Rep. Louie Gohmert, (R–TX), is holding up the House-passed coronavirus relief bill, HR 6201– the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, and preventing it from being delivered to the Senate for a vote.
The House was expected to make technical corrections today to the bipartisan measure, which passed by the House early Saturday. However, Rep. Gohmert is insisting on having the changes read out loud, keeping the measure from being passed by Unanimous Consent. If one Member of Congress stands in opposition, the House cannot use the Unanimous Consent process to send the bill to the Senate and the House would have to have a vote by the full house — and many Members went home to their districts from Washington this weekend.
On Saturday, the House early this morning passed H.R. 6201, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, by a vote of 363-40. An overview of the measure is here.
Highlights of the bill include:
- Clarifies that the funds provided under section 105 of Division G can be used for COVID-19 diagnostic tests and related administration or service costs (as defined under section 101). Claims reimbursed under this section would be limited to those for uninsured individuals not eligible for other COVID-19 testing and services assistance included in the bill.
- Clarifies that Medicaid payment for the new eligibility category for the uninsured under section 104 of Division G is limited to COVID-19 testing and testing-related services. Makes a technical amendment to clarify that the increase to the federal medical assistance percentage (FMAP) specified in section 104 of Division G is applicable notwithstanding the first sentence of the subsection.
- Clarifies that SSA should use dedicated phone lines for emergency paid leave applications, separate from those used for the regular Social Security program.
- Clarifies that that the emergency waiver of federal rules applies to four specific kinds of rules: work search, waiting periods, “good cause” to leave employment, and employer experience rating.
- Removes findings from the Health Care Worker Protection Act of 2020.
- Clarifies definition of a “qualifying need related to a public health emergency.”