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Health See other Health Articles Title: Rebate checks getting larger in Senate GOP coronavirus plan But there might not be a second round if economic conditions improve Senate Republicans are planning to include larger first-round stimulus checks to U.S. households than the Trump administration initially floated, but there might not be a second round if economic conditions improve. The emerging Senate GOP package would increase direct payments to individuals to about $1,200 per person or $2,400 for married couples filing jointly, at a cost of $273 billion, above the $1,000 per person and $250 billion cost suggested by the administration. The plan continues to include additional payments of $500 per child. Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., said the benefit would begin to phase down above $75,000 in adjusted gross income for individuals and $150,000 for couples. Those were the thresholds in the 2008 stimulus package that Republicans are using as a model. The White House plan envisioned two rounds of checks of equal size, distributed about six weeks apart, at a $500 billion cost. But it appears Senate Republicans are holding the second check in abeyance for the time being. "There's some discussion about, let's do the first tranche and make sure we get that right, and then we'll see in six weeks if there's another need," Cramer said. "That's sort of where I would land on it." Some Republicans, including Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Richard C. Shelby of Alabama, say they don't like the idea of simply distributing checks. They'd rather top off current unemployment insurance. Loading the player... "I personally think that if we’re going to help people, we ought to direct the cash payments maybe as a supplement to unemployment [benefits], not to the people that are still working every day," Shelby said. "Just a blanket cash check to everybody in America making up to $75,000, I don’t know the logic of that, you know? Now, I can see tying it to unemployment.” The Senate GOP plan is expected to direct some tax cuts specifically to businesses, including some measures that have been included in prior stimulus measures before and during the Great Recession. Options under consideration include allowing companies to "carry back" their net operating losses to offset taxes paid in earlier, profitable years, generating a refund from the IRS. In addition, Senate Finance Republicans are looking at letting unprofitable companies generate bigger refunds from alternative minimum tax credits built up over prior years, to use instead of write-offs for equipment expenses that are only good for reducing taxable income. Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, said senators were also looking at raising the limit on businesses' deductions for interest payments to 50 percent of income through the end of the year. The limit is currently set at 30 percent under the 2017 tax law. The proposal would provide $250 billion in loans to small businesses, keeping with the federal definition of a small business as 500 employees or less. Lawmakers are continuing to discuss how to handle franchises. The current thinking on the airline aid package is to provide $50 billion to passenger carriers and $8 billion to cargo carriers. Senate Republicans are expected to keep the airline aid structured as mostly secured loans and loan guarantees, as the White House asked for. "Industry has asked for half of that to be grants and I think that's been rejected, at least to this point," Cramer said. Lifeline for health care sector The package is also expected to provide additional aid to the health care industry with a focus on increasing the number of hospital beds and respirators. In one iteration circulating around Capitol Hill, the Senate package would lift the across-the-board 2 percent Medicare cuts that have been in place since 2013 under a deficit reduction law, from May 1 through Dec. 31. The measure would increase Medicare payments to hospitals for treating COVID-19 patients by 15 percent, prevent scheduled cuts in payments for durable medical equipment necessary to help patients transfer home from hospitals to reduce the threat of exposure and free up beds. [Redefining district work: House members opt to telework during coronavirus pandemic] Medicaid would pay for training programs for caregivers in rural and underserved areas, and to care for the disabled in hospitals to help reduce hospital stays and free up beds. Under the proposal, Medicare would also pay hospitals separately for administering qualified antibiotics or antifungals to treat infections, as well as speed up payment determinations when the Food and Drug Administration approves new COVID-19 drugs. This iteration of the bill would also allow high-deductible insurance plans to allow use of health savings accounts to cover telehealth services without having to first reach the deductible. High-deductible plan holders could also use HSA or flexible spending account money to pay the monthly fee for telehealth services at direct primary care outfits. The measure would also expand allowable Medicare payments for telehealth rules from what was enacted in an earlier $8.3 billion COVID-19 supplemental, and waive some home dialysis rules so patients don't have to receive face-to-face periodic evaluations. Discussions are also focused on providing student loan relief. Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., and other Democrats also pushed a plan Thursday aimed at relieving students of college debt. The proposal calls for canceling monthly student loan payments for the duration of the health emergency and guaranteeing a minimum $10,000 loan payoff for all federal student loan borrowers. Democrats also want the package to include a new form of unemployment insurance to provide full payments for lost salary in a “quick and easy way.” Schumer said that new program should provide assistance until those Americans “can get back to work.” He also said Democrats would push for expanded paid leave for workers, which was limited in a smaller bill President Donald Trump signed Wednesday night. David Lerman, Niels Lesniewski, Lindsey McPherson, Jennifer Shutt and Katherine Tully-McManus contributed to this report. Poster Comment: People should wear masks and safety glasses, and go back to work. Post Comment Private Reply Ignore Thread
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