Congress narrowly averted a shutdown on March 14 by passing a continuing resolution (CR) to keep the government open. The CR sustains Federal fiscal year (FY) 2024 levels through September 30, the end of FY 2025. The mostly “clean” measure contained a “skinny” health package with a few “must-do” extenders, a $6 billion increase for defense spending, and a $13 billion cut to certain discretionary programs. The CR’s health care provisions include delaying Medicaid disproportionate share hospital (DSH) cuts until October 1, extending expiring telehealth flexibilities, and sustaining public health programs. To finance the health care provisions, the CR also includes a two-month extension of the 2% Medicare sequestration cut to July 2032.
The CR is the latest iteration of a monthslong appropriations stalemate that left Congress unable to agree on spending levels for the FY that began on October 1, 2024. The CR, backed by the Speaker and House Republican leadership, reached the floor after House and Senate Appropriations Committee leaders announced that a topline agreement for full-year appropriations bills was imminent. Democratic and Republican House leaders traded offers on a stopgap funding patch for several weeks ahead of this deadline, but the CR did not reflect bipartisan negotiations and ultimately received little Democratic support. The CR passed with one Democratic vote in the House and 10 in the Senate.