Congress votes to extend sequestration
Congress agreed to extend sequestration on Medicare for an additional year, to 2024, as an offset to restore military cost-of-living adjustments. The bill also allocates $2.3 billion for the next "doc fix." The bill passed with a vote of 326-90 in the House Tuesday and 95-3 in the Senate Wednesday. President Obama is expected to sign the bill. The National Rural Health Association will continue to fight to protect against the disproportionate harm that sequestration has on the rural health safety net. Decreasing Medicare payments to rural hospitals will push many of these health care facilities to the brink of closing their doors.