Washington Update

• Concerns over the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 (BBA), as well as medical errors, are topping the list for this year’s upcoming campaigns, according to a report in Healthcare Executive by John Ferman, the principal of Health Policy Alternatives (Washington). This year's campaigns to control the U.S. House of Representatives, the U.S. Senate, and the White House will greatly affect the outcomes of most public policy issues, including healthcare, during the last session of the 106th Congress, Ferman reported. The greatest effects on public policy issues will come from the Democrats' attempt to control the House. Ferman’s report predicted what people are likely to see unfold in terms of federal, health-related legislative issues during the last legislative session, including the prediction that it is unlikely that Congress will approve across-the-board increases in spending, leaving Medicare providers with escalating payment reductions. In fact, Ferman reported, the latest baseline projections from the Congressional Budget Office (Washington) show Medicare spending to be $173 billion less between 2000 and 2002, compared to projections made before the BBA’s passage. It is reasonable, however, to anticipate that Congress will enact targeted Medicare relief for certain providers, such as home health agencies, hospitals, and skilled nursing facilities, that were able to convince lawmakers that they continue to suffer adverse, unintended consequences of the BBA. These relief provisions will be played out in the context of the FY01 budget debate, according to Ferman’s report.