April 4, 2025 | Vol. MMXXVVVI | Issue 106

Budget Reconciliation

In February, House and Senate Republicans passed partisan budget resolutions to begin the reconciliation process. However, they did not approve the same budget resolution. Now, Senate Republicans are pushing to pass their updated budget resolution by the end of this week. They want to permanently extend President Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, which could add to the deficit and in doing so, violate the reconciliation rules. Therefore, they want to use a method called “current policy baseline.”

Current policy baseline would assume that continuing current tax policy (which expires at the end of the year) would not have any costs, allowing Republicans to add on more tax cuts or reduce offsetting spending cuts. It’s a workaround that would allow Republican Senators to treat an extension of those tax cuts as costing nothing, even though extending the tax cuts would actually cost trillions of dollars. The Senate budget resolution also includes a five trillion dollar debt limit increase. The Senate parliamentarian—a nonpartisan appointed official who advises the Senate on rules of the chamber—has not yet weighed in on this strategy, but she can rule that it either does or does not violate the rules.

As of this issue of DPN, the Senate has begun consideration on their updated budget resolution but has not yet started vote-a-rama, which they are expected to start later today. Vote-a-rama is a long process where Senators consider a bill and can add as many amendments as they want. Once they finish, they need a simple majority to pass their budget resolution.

Key Takeaways

The mechanics of Congressional processes can be complicated and burdensome, but the bottom line is that the Trump tax package from his first term—which Congressional Republicans want to extend—gave massive tax breaks to billionaires and corporations. Congressional Republicans want to cut into Medicaid and other important programs in order to extend those tax breaks for the richest Americans and corporations.

As Congressional Republicans plan to make cuts to Medicaid, it is vital that people let their Members of Congress know how detrimental any cuts to the program would be. These cuts might be in the form of work requirements, per capita caps, decreasing the federal match, and beyond—they would all have negative consequences for people with disabilities. Read AUCD’s Medicaid fact sheet and talking points here.

• Action Item - Protect Our Care has an easy tool to find your elected official and some advice on what to say - https://www.protectourcare.org/hands-off-medicaid. Call your Member of Congress and educate them on the importance of Medicaid for people with disabilities and their families and caregivers. Reminder: AUCD Network members should educate rather than lobby when talking to Members of Congress and their staff. Learn more here.

Plain Language

Congress is in the middle of a long process of passing bills that that affect how the government spends money, which is called reconciliation. The Senate and House of Representatives have different ideas of how they want to do this and how they want to spend money. Republicans in Congress want to pass these bills to make the government spend less money. Right now, Senate Republicans are working on how to do that while still following the rules of the Senate, which are very complicated.

The Senate and House have both passed their own budget resolutions, which are agreements on how to cut funding in government programs. Now, they need to come together to agree on a plan. Some lawmakers are talking about taking money away from Medicaid. AUCD and other organizations will work to protect Medicaid.

• Action Item - Right now, people should let Members of Congress know how important Medicaid is for people with disabilities and their families. They can use this link to call them and talk about how Medicaid helps people get home and community-based services, employment support, and more. If you have a personal story, it is really helpful to share! Here is some more information about Medicaid in plain language.

Department of Health and Human Services

Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services – On April 3, Dr. Mehmet Oz was confirmed by the Senate along party lines to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Dr. Oz has stated that he is in favor of establishing work requirements for Medicaid.

Staffing Cuts - On the night of March 31, mass layoffs occurred at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Many staffers lost their jobs as part of the broad reduction in force plans to cut 10,000 HHS workers. Since the Administration began, there has been a 25 percent reduction in workforce at HHS. These cuts include staff at:

• The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which supports the 1 in 3 people with disabilities who are enrolled in Medicaid

• The Administration for Community Living, which helps people with disabilities live in the community and provides core funding for the University Centers for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities

• The National Institutes of Health, which houses the Health Resources and Services Administration's (HRSA) Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB), which administers funding to the Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities Programs

Secretary Kennedy to Brief House Committee - Next week, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. will brief Representatives in the House Energy and Commerce Committee on these massive staffing cuts and restructuring efforts. The Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee also invited Secretary Kennedy to testify, but he has not yet responded to the invitation.

Letter from Appropriators to Secretary Kennedy – on March 31, U.S. Senators Patty Murray (D-WA) and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), along with U.S. Representative Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), sent a letter to HHS Secretary Kennedy regarding the plans to restructure the department and reduce staff. The lawmakers push Secretary Kennedy for more information about his plans, criticizing the lack of transparency at HHS and warning that the reorganization and staffing cuts will jeopardize Americans’ health and wellbeing. They note that the Administration did not consult Congress before implementing these plans and state that “this reorganization clearly violates the law” as Congress and the President appropriated funds to specific agencies within HHS to carry out certain functions that may not be carried out now.

States Sue over Health and Human Services Cuts - On April 1, attorneys general from 24 states sued the federal government over $11 billion of funding rescissions from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and $1 billion from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) under HHS. The attorneys general state that the funding that was taken away had been supporting public health improvement efforts such as “identifying, tracking, and addressing infectious diseases; ensuring access to immunizations; fortifying emergency preparedness; providing mental health and substance abuse services; and modernizing critical public health infrastructure.” The funding had been clawed back by HHS because it was originally approved through COVID-19-related public health laws, which the Trump Administration said was no longer necessary. The plaintiffs argue that clawing back the funding would interrupt important public health work happening in their states.

Key Takeaways

Dr. Oz has indicated he is in favor of taking actions that may cut funding from Medicaid. You can read Dr. Oz’s responses to questions for the record during his Senate Finance Committee hearing on March 14.

These mass layoffs at HHS will eliminate expertise at the Department, negatively impact people with disabilities and their families, and interrupt vital research, services, and training. Read AUCD’s statement on the HHS reduction in force and restructuring.

While the funding mentioned in the lawsuit was originally appropriated during the COVID-19 pandemic, it has been used since then to improve public health across the country. Clawing back the funding could hamper efforts to prevent the next public health emergency or help people with mental health or substance use disorders.

Plain Language

Dr. Mehmet Oz is the President’s choice to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which is a government agency that controls Medicaid. The Senate approved Dr. Oz to be in charge of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Dr. Oz is in favor of work requirements, which are when the government makes some people who get Medicaid report to the government how much they are working or volunteering. This could take away Medicaid from people with disabilities and caregivers.

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is a government department that works to improve the health of people in the United States. They do a lot of work that affects people with disabilities, including helping people live in the community and making sure people with disabilities can go to the doctor’s office and get health care just like nondisabled people. The Trump Administration decided to fire many people in the Department of Health and Human Services and combine a lot of sections of the Department.

This could be bad for people with disabilities because it will take away resources, make people in the Department stop working on their projects, and remove workers in the Department who are experts in helping people stay healthy and live in the community.  A lot of people are upset about these big changes at HHS, including some Senators and some people in states across the country. They want the Trump Administration to change what it is doing.

• Action Item - Call your Members of Congress—your Representative and Senators—and reach out to the government officials in your state, such as the governor’s office, to educate them on the important work that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) does to protect and support people with disabilities and their families. You can reach your Members of Congress by calling the Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121.

New Legislation

The Safeguarding Medicaid Act (S. 1082)

• Introduced by Senator John Barrasso (R-WY)

• Would require the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to develop a federal asset verification process to be used for all Medicaid applicants across the country

• You can read Senator Barrasso’s press release on the bill here.

The Alleviating Barriers for Caregivers (ABC) Act (S.1227)

• Introduced by Senators Ed Markey (D-MA) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV); Representatives Seth Magaziner (D-RI) and Kat Cammack (R-FL)

• Would direct the CMS Administrator and the Commissioner of Social Security to review and simplify their administrative processes with the goal of making these processes easier for family caregivers

• You can read Senator Markey’s press release on the bill here.

The SSI Savings Penalty Elimination Act (H.R. 2540)

• Introduced by Representatives Danny K. Davis (D-IL) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA); Senators Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) and Bill Cassidy (R-LA)

• Would update Supplemental Security Income asset limits—which have not been updated since the 1980s—from $2,000 to $10,000 for an individual and from $3,000 to $20,000 for a married couple

• You can read Representative Davis’ bill explainer here and Senator Cortez Masto’s press release here.

Plain Language

There are a few new bills in the U.S. Congress.

• The Safeguarding Medicaid Act would tell the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to make a new process that could figure out how much Medicaid applicants across the country have in assets. Assets are things that are valuable, such as money, a house, a car, or a piece of art.
  
  

• The Alleviating Barriers for Caregivers Act would make it easer for caregivers to fill out paperwork and documents related to their job.
  
  

• The SSI Savings Penalty Elimination Act would change some things about Supplemental Security Income, which is a benefit that many people with disabilities have. This bill would change how much money you can have while still getting money from your Supplemental Security Income.

Disability Policy for All with Liz

Join Liz on Instagram Reels, where she will continue to provide plain language updates on policy, highlighting current issues and hot topics in federal disability policy.

Liz Weintraub is AUCD's Senior Advocacy Specialist and the host of “Disability Policy for All with Liz.” She has extensive experience practicing leadership in self-advocacy and has held many board and advisory positions at state and national organizations, including the Council on Quality & Leadership (CQL) and the Maryland Developmental Disabilities Council.

Watch Liz’s most recent video on the Department of Health and Human Services.

Words to Know

Parliamentarian

The Senate parliamentarian is a person who works for the Senate and is not part of one political party or another. They are not elected, like Senators and Representatives are. The parliamentarian gives advice on the rules of the Senate, which can be complicated.

Assets

Assets are things that are valuable, such as money, a house, a car, or a piece of art. When you apply for benefits like Medicaid or Supplemental Security Income, the government wants to know how much you have in assets. If you have a lot in assets—like a lot of money in your bank account—the government might say that they can’t give you more money. This depends on the type of benefit you are applying for.