Congressional votes for March 20

There were seven key votes in the House last week, which held a total of 17 roll call votes. There were three key votes in the Senate, which held six roll call votes. The most important Senate votes were to reject an end to debate on a sex trafficking bill. The most important House vote was to pass a bill to require hospitals to notify patients that their outpatient treatment might not be covered by Medicare.

Along with roll call votes, the House also passed the Medicare DMEPOS Competitive Bidding Improvement Act (H.R. 284), sponsored by Rep. Patrick J. Tiberi, R-Ohio, to require state licensure and bid surety bonds for entities that submit bids under Medicare's durable medical equipment, prosthetics, orthotics and supplies (DMEPOS) competitive acquisition program; and passed the Improving Regulatory Transparency for New Medical Therapies Act (H.R. 639), sponsored by Rep. Joseph R. Pitts, R-Pa., to change drug scheduling recommendations by the Secretary of Health and Human Services and the registration of manufacturers and distributors seeking to conduct clinical testing of drugs.

HOUSE VOTES

TRAUMA CENTER GRANTS: The House passed the Access to Life-Saving Trauma Care for All Americans Act (H.R. 647), sponsored by Rep. Michael C. Burgess, R-Texas. The bill would reauthorize through 2020 the issuance of federal grants to trauma centers and to states and other governments for operating trauma centers. The vote, on March 16, was 389 yeas to 10 nays.

YEAS: Clay D-MO (1st), Cleaver D-MO (5th), Hartzler R-MO (4th), Long R-MO (7th), Luetkemeyer R-MO (3rd), Smith (MO) R-MO (8th), Wagner R-MO (2nd)

NOT VOTING: Graves (MO) R-MO (6th)

REGIONALIZING EMERGENCY CARE: The House passed the Trauma Systems and Regionalization of Emergency Care Reauthorization Act (H.R. 648), sponsored by Rep. Michael C. Burgess, R-Texas. The bill would reauthorize through 2020 a federal grant program to help fund trauma care systems and regionalize planning for emergency care efforts. The vote, on March 16, was 382 yeas to 15 nays.

YEAS: Clay D-MO (1st), Cleaver D-MO (5th), Hartzler R-MO (4th), Long R-MO (7th), Luetkemeyer R-MO (3rd), Smith (MO) R-MO (8th), Wagner R-MO (2nd)

NOT VOTING: Graves (MO) R-MO (6th)

HOSPITAL PATIENT NOTIFICATIONS: The House passed the Notice of Observation Treatment and Implication for Care Eligibility Act (H.R. 876), sponsored by Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Texas. The bill would require hospitals providing care to individuals enrolled in the Medicare part A hospital insurance program to notify outpatients of their status and tell them how their outpatient status affects their Medicare insurance coverage. The vote, on March 16, was unanimous with 395 yeas.

YEAS: Clay D-MO (1st), Cleaver D-MO (5th), Hartzler R-MO (4th), Long R-MO (7th), Luetkemeyer R-MO (3rd), Smith (MO) R-MO (8th), Wagner R-MO (2nd)

NOT VOTING: Graves (MO) R-MO (6th)

FIREFIGHTERS AND HEALTH INSURANCE MANDATE: The House passed the Protecting Volunteer Firefighters and Emergency Responders Act (H.R. 1191), sponsored by Rep. Lou Barletta, R-Pa. The bill would exempt volunteer firefighters and emergency medical providers at charities and state and local governments from the health-care reform law's requirement that a large employer provide its employees with health insurance. The vote, on March 17, was unanimous with 415 yeas.

YEAS: Clay D-MO (1st), Cleaver D-MO (5th), Hartzler R-MO (4th), Long R-MO (7th), Luetkemeyer R-MO (3rd), Smith (MO) R-MO (8th), Wagner R-MO (2nd)

NOT VOTING: Graves (MO) R-MO (6th)

EPA SCIENTIFIC ADVISORY BOARD: The House passed the EPA Science Advisory Board Reform Act (H.R. 1029), sponsored by Rep. Frank D. Lucas, R-Okla. The bill would set out rules governing the nine-member scientific advisory board to the Environmental Protection Agency, including requirements that board members be qualified by education, training, and experience, not receive EPA funding, and recuse themselves from advisory activities that involve their own work. The vote, on March 17, was 236 yeas to 181 nays.

YEAS: Hartzler R-MO (4th), Long R-MO (7th), Luetkemeyer R-MO (3rd), Smith (MO) R-MO (8th), Wagner R-MO (2nd)

NAYS: Clay D-MO (1st), Cleaver D-MO (5th)

NOT VOTING: Graves (MO) R-MO (6th)

SCIENCE AND EPA REGULATIONS: The House passed the Secret Science Reform Act (H.R. 1030), sponsored by Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas. The bill would bar the Environmental Protection Agency from enacting regulations that are not based on specific publicly available and reproducible scientific studies. The vote, on March 18, was 241 yeas to 175 nays.

YEAS: Hartzler R-MO (4th), Long R-MO (7th), Luetkemeyer R-MO (3rd), Smith (MO) R-MO (8th), Wagner R-MO (2nd)

NAYS: Clay D-MO (1st), Cleaver D-MO (5th)

NOT VOTING: Graves (MO) R-MO (6th)

RULE FOR UNION ELECTIONS: The House passed a resolution (S.J. Res. 8), sponsored by Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., that would state Congress's disapproval of a National Labor Relations Board rule to shorten the period between when employees seeking to organize a union at a workplace ask for a secret ballot election to vote on unionization and when the election takes place. The vote, on March 19, was 232 yeas to 186 nays.

YEAS: Hartzler R-MO (4th), Long R-MO (7th), Luetkemeyer R-MO (3rd), Smith (MO) R-MO (8th), Wagner R-MO (2nd)

NAYS: Clay D-MO (1st), Cleaver D-MO (5th)

NOT VOTING: Graves (MO) R-MO (6th)

SENATE VOTES

TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT NOMINEE: The Senate confirmed the nomination of Carlos A. Monje Jr. to serve as an assistant secretary for policy at the Transportation Department. The vote, on March 16, was unanimous with 94 yeas.

YEAS: Blunt R-MO, McCaskill D-MO

CHILD AND SEX TRAFFICKING: The Senate rejected a cloture motion to end debate on the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act (S. 178), sponsored by Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas. The bill would increase financial penalties for those found guilty of smuggling or sex trafficking and increase compensation to trafficking victims, authorize block grants for child trafficking deterrence programs, and classify the production of child pornography as child abuse. The vote, on March 18, was 57 yeas to 41 nays, with a three-fifths majority required to end debate.

YEAS: Blunt R-MO

NAYS: McCaskill D-MO

SECOND VOTE ON CHILD AND SEX TRAFFICKING DEBATE: The Senate rejected a cloture motion to end debate on the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act (S. 178), sponsored by Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas. The vote, on March 18, was 56 yeas to 42 nays, with a three-fifths majority required to end debate.

YEAS: Blunt R-MO

NAYS: McCaskill D-MO