Senate Dems Announce “No Hearing, No Vote Act” to Prevent the Senate from Considering Any Reconciliation Bill, Like Trumpcare, Unless It Was Reported Out By at Least one of the Instructed Senate Committees & Had At Least One Hearing on Every Major Reported Provision in The Bill
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) cosponsored legislation introduced by Senate Democrats that would hold Senate Republicans’ feet to the fire and require that any legislation going through the fast-tracked reconciliation process, such as the Trumpcare bill Republicans are currently drafting in private, have at least one committee hearing and be reported out by at least one of the instructed Senate Committees before the full Senate is permitted to consider it.
“Legislation that could affect the healthcare of tens of millions of Americans warrants, at a bare minimum, a public hearing and debate,” said Senator Cortez Masto. “Nevadans deserve transparency and assurance that they are not being dealt a disastrous bill that increases premiums for families and seniors and slashes health coverage for the most vulnerable in order to give tax breaks to the wealthiest. Senate Republicans are risking job losses, economic instability, and most especially, lives in the rush to pass a bill without any public scrutiny. It is crucial that Republicans work with Democrats to do what is best for the American people.”
Despite the fact that the Republican bill would impact one sixth of the economy and millions of Americans’ healthcare, Senate Republicans are reportedly drafting a new version of Trumpcare behind closed doors and plan to fast-track the bill through the reconciliation process without having any committee hearings before a final Senate vote. Specifically, the Senate Democrats’ “No Hearing, No Vote Act” would prevent the full Senate from considering any reconciliation bill, such as Trumpcare, unless it has been reported out by at least one of the instructed Senate committees (in this case, the Senate Committees on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) and Finance) and there has been at least one hearing on every major reported provision in the bill.
The full text of the Senate Democrats’ legislation can be found here.
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