The U.S. Senate voted 60-40 last night on a procedural motion for legislation to reopen the federal government. A final vote may happen as early as today, and will be followed with a vote in the House later this week.

The agreement will fund parts of the government for the remainder of the fiscal year (through next September), while most of the government will operate only on a short-term continuing resolution (CR) through January 30, 2026. Eight Senate Democrats agreed to this deal on the promise of Senate Republicans holding a vote on extension of the enhanced ACA health insurance subsidies next month; however, there is no guarantee this will pass the Senate or even be taken up for a vote in the House. It's possible that if an extension of the ACA subsidies does not happen that Senate Democrats would once again force a shutdown when the CR through January expires.

The agreement includes full funding for three of the twelve appropriations bills: MilCon-VA, Agriculture and the Legislative Branch; it does not include the Labor-HHS appropriations bill, where Argentum’s policy priorities are primarily located. The package would also reverse the terminations of federal employees that occurred during the shutdown and would prevent future layoffs through January 30.

The federal government shut down on Wednesday, after lawmakers were unable to come to an agreement on a funding bill. To help you understand what the shutdown means for older adults, their families, and assisted living communities, Argentum published this article along with the below information.

Only federal services are impacted. The current federal government shutdown impacts federal government services only, not state, county or local services. Each federal agency has prepared its own contingency plan outlining which staff are considered essential and which are non-essential. These plans also specify which operations will continue.

It is unclear how long the shutdown will last. Any funding bill requires 60 votes to advance. However, Republicans hold only 53 seats in the Senate, meaning they have to secure at least seven Democratic votes while keeping every Republican on board. The Senate will meet again on Friday but it is unlikely to end the impending shutdown.

(Read more for a list of frequently asked questions).

This afternoon, the U.S. House of Representatives voted 218-214 to pass H.R. 1, the budget reconciliation package to advance major parts of the Trump administration agenda. The package was passed without changes from the Senate-passed version, and will go to President Trump to be signed into law for an expected July 4 signing ceremony tomorrow.

As we noted previously, the legislation does not directly impact Medicaid assisted living programs. Argentum has actively advocated against any cuts to Medicaid assisted living and successfully defeated reductions to the Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP), which could have drastically reduced Medicaid spending and potentially impacted assisted living. As the legislation is implemented, Argentum will be working directly with our State Partners to ensure that state-level reforms do not impact assisted living programs or participants.

The final package also includes a tax deduction for seniors of $6,000 for individuals and $12,000 for couples. The deduction phases out beginning at $75,000 ($150,000 for couples) and completely at $175,000 ($250,000 for couples). The deduction is set to expire in 2028. While this measure is not the targeted long-term care tax credit Argentum sought, it will help to offset some long-term care expenses to increase access and affordability of care. We will continue to advocate for the bipartisan Credit for Caring Act (H.R. 2036 and S. 925) to provide a $5,000 tax credit specific for long-term care expenses as a separate measure this Congress.

Argentum also worked with a broad coalition to successfully secure a measure to allow tax-exempt distributions from 529 savings plans to be used for workforce development purposes, including credentialing programs. Argentum has advocated for this concept through the Freedom to Invest in Tomorrow’s Workforce Act (H.R. 1151 & S. 756) to help senior living workers seeking to advance their career through various credentialing programs.

Other notable provisions of the legislation include:

The U.S. House of Representatives is planning to vote as early as today on H.R. 1, after the Senate voted 51-50 yesterday to pass the budget reconciliation package to advance major parts of the Trump administration agenda. If passed by the House, it will go to President Trump to be signed into law; however, if amended, it will need to go back to the Senate again or potentially to be conferenced with the Senate version.

Vice President J.D. Vance cast the tie-breaking vote in the Senate yesterday, after three Republican Senators voted against the bill, Senators Rand Paul (R-KY), Thom Tillis (R-NC), and Susan Collins (R-ME). Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) made a late decision to support passage of the bill after winning numerous concessions from Republican leadership, but noted she expects the House to make further changes to continue negotiations with the Senate.

Importantly, the Senate-passed bill does not impact Medicaid assisted living programs. This has been a top policy priority of Argentum and we have been working closely with policymakers to ensure they understood the critical importance of this program and potential harm to seniors who participate in the program if cuts were imposed.

The House Ways & Means and Energy & Commerce committees are holding hearings this afternoon on their respective portions of the "One Big Beautiful Bill," the budget reconciliation package to advance major portions of the Trump administration agenda. Both hearings begin at 2:00 p.m. ET on Tuesday, May 13, 2025.

The proposal includes significant Medicaid reforms that would reduce federal spending by roughly $715 billion over ten years. This is done by reducing the Federal matching funds ("FMAP"), implementing work requirements for "able-bodied" adults, adding more frequent eligibility checks, limiting the ability of states to use provider taxes to finance their portion of Medicaid expenses, and imposing cost sharing for Medicaid expansion enrollees who earn 100%-133% of the federal poverty level. However, it does not include per capita caps for states as many lawmakers have sought. Importantly, the package does not make cuts to Medicaid assisted living programs and Argentum will continue to advocate throughout this process against cuts that would harm access to care for seniors.

Major elements of the package include:

This morning, the House voted 216-214 to pass H.Con.Res.14. With the Senate's passage of the bill on Saturday by a vote of 51-48, the two chambers may now formally begin the budget reconciliation process to advance major parts of the Trump Administration agenda, with a goal to complete the process before June.

The resolution provides instructions for Congressional committees to advance portions of the package, which includes a permanent renewal of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act along with immigration and border security, energy and defense policies. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) agreed to seek at least $1.5 trillion in spending cuts to safety-net programs in the final package, along with a minimum of $4 billion in savings identified by committees that handle agriculture, nutrition and housing, energy, health, education, and labor policy.

Argentum sent a letter this week to Acting Social Security Administration (SSA) Commissioner Leland Dudek about recent changes that could impact the ability of seniors residing in senior living communities to receive their Social Security benefits.

Starting next Monday, April 14, the SSA will implement updated identity verification procedures intended to enhance security and combat fraud. The SSA will require individuals to prove their identity if applying for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI), Medicare, or Supplemental Security Income (SSI) or changing direct deposit information for existing benefits.

At noon today, Donald Trump will take the oath of office for his second term as President. The incoming administration is expected to focus its initial attention at immigration and border security, the economy (including renewal of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and imposing tariffs), and rolling back Biden-era regulations, with a slew of executive orders anticipated this week. In advance of his inauguration, Argentum sent the incoming president a letter today outlining our priorities.

President-elect Donald Trump has announced nearly two-dozen key appointments to the incoming administration, including for roles that will have direct and indirect oversight of public policies facing senior living communities, residents, and caregivers.

The nominees are due to face confirmation hearings in Congress in the New Year; however, the president-elect has suggested bypassing the advice and consent role of Congress for his political nominees through the use of recess appointments. This would require the Senate to vote for a recess, instead of their more typical “pro forma” legislative sessions as they have largely done since 2014 when the Supreme Court ruled that the Senate must be out of session for 10 days for a president to make recess appointments.

The president does have limited powers to force a Congressional recess that could allow for recess appointments without the Senate's approval; those appointments would last through the remainder of the Congressional session (December 2026). The incoming Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) indicated he would be open to recess appointments for more controversial nominees.

Key nominees include: