Government Budget Bridge Passes: Funding Set Until November 21, Plus Extensions for Telehealth and VA Benefits

This massive piece of legislation, officially the Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act, 2026, is basically the federal government’s temporary budget bridge. It’s designed to keep the lights on and the checks flowing into fiscal year 2026 until Congress can nail down a final, full-year spending plan. The key takeaway is that most government operations—from national parks to federal employee pay—will continue at their current rate until November 21, 2025 (Division A, Sec. 106).

The Federal Freeze: No New Projects Allowed

For the average taxpayer, the most important part of this continuing resolution is what doesn’t happen. The bill is built on the principle of “keep things going minimally” (Division A, Sec. 110). This means federal agencies are generally prohibited from launching new projects or activities that weren’t already funded in fiscal year 2025 (Division A, Sec. 104). Think of it like this: if you were already building a new highway off-ramp, you can keep working on it, but you can’t start planning a brand new one with this temporary cash. This is designed to prevent agencies from locking in spending priorities before the full budget is debated.

There are specific handcuffs placed on the Department of Defense (DoD). They cannot use this money to start new production lines, increase production rates beyond what was already funded in 2025, or begin multi-year procurements (Division A, Sec. 102). For defense contractors, this means a pause button on new contracts and a strict cap on current growth. For example, the Air Force gets a specific carve-out of $199,676,000 for the E7 Wedgetail program, but this is strictly for continued rapid prototyping, not for starting the next generation of aircraft (Division A, Sec. 123).

Critical Lifelines Extended: Healthcare and Veterans

If you or someone you know relies on federal health or veterans’ programs, this bill provides a vital, if short, extension. Numerous critical deadlines that were set to expire on September 30, 2025, are now pushed back to November 21, 2025 (Division C, Titles I, II, and III; Division D, all Titles).

• Healthcare Access: Funding for Community Health Centers, the National Health Service Corps (which places doctors in underserved areas), and Teaching Health Centers is extended (Division C, Sec. 101). This prevents a sudden funding cliff for millions of people who rely on these facilities for primary care.
• Medicare Stability: Key Medicare payment programs are extended to November 22, 2025, including higher payments for low-volume hospitals and Medicare-Dependent Hospitals (Division C, Sec. 201, 202). This short extension is crucial for rural hospitals that rely on these adjustments to keep their doors open.
• Telehealth: The temporary flexibilities that made telehealth easier—like the ability to use audio-only services and the delay of in-person requirements for mental health—are extended until November 21, 2025 (Division C, Sec. 207). If you’ve been accessing therapy or routine check-ups via video or phone, this keeps that option open for a few more weeks.
• VA Services: Nearly every expiring VA authority is extended to November 21, 2025. This includes the authority to collect copayments, provide nursing home care, and run the Staff Sergeant Parker Gordon Fox Suicide Prevention Grant Program (Division D, Sec. 101, 102, 103). For veterans, this means continuity for housing assistance, disability evaluations, and the VA’s ability to transport veterans to and from facilities (Division D, Sec. 303, 203, 402).

The Fine Print on OTC Drugs and Budgeting

One of the most significant long-term changes buried in this temporary bill is the reauthorization of the FDA’s user fee program for over-the-counter (OTC) monograph drugs through fiscal year 2030 (Division C, Title V). This means the fees drug manufacturers pay will continue to fund the FDA’s review of common nonprescription drugs like antacids and pain relievers. The bill also requires the FDA to be more transparent about how it reviews these drugs, including new requirements to consider “real world evidence” for topical drugs and alternatives to animal testing for sunscreens (Division C, Sec. 506).

Finally, the bill includes a technical but important provision that excludes the financial effects of all these extensions (Divisions B through D) from standard budget enforcement rules (Division E, Sec. 101). This is a common practice in continuing resolutions, but it means the costs associated with extending all those healthcare and VA programs won’t count against the usual 'pay-as-you-go' scorecards, essentially allowing them to be enacted without triggering automatic cuts elsewhere.