Families USA and 66 National and State Partners Send Letter of Support to Reinstate the Richardson Waiver

Families USA, along with 66 national and state partner organizations representing health care consumers, patients, workers and clinicians has submitted a letter urging Senate Leadership to support S.J.Res.82, the Congressional Review Act (CRA) Joint Resolution of Disapproval on the repeal of the Richardson Waiver.

For more than 50 years, the Richardson Waiver has required the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to seek public notice and comment on rules related to agency management, grants, benefits, contracts and loans. This bipartisan safeguard promotes transparency and ensures that people affected by federal health policies have a meaningful voice in shaping them.

In early 2025, HHS announced it would end this longstanding practice and stop soliciting public comments on a wide range of proposed rules. This change undermines transparency and weakens an evidence-based, inclusive policymaking process.

Families USA and our partners are calling on Senate Leadership to support S.J.Res.82 to restore essential checks and balances, and to keep consumers, clinicians and workers at the center of health policy decisions.