THE DAILY WHIP: WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2014

H.Res. 717 – Rule Providing for Consideration of H.R. 3522 – “Employee Health Care Protection Act” (Rep. Cassidy – Energy and Commerce/Ways and Means) (One Hour of Debate). The Rules Committee has recommended a closed Rule that provides for one hour of general debate equally divided between the Chair and Ranking Member of the Committee on Energy & Commerce. The Rule allows one motion to recommit, with or without instructions, and waives all points of order against the resolution.

The Rules Committee rejected a motion by Ms. Slaughter of New York which to consider H.R. 3522 under an open Rule. Members are urged to VOTE NO.

H.R. 3522 – “Employee Health Care Protection Act” (Rep. Cassidy – Energy and Commerce/Ways and Means) (One Hour of Debate). This bill would give insurance companies the option to continue offering all group-market plans that were in effect as of January 1, 2013, through 2018 outside of exchanges established under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). This bill is not limited to current enrollees, but opens up access to non-ACA compliant plans to all groups and individuals. Employers who offer these plans would be deemed to meet the minimum coverage requirement set by the Affordable Care Act – allowing employers who are currently offering coverage that meets ACA standards to offer far less comprehensive, substandard coverage and take away the consumer protections employees currently have under the ACA.

Further, because plans sold prior to 2014 did not need to meet the requirements of the Affordable Care Act’s exchanges, enrollees in those plans remain vulnerable to limited coverage policies and abusive insurance company practices. Insurance companies would be able to discriminate against people with pre-existing conditions, restore annual caps on the amount of care you can receive, and force women to pay more than men for the same coverage.

This bill represents the 53rd time that Republicans have voted to undermine, repeal or defund the Affordable Care Act. With only a few short weeks left before another long recess, House Republicans are wasting time on yet another messaging bill that has no chance of becoming law. Republicans should stop ignoring the serious issues currently facing our nation and instead work with Democrats to create jobs and jumpstart the middle class. Members are urged to VOTE NO.

Bill Text for H.R. 3522:
PDF Version

Background for H.R. 3522:
House Report (HTML Version)
House Report (PDF Version)

Suspensions (2 bills)

1. H.R. 5057– EPS Service Parts Act of 2014, as amended (Rep. Gardner – Energy and Commerce)
2. S. 276 – A bill to reinstate and extend the deadline for commencement of construction of a hydroelectric project involving the American Falls Reservoir (Sen. Risch – Energy and Commerce)

Postponed Suspensions (3 bills)

1. H.R. 2678– Designating the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 10360 Southwest 186^th Street in Miami, Florida, as the "Larcenia J. Bullard Post Office Building" (Rep. Garcia – Oversight and Government Reform)
2. H.R. 4751– To make technical corrections to Public Law 110‐229 to reflect the renaming of the Bainbridge Island Japanese American Exclusion Memorial (Rep. Kilmer – Natural Resources)
3. H.R. 5161 – E–LABEL Act (Rep. Latta – Energy and Commerce)

TOMORROW’S OUTLOOK
The GOP Leadership has announced the following schedule for Thursday, September 11: The House will meet at 9:00 a.m. for legislative business. The House is expected to consider H.J.Res. 124 - Continuing Appropriations Resolution, 2015 (Rep. Rogers (KY) – Appropriations) (Subject to a Rule).