by Abby Pinkele

The most recent unofficial information we’ve gathered from the Hill indicates the Senate Labor, Health, and Human Services (LHHS) Appropriations Subcommittee will begin consideration of the Fiscal Year 2013 (FY13) LHHS bill on June 12. We expect the bill to move to the full Senate Appropriations Committee for a markup on June 14. The final bill will not be taken up by the full Senate until after the election in November, if at all. More likely, it will be rolled into a year-end omnibus appropriations bill.   

The Subcommittee mark-up on June 12 will be a key day as that will be the first marker on a specific funding level for the Health Centers program for FY2013. In addition, once the full Committee acts, we should also see a committee report, possibly indicating how the Subcommittee intends for health center funding to be spent in the coming year.  

As a reminder, for FY13 we are asking Senators to support a total funding level of $3.1 billion for health centers. This represents a $300 million increase from the FY12 funding level.

We are also asking Senators to urge the Subcommittee to ensure the entire $300 million increase is used immediately to address the demand for access to primary care services provided in health centers, which would provide for the expansion of care to 2.5 million new patients.

We will continue to monitor for the official notice from the LHHS Subcommittee on the exact timing of the markup. In the meantime, members can weigh in with their Senators who serve on the Appropriations Committee by clicking here.