Pelosi Bill Slips In $6 Billion Slush Fund

Dennis Smith / November 03, 2009

Last week, Speaker Pelosi and the House leadership introduced their 1,900 page health care monstrosity, H.R. 3962. But they have not taken the bill to the House floor as they prepare yet another version called a “manager’s amendment.”

This manager’s amendment will sweep in new provisions targeted to specific members of Congress in order to get their support on behalf of some special interest group. These will be a style of earmarks that may be hard to trace back to its source. Some will be undecipherable, directing more favorable Medicare reimbursement to a particular hospital or the new taxes on a medical device manufactured in a particular congressional district will mysteriously be lowered. The same sort of deal-making will occur on the Senate floor. National advocacy groups that insist there should be no profit in health care will need smelling salts by the time the bill is completed.

One such earmark suddenly appeared in H.R. 3962 in Section 1745, “Nursing Home Supplemental Payment Program.” This provision did not exist when the Committee on Energy and Commerce had completed its work. Section 1745 creates a new $6 billion slush fund with the Medicaid program to dispense to nursing homes. (more…)