United States 119th Congress Status: In Committee 36 D cosponsors

HR 608 — COVER Now Act

Last action — Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. 2
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed House
  4. 4
    Passed Senate
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill is in committee in the House. Introduced January 22, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.

Next likely step: a committee vote, then a floor vote in the House.

Odds of enactment

Low chance

Based on the sponsor, cosponsors, and committee posture, this bill has a low chance of becoming law.

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A statistical estimate from our own model of past outcomes — an insight, not a guarantee. Policymaking is volatile.

Prognosis

Stalled 26% · moderate confidence

  • In Committee

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 36 sponsors

    1 primary, 35 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Single-party support

    Sponsorship is currently within one party (36 D).

Based on stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes, and cross-state momentum — a description of the observable signals, not a prediction.

In plain language

HR 608 aims to address energy and commerce issues.

HR 608 was introduced in the House to tackle important matters related to energy and commerce. It is currently under review by a committee.

Summary

Cover Outstanding Vulnerable Expansion-eligible Residents Now Act or the COVER Now Act This bill establishes a demonstration program to allow local governments to provide health benefits to the Medicaid expansion population in states that have not expanded Medicaid. Under the program, local governments may provide coverage for individuals who are newly eligible for Medicaid under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (i.e., the Medicaid expansion population) for a maximum of 10 years, or until their respective states expand Medicaid. The bill provides a 100% federal matching rate for the first three years of program participation. The bill prohibits states from taking certain actions against participating localities, such as withholding funding, increasing taxes, or restricting provider participation. States that violate these requirements are subject to certain funding penalties.

Bill Text

How this bill changes current law

8 changes Share ↗

AI-generated reading aid from the bill's amendatory text — verify against the official bill.

The bill introduces a demonstration project in Medicaid targeting political subdivisions of states to provide medical assistance for individuals eligible under Medicaid expansion.

  • Section 1902

    provide, at the option of the qualifying political subdivisions of a State, for a demonstration project described in subsection (uu).

    Allows certain political subdivisions to opt into a demonstration project for Medicaid expansion.

  • Section 1902

    Demonstration Project for Political Subdivisions of States To Provide Medical Assistance for Expansion Population.--

    Establishes a specific section for the new demonstration project aimed at Medicaid expansion.

  • Section 1902(uu)

    The Secretary shall conduct a demonstration project under which the Secretary shall, subject to paragraph (9), select qualifying political subdivisions described in paragraph (2) to provide, in accordance with the requirements of this subsection, medical assistance for individuals described in subclause (VIII) of subsection (a)(10)(A)(i).

    Initiates a federally-managed demonstration project focusing on eligible individuals under Medicaid in select political subdivisions.

  • Section 1902(uu)(2)

    The Secretary may waive the requirements of paragraphs (1) and (5) of subsection (a) relating to statewideness and relating to single state agency, respectively.

    Grants the Secretary the authority to waive certain state Medicaid requirements for participating subdivisions.

  • Section 1902(uu)(4)(A)

    Subject to subparagraph (B), a qualifying political subdivision selected to participate in the demonstration project under this subsection or partnership described in paragraph (3)(B) shall provide medical assistance for individuals described in subclause (VIII) of subsection (a)(10)(A)(i) for seven years.

    Specifies the duration of medical assistance provision for selected political subdivisions under the project.

  • Section 1902(uu)(5)(A)

    The Secretary shall pay a participating political subdivision the Federal matching percentage specified in subparagraph (B) for amounts expended by such political subdivision to provide medical assistance for individuals described in subclause (VIII) of subsection (a)(10)(A)(i).

    Details the federal funding mechanism for the expenditures of political subdivisions participating in the project.

  • Section 1902(uu)(6)

    The medical assistance made available by a participating political subdivision to individuals described in subclause (VIII) of subsection (a)(10)(A)(i) shall consist of coverage described in subsection (k)(1).

    Defines the required health benefit coverage for individuals aided through the demonstration project.

  • Section 1902(uu)(7)(A)

    In the case of a State that does any of the prohibited items described in subparagraph (B), the Secretary shall withhold from the amount otherwise payable under section 1903 an amount equal to 25 percent of the amount of administrative costs under the State plan under title XIX during a calendar.

    Introduces financial penalties for states that restrict or undermine the establishment of the demonstration projects.

Action History

  1. Introduced in House

  2. Introduced in House

  3. Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 35 co-sponsors · 511 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (35)

Not signed on (511)

511 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 511 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

healthcare health-insurance
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

What does HR 608 do?
Cover Outstanding Vulnerable Expansion-eligible Residents Now Act or the COVER Now Act This bill establishes a demonstration program to allow local governments to provide health benefits to the Medicaid expansion population in states that have not expanded Medicaid. Under the program, local governments may provide coverage for individuals who are newly eligible for Medicaid under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (i.e., the Medicaid expansion population) for a maximum of 10 years, or until their respective states expand Medicaid. The bill provides a 100% federal matching rate for the first three years of program participation. The bill prohibits states from taking certain actions against participating localities, such as withholding funding, increasing taxes, or restricting provider participation. States that violate these requirements are subject to certain funding penalties.
Who sponsors HR 608?
HR 608 is sponsored by Doggett, Lloyd (Democratic), Bishop, Sanford D. (Democratic), Casar, Greg (Democratic), Castor, Kathy (Democratic), Castro, Joaquin (Democratic), Cohen, Steve (Democratic), Clyburn, James E. (Democratic), Cuellar, Henry (Democratic), Escobar, Veronica (Democratic), Figures, Shomari (Democratic), Fletcher, Lizzie (Democratic), Frankel, Lois (Democratic), Garcia, Sylvia R. (Democratic), Green, Al (Democratic), Johnson, Henry C. "Hank" (Democratic), Johnson, Julie (Democratic), McBath, Lucy (Democratic), Cherfilus-McCormick, Sheila (Democratic), Scott, David (Democratic), Sewell, Terri A. (Democratic), Soto, Darren (Democratic), Thompson, Bennie G. (Democratic), Turner, Sylvester (Democratic), Veasey, Marc A. (Democratic), Wasserman Schultz, Debbie (Democratic), Williams, Nikema (Democratic), Wilson, Frederica S. (Democratic), Adams, Alma S. (Democratic), Cleaver, Emanuel (Democratic), Connolly, Gerald E. (Democratic), Norton, Eleanor Holmes (Democratic), Raskin, Jamie (Democratic), Crockett, Jasmine (Democratic), Frost, Maxwell (Democratic), DeSaulnier, Mark (Democratic), and Gonzalez, Vicente (Democratic).
What is the current status of HR 608?
This bill is in committee in the House. Introduced January 22, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.
Where can I track HR 608?
Track HR 608 free on One Click Politics — get push/email alerts when it moves.

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