-S.D.) and Ranking Member Mike Crapo’s (R-Idaho):

“As an early supporter of legislation that would greatly improve the U.S. housing finance system, I appreciate Chairman Johnson and Ranking Member Crapo’s commitment to pursuing this critical issue. The release of the committee’s draft text is an important step forward in the process of building a better housing market. I am encouraged to see that there continues to be bipartisan agreement that the current system is unacceptable, and it is promising to see the principles that I supported in S. 1217 largely reflected in the recently released discussion draft. I look forward to advancing the discussion as we work to include strong taxpayer protections in the pursuit of a healthy housing market.”

Sen. Moran is a cosponsor of the Housing Finance Report and Taxpayer Protection Act (S. 1217), which he introduced in June 2013 along with 12 of his Senate Banking Committee colleagues. S. 1217 would strengthen America’s housing finance system by replacing government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac with a privately capitalized system that preserves market liquidity and protects taxpayers from future economic downturns.

 

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), a Senate Appropriations Committee Member, on Thursday questioned U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx about the future of the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) Control Tower Program. Sec. Foxx expressed his interest in keeping rural communities connected to a 21st century economy, and confirmed the contract towers are included in the president’s FY2015 budget.

Highlights from the hearing may be found below, along with links to video downloads.

(0:03) Sen. Moran: “…I think that the contract tower program is one of our most cost-effective programs, and as you would have noticed in the last year or so this Congress has demonstrated significant bipartisan support for that program. My question is what does the President’s budget, as well as what are your personal thoughts about the program? Do you appreciate and value its efficacy and…support its continued operation? And does the President’s budget reflect that as a priority?”

(0:39) Sec. Foxx: “…The FY2015 budget does include funding to continue to operate the contact tower program...we’re maintaining contract towers, sir.”

(1:42) Sen. Moran: “…And you, Mr. Secretary, are familiar enough with the program to have a feel for its value?”

(1:50) Sec. Foxx: “In general, I have a very deep and abiding interest in making sure communities across America are connected to the 21st century economy. And being connected to the national air space is part of that connection. So…you won’t have any hesitation from me to try to do everything I can to make sure communities across America are continuing to be connected.”

(2:16) Sen. Moran: “I appreciate that…sometimes I think when I ask questions about general aviation it’s thought of as Senator Moran is from Kansas it’s a place that we manufacture lots of general aviation aircraft — clearly true and I have a great regard for that aspect of general aviation. But I sometimes think it’s forgotten that rural America has a great interest — a lot at stake — in whether or not our smaller community airports have the ability…to access to a global economy...

(3:10) Sen. Moran: “Our ability to have…air traffic control towers…really does determine whether or not a smaller town has a bright future economically, medically, socially, and so I appreciate the comments you just made.”

FTP LINK:  Click here to download his floor speech. (Save to your desktop.)

YOUTUBE:  Click here to watch his remarks on YouTube.

 

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S.  Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) has co-sponsored S. 2106, the Freeing Americans from Inequitable Requirements (FAIR) Act, legislation introduced by Senator Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) to require the administration to exercise basic fairness when implementing Obamacare. Specifically, the FAIR Act provides relief under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) for all individuals and families by delaying enforcement of the law’s individual mandate penalty whenever the White House delays the employer mandate.

"While the administration has twice moved unilaterally to provide businesses temporary relief from the ACA in an election season, President Obama continues to disregard the problems this law is causing for individuals and families,” Sen. Moran said. “This treatment is grossly unfair for the millions of Americans facing the burden of increased health insurance costs in addition to the ACA’s new individual mandate tax. I believe the entire law should be repealed to protect individuals, families and businesses from the disasters created by Obamacare. In the meantime, the FAIR Act makes certain individuals and families are offered the same relief already granted to businesses."

Over the past year, the Obama Administration has unilaterally delayed or modified the ACA more than 20 times. On July 2, 2013, the administration delayed until 2015 the requirement that employers with at least 50 full-time employees provide health coverage for their full-time workers or risk paying a penalty. On February 10, 2014, the administration again delayed the employer mandate until 2016 for employers who have between 50 and 99 full-time employees.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services and Education, again called on U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius to answer questions about the true costs of implementing Obamacare.

Congress asked the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to include in its 2015 budget request details about Obamacare funding, including specifics on the amount spent on the health insurance Exchange. Last week, CMS released a less-than-transparent congressional justification. Sen. Moran believes it provided incomplete and ambiguous figures that do not illustrate the entire funding picture, while ignoring Congress’ intent under the request. Congress asked CMS to provide details on both Obamacare funding sources and activities, and the response failed to include any information on how Obamacare funds are being used.

Sen. Moran is committed to making certain the Obama Administration is held accountable for its use of taxpayer dollars, especially considering the systemic problems plaguing Obamacare implementation. He asked Sec. Sebelius for a response by April 2, 2014.

Sen. Moran’s letter to Sec. Sebelius reads:

March 13, 2014

The Honorable Kathleen Sebelius
Secretary
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
200 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20201 

Dear Secretary Sebelius:

I am writing to follow-up on information provided in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2015 congressional justification regarding funding for the Affordable Care Act (ACA). 

Language was included in both the FY2014 Senate Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education and Related Agencies Appropriations Report and the FY2014 Omnibus Appropriations Statement of Managers asking for specific funding details on the Health Insurance Marketplace established under the ACA.  In response to this request by the Senate and House Appropriations Committees, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) provided only sources of funding for the ACA, as opposed to both sources and uses of such funds.  While I understand the Department might believe this information addresses the requirement set forth in the report language, it does not.  CMS’ response is only a fraction of what the Committee requested. 

Section 224 of the FY2014 Omnibus Statement of Managers states:

SEC. 224. The Secretary shall publish, as part of the fiscal year 2015 budget of the President submitted under section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, information that details the uses of all funds used by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services specifically for Health Insurance Marketplaces for each fiscal year since the enactment of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Public Law 111–148) and the proposed uses for such funds for fiscal year 2015. Such information shall include, for each such fiscal year—

(1) the section(s) of such Act under which such funds were appropriated or used;

(2) the program, project, or activity for which such funds were used;

(3) the amount of funds that were used for the Health Insurance Marketplaces within each such program, project, or activity; and

(4) the milestones completed for data hub functionality and implementation readiness.

The language is explicit regarding the type of information requested and it is clear CMS’ response failed to answer sections 2 and 3 of Section 224.  Specifically, the response does not detail the amount and how the money was spent – on which programs, projects, and activities funding was used.  Simply put, CMS provided a vague response that does not illustrate the entire funding picture and ignores Congress’ intent under the request. 

Once again, the Administration is refusing to disclose to the American taxpayer how much money is being spent on the ACA.  And when asked by Congress to provide this information, the Department again chose to provide evasive and ambiguous figures that do not answer the crux of the request.  The Department needs to be transparent in its funding decisions and held accountable for those decisions. 

Therefore, to better understand the cost and scope of Marketplace activities, please address the three fundamental questions regarding uncertainties about the ACA’s Health Insurance Marketplace:

  1. Why did CMS not include the requested information under Section 224 (2) and (3) regarding the amount and the specific program, project, or activity for which funds were used?
  1. How much funding was used for the Health Insurance Marketplaces within each program, project, or activity?  For example, this should include information on enrollment activities, IT contracts, funds transferred to other Departments to support ACA-related activities, or staffing costs. 
  1. Why were all the sources of ACA implementation funding not included?  For example, $208 million from Community Health Centers was used for enrollment activities and was not included in the Department’s disclosure.

Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter.  I would appreciate a response prior to your testimony at our FY2015 budget hearing on April 2, 2014.

                                                                        Sincerely,

                                                                        Jerry Moran

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – This week, U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), along with U.S. Senator Pat Roberts (R-Kan.), U.S. Senator Thad Cochran (R-Miss.) and 10 of their Senate colleagues, introduced the Gun-Owner Registration Information Protect (GRIP) Act. The legislation would prohibit federal funding from being used to support a gun registry maintained by any other organization, including state and local governments.

“The U.S. Constitution guarantees the ‘right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed,’ but a national firearm database would threaten that fundamental right,” Sen. Moran said. “The GRIP Act makes certain Kansans’ freedoms are not infringed upon simply because they own firearms. While much needs to be done to prevent violent crime in our nation, auditing responsible, law-abiding firearms owners is not the answer. I will continue to support the freedoms of Americans and oppose any legislation before Congress that violates Americans’ Second Amendment Rights.”

The GRIP Act would clarify existing law that bars the federal government from storing information acquired during the firearms background check process. It would extend that prohibition to prevent any federal funding from being used to contribute to nonfederal gun registries.

In addressing state and local gun registry programs, the expanded federal prohibition in the GRIP Act would ensure that states and local entities that benefit from federal grant programs, such as the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant program, do not use that funding to create or support full or partial registries of firearms information. The legislation does not include any limitations related to state recordkeeping for permitting, law enforcement-issued firearms, or lost or stolen firearms.

The GRIP Act is endorsed by the National Rifle Association.

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