APMA News - January/February 2018 - 40

Federal Advocacy Forum
By Patrick A. DeHeer, DPM

When a Bill Goes to Conference Committee
The legislative process can be confusing at best to the casual
observer. Because of the significant legislative progress APMA
has made on the VA Provider Equity Act (HR 1058/S 1871) and
the potential for similar progress on the Helping Ensure Lifeand Limb-Saving Access to Podiatric Physicians (HELLPP) Act
(HR 1533/S 1542) in this congressional cycle, this article focuses on what it means when a bill goes to a conference committee.
Senate.gov defines a conference committee as "a temporary,
ad hoc panel composed of House and Senate conferees which is
formed for the purpose of reconciling differences in legislation that
has passed both chambers. Conference committees are usually convened to resolve bicameral differences on major and controversial
legislation."1
Often, the House and Senate pass different versions of the
same bill. The bills are sent to conference to develop a bill that
is a compromise of both versions. The ultimate goal is passage
of a bill with the same language in both the House and Senate.
The amended bill is then presented to the president.
Each body determines how many committee members
will represent it. This number does not have to be equal.
Once the committee has reached a consensus on the language

of the bill, the members must sign a conference report indicating their support for the amended bill. The amended bill
goes to the ﬂoor of both the House and Senate for a vote. The
bill can no longer be amended after the conference committee convenes.
The VA Provider Equity Act (HR 1058/S 1871) appears to
be headed to conference as of press time. APMA has prepared
for this step in the legislative process, working closely with
sponsors in both the House and the Senate, and looks forward
to passage of the VA Provider Equity Act. This legislation will
improve access to care for our veterans and provide fair pay
and advancement opportunities for our colleagues serving in
the VA system.
Visit www.apma.org/federaladvocacy for updates.
n
APMA Trustee and Legislative Committee Chair Patrick A.
DeHeer, DPM, can be reached at advocacy@apma.org.
1 United States Senate, "Glossary," accessed January 16, 2018, www.
senate.gov/reference/glossary_term/conference_committee.htm.

ENSURING THE

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40 APMA News January/February 2018

http://www.Senate.gov http://www.apma.org/federaladvocacy http://www.senate.gov/reference/glossary_term/conference_committee.htm http://www.senate.gov/reference/glossary_term/conference_committee.htm http://www.apma.org/donate

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of APMA News - January/February 2018