Skip to content
News and updates

Category: Biden Administration

Now, It’s the Senate’s Turn

Posted on

After a frantic day of discussions, just after 6 PM ET, the House was finally able to pass a continuing resolution to keep the government funded past midnight.  The House leadership brought the bill up under the suspension of the rules, meaning that it needed the support of two-thirds of those Members who voted.  It was eventually agreed to by a vote of 366 to 34, with one Member voting “Present.”

This version of the continuing resolution is a much smaller package than the one that was defeated earlier this week.  Although there are other provisions, its main contents are:  1) an extension of government funding through March 14, 2025; 2) funding for disaster relief; 3) sections related to a set of health-care programs; and 4) one-year extensions of programs funded by the Farm Bill.

It is now up to the Senate to clear the bill and to send it to President Biden’s desk before the clock strikes midnight.

Agencies Have Shutdown Processes in Place

Posted on

As a result of past shutdowns and experiences with near shutdowns, agencies have developed policies and procedures to address such occurrences.  The White House Office of Management and Budget maintains a central repository of individual agency policies, available here. 

Monica Bertagnolli, M.D. Confirmed as New NIH Director

Posted on

Monica Bertagnolli, M.D. was confirmed as the new NIH Director last week. Now that she is confirmed, she has taken the helm immediately as the 17th director. She is the first surgeon and the second woman to hold the position and joins the NIH after being the director at the National Cancer Institute.

In his nomination announcement earlier this year, President Biden stated: “Dr. Bertagnolli has spent her career pioneering scientific discovery and pushing the boundaries of what is possible to improve cancer prevention and treatment for patients and ensuring that patients in every community have access to quality care. Dr. Bertagnolli is a world-class physician-scientist whose vision and leadership will ensure NIH continues to be an engine of innovation to improve the health of the American people.”

Read more about about Dr. Bertagnolli and her confirmation here.

Nominee to Head NIH Clears Committee

Posted on

Earlier this morning, the nomination of Monica Bertagnolli to head the National Institutes of Health (NIH) was approved by the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee by a bipartisan vote of 15 to 6.  Bertagnolli, the current director of the National Cancer Institute, was nominated by President Biden earlier this year to take over the NIH, which has not had a permanent head since the retirement of Francis Collins.

SCOTUS Rejects Loan Forgiveness Plan

Posted on

Following up on yesterday’s ruling on ending explicit use of race in admissions, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down earlier today the Biden Administration’s loan cancellation proposal.  In a 6 – 3 decision, the court’s majority ruled that the Education Department did not have the authority to cancel loans.  The decision is available here.  

You can read more about the decision here, here, and here.