Congress passes Iraq war spending plan
WASHINGTON (AP) - June 26, 2008 The package, approved 92-6, includes a doubling of GI Bill
college benefits for troops and veterans. It also provides a
13-week extension of unemployment benefits and $2.7 billion in
emergency flood relief for the Midwest.
The Senate, however, narrowly failed to approve a House-passed
bill to cancel a scheduled cut in payments to doctors who treat
Medicare patients.
It also failed to resolve differences over home mortgage
legislation and the administration's electronic surveillance
program. Those matters will await lawmakers when they return from a
10-day July break.
The spending bill will bring to more than $650 billion the
amount Congress has provided for the Iraq war since it started more
than five years ago. For operations in Afghanistan, the total is
nearly $200 billion, according to congressional officials.
Last week, the House approved the war funding measure, 268-155.
The domestic add-ons were approved separately by a 416-12 vote. The
White House has said it supports the combined measure, which
technically allowed the measure to advance without senators having
to vote specifically for the war funding, a distasteful matter for
many Democrats.
As for Medicare, a 10.6 percent reduction in doctors' payments
remains scheduled to take effect Tuesday. It was triggered by
Medicare spending levels that exceeded established targets.
The Senate fell one vote short of the 60 needed to pass the bill
under expedited rules. Nine Republicans joined Democrats in backing
it. But most of the Senate's 49 Republicans voted against it,
noting that the Bush administration has hinted at a possible veto.
The insurance industry, in particular, opposed the bill.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., changed his vote from
yes to no in a procedural move to enable him to bring up the bill
later. He ridiculed Republicans who sided with Bush in opposing the
bill.
"Who would be afraid of him?" Reid said as many senators
looked on. "He's got a 29 percent approval rating."
Some of the roughly 600,000 doctors who treat Medicare patients
have said they would be reluctant to take on new elderly and
disabled patients if the reimbursement cut takes effect.
Avoiding the cuts in Medicare physician payments has become an
annual event for Congress, but finding the money invariably
requires trimming payments to other health care providers.
Democrats this year focused on taking the money from the Medicare
Advantage program. It lets the elderly and disabled receive health
benefits through a private insurer rather than through traditional
Medicare.
The bill that fell short Thursday would have reduced payments to
insurers by about $14 billion over five years. Insurers say the
financial hit would have come at the expense of millions of
Medicare Advantage participants.
But Democratic lawmakers, citing findings by an independent
advisory commission, said the payments are overly generous and make
it harder to sustain Medicare for future generations.
Many pharmacists support the bill because it would delay payment
cuts through Medicaid. Pharmacists also support a provision that
would require Medicare drug plans to reimburse them within 14 days
of an electronic billing and within 30 days for paper claims.
The bill has also generated support from rural hospitals and
ambulance providers that would have received more Medicare funding.
In the House, lawmakers approved financial help for mass transit
systems facing a surge in riders because of high fuel prices. But
Republicans blocked Democrats from requiring oil and gas companies
to forfeit their leases if they don't drill on the millions of
acres of government land and water they lease.
Senators were unable to resolve differences on the housing and
surveillance legislation. A dispute over taxes continued to stall
the mortgage-finance bill, which would allow the government to back
$300 billion in cheaper loans for homeowners facing foreclosure.
Majorities in both chambers appear to support such a bill. But
Senate progress faltered when Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., insisted on
adding an $8 billion package of tax breaks for renewable energy
producers.
The incentives have bipartisan backing. But House Democrats
oppose including them without balancing them with tax hikes to
prevent an increase in the deficit.
The surveillance bill would provide legal immunity to
telecommunications companies that helped the government wiretap
American phone and computer lines without court permission after
the Sept. 11 terror attacks.
It also would make it easier for the government to tap the calls
and e-mails of suspected terrorists. Its detractors contend that it
does not protect Americans' privacy rights while its champions
argue that it strikes the right balance between civil liberties and
security. The bill passed the House with a strong majority last
week.