Content created by Office of Budget (OB)
Topics on this page: Summary of Activities that Continue | Summary of Activities that will Not Continue | Summary of Contingency Staffing Plan
Summary of Activities that Continue
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Medicare Program will continue during a lapse in appropriations. Other non-discretionary activities including Health Care Fraud and Abuse Control and Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation activities will also continue. CMS will have sufficient funding for Medicaid to fund the first two quarters of FY 2026, based on the advance appropriation provided for in the Full-Year Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act, 2025 and section 111 of the Continuing Appropriations, Agriculture, Legislative Branch, Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, and Extensions Act, 2026. CMS will maintain the staff necessary to make payments to eligible states for the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP). CMS will continue Federal Marketplace activities, such as eligibility verification, using Federal Marketplace user fee carryover.
Summary of Activities That will Not Continue
List of Activities That Will Not Continue under a Lapse:
Health Care Facility Survey and Certification: CMS survey and certification activities would focus on complaint investigations alleging the most serious incidents of resident or patient harm. Other survey activities, such as recertification surveys (including direct federal surveys such as organ procurement organizations), initial surveys, less serious complaint investigations, and federal monitoring surveys would be suspended until funding is restored.
Although contract oversight will continue, contractual awards and other obligation types using discretionary funding will not be completed. Essential contracts of excepted programs will be vetted through OGC for further direction.
Summary of Contingency Staffing Plan
5,733 (100%) of CMS staff will be retained as exempt.
Exempt Staff:
A total of 5,733 (100%) CMS staff will be exempt. CMS employees are funded from a variety of non-discretionary funding sources, such as those funded from the Health Care Fraud and Abuse Control Program, Quality Improvement Organizations, and Inflation Reduction Act, as well as user fees.
Excepted Staff:
N/A