House Dems push for vote on infrastructure, Build Back Better bills – National & International News – FRI 5Nov2021

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Dems push for House vote on infrastructure, Build Back Better. 11 states sue over business vaccine mandate. Ethiopian rebel groups unite against prime minister.

NATIONAL NEWS

Dems push toward vote on infrastructure, Build Back Better bills

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi had hoped to get a vote yesterday on the $1 trillion roads-bridges-and-broadband package and the now-$1.85 trillion Build Back Better social spending bill. Those hopes fell through as Democrats continued to lobby for changes to the Build Back Better bill. Most of the changes they are looking for would add back, at least in part, several proposals that had been previously stripped out of the bill.

What’s been added back?

After an outcry over its removal, Democrats have reintroduced a proposal to guarantee 4 weeks of paid family/medical leave. And there’s no guarantee that this re-inserted provision will make it through the Senate, with Sen. Joe Manchin (WV) having already rejected a 4-week plan.

The Democrats have also, again after much backlash, added back a proposal that would allow Medicare to negotiate for lower drug prices with pharmaceutical companies. However, this provision is considerably weaker than its earlier iterations. The proposal being floated now would only allow Medicare to negotiate the prices of 10 drugs per year starting in the year 2023, and the price reductions wouldn’t take effect until 2025. The number of negotiable drugs would at some point rise to 20 per year. And only drugs that have been on the market for 9-12 years would be negotiable.

There would be some good news for Medicare beneficiaries. Firstly, the price of a month’s supply of insulin would be capped at $35. Secondly, the yearly cost of prescriptions under Medicare Part D would be capped at $2000 per recipient. These drug price negotiations are more likely to pass in the Senate. They have apparently gotten the OK from Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (AZ) who had originally torpedoed the drug negotiation bill after receiving $900,000 in campaign donations from pharmaceutical companies.

What else is in the Build Back Better bill?

At present: 

1. Childcare and eldercare support for families

2. Extended child tax credits for one year

3. Expanded insurance subsidies for the Affordable Care Act

4. Hearing coverage for Medicare recipients

5. Affordable housing funding

6. Expanded Pell grants for college tuition

7. $555 billion to incentivize greener energy options

But that’s only if Manchin doesn’t change his mind once again.

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11 states sue over Biden’s vaccine-or-test mandate for businesses

A rule requiring workers at companies with 100 or more employees to get either the vaccine or weekly tests for COVID-19 will go into effect Jan. 4. Enforcement will depend largely on complaints but there will also be some spot inspections by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Businesses could face hefty fines for every case of non-compliance. Penalties will range from $14,000 per violation to fines of $136,000 for any employer who willfully disregards the mandate.

There’s been some clarity at least in the weeks since Biden announced the new mandate. For one, businesses can choose whether to mandate the vaccine or allow for testing. Also, employees who choose to test rather than get the vaccine will have to pay for the weekly tests, unless a specific agreement exists between a company and an employee union.

State Attorneys General from Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Iowa, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming are suing in federal court, alleging the mandates are unconstitutional.

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INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Several Ethiopian rebel groups sign pact unifying against central government

In Washington, representatives of several Ethiopian military and political factions have formalized an alliance seeking the removal of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed. One of the members, the Tigrayan People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), has been waging civil war with the central government for a year. The fighting has claimed thousands of lives and displaced at least 2 million people. Human rights observers also say that war crimes have been rampant on all sides. The alliance, called United Front of Ethiopian Federalist Forces, includes the TPLF and 8 other ethno-political groups, some with armed forces, some without.

The signing comes as rebel forces are advancing on the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa, setting up a confrontation with Abiy’s central government forces. International support seems to be lining up on the side of the rebels against Abiy. The rebels say they would prefer a peaceful transition that would see Abiy leave office. But they appear prepared to fight if Abiy resists a political solution.

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