Democrats Take the Senate In a move that gives Democrats a majority in the Senate for the first time since 1994, Senator James Jeffords, a moderate Republican from Vermont, left the GOP to become an independent aligned with the Democrats. The switch upsets the 50-50 party balance in the Senate, revoking Vice President Dick Cheney’s tie-breaking vote—a reality that could impede President Bush’s agenda. Replacing Sen Trent Lott (R-Miss) as majority leader, Sen Tom Daschle (D-SD) now has the ability to bring legislation to the floor. In addition, Sen Edward Kennedy (D-Mass) will replace Jeffords as chairman of the Education Committee. As new head of the Judiciary Committee, Sen Patrick Leahy (D-Vt) will oversee confirmations of the President’s judicial appointments, including Jeffrey Sutton’s May 9 nomination to the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinatti. Disability advocates, including ADA Watch, expressed opposition to Sutton taking the bench. The former solicitor general of Ohio argued on behalf of states’ rights in University of Alabama vs Garrett. The Supreme Court decided in favor of the state, saying that the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) could not be enforced by Congress in individual states. Gian-Carlo Peressutti, associate director of the White House Office of Public Liaison, issued a statement in response to concerns from disability advocates that Sutton holds an anti-ADA position. Peressutti cited quotations from Sutton’s opening brief in the Garrett case to illustrate that Sutton is “not insensitive to the rights or interests of the disabled and indeed is not unsympathetic to the overall goals of the ADA.” The United States circuit court of appeals—consisting of regional appellate courts—is the final arbiter over most federal laws. The 6th Circuit Court oversees Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and Tennessee. At the time of publication, Sutton’s confirmation hearing with the Senate was still pending. MiCASSA Would Revamp Medicaid The Medicaid Community Attendant Services and Supports Act (MiCASSA), which would restructure the Medicaid system to include more community-based services, is expected to be reintroduced in Congress this summer. Ongoing budget debates delayed the reintroduction from its original April date. MiCASSA (S 1935), which first came before Congress in 1997 and again in 2000, aims to distribute Medicaid funding more evenly between institutions and community-based services in order to give patients a choice of care. According to the bill, Medicaid allots 75% of its funds to institutions, leaving 25% to home and community-based settings. According to iCan, advocates of the bill claim that giving patients a choice will cut down Medicaid costs. Estimated nursing home costs in 1995 were $41,000, according to Kaiser, a figure MiCASSA advocates say would be reduced to approximately $8,000 per year for beneficiaries of community care. Opponents, such as the American Health Care Association, argue that reducing Medicaid funding to institutions threatens the nursing home industry. Another concern is the cost of the bill, which was initially estimated at between $10 and $20 billion annually. A revised estimate was not available at the time of publication.
