[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 4]
[Senate]
[Pages 5381-5382]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        TRIBUTE TO RICH RIMKUNAS

  Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, I am pleased to pay tribute to a fine 
public servant and an incredible asset to the U.S. Congress.
  Rich Rimkunas has had a career filled with outstanding achievement at 
the Congressional Research Service, CSR. After nearly 37 years of 
service, Rich will be retiring from CRS on Friday, April 28.
  When Rich joined CRS in 1980, he was an analyst working on a broad 
array of social policy issues. Initially, he worked on issues like 
child nutrition, poverty, Social Security, social services for the 
aged, and unemployment insurance. Rich cocreated and coauthored a 
widely circulated CRS report on Federal social welfare spending. He was 
also a coauthor and contributor to several chapters in the House Ways 
and Means Committee print ``Children in Poverty,'' which provided a 
detailed look at the incidence and characteristics of child poverty in 
the United States.
  Rich ultimately became heavily involved in providing research and 
analytical support to Congress on many health policy issues, including 
analyses of aggregate national health expenditures, the Medicare 
hospital prospective payment system, the Medicare Advantage program, 
and Medicare catastrophic drug costs. Additionally, he has worked on 
numerous issues related to Medicaid. He both directed a team of CRS 
analysts as well as contributed his own analysis to the Medicaid 
``Yellow Book,'' a 1988 House Ways and Means Committee print that 
provided a comprehensive analysis of the Medicaid program as it existed 
at the time. Rich also managed the 1993 update of the ``Yellow Book.''
  Rich's analyses have typically involved quantitative research 
methodologies, modeling techniques, and the use of complex databases. 
Rich has excelled at developing approaches for simulating the effects 
of potential changes to Federal benefits and grant allocation formulas.
  In addition to the direct impact his research and analytical work has 
had on Federal policies, Rich has made equally important contributions 
within CRS in managerial roles. During his tenure at CRS, he has served 
as section research manager of the methodology section, the research 
development section, the research development and income support 
section, and the hea1th insurance and financing section. During his 
tenure as an SRM, Rich helped manage CRS work on the 1996 welfare 
reform law and the 2003 overhaul of Medicare in the Medicare 
Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act. Rich helped 
manage an interdisciplinary team numbering about 3 dozen CRS analysts 
that provided legislative support during the passage of the Affordable 
Care Act.
  Throughout his career, Rich has served as a role model for the 
highest level of CRS service to Congress, upholding the Service's 
standards of authoritativeness, objectivity, and confidentiality. He is 
known within CRS for his attention to detail, methodological strength, 
and creative approaches toward conducting analyses. His input is sought 
on a great many research efforts spanning virtually all of the major 
domestic social policy issue areas that Congress deals with.
  Rich is renowned for his tremendous work ethic and energizing 
presence. Those who have worked closely with him appreciate his ability 
to keep his sense of humor even during the most stressful times.
  In recent years, Rich has served as the deputy assistant director of 
CRS's domestic social policy division. In that role, he has mentored 
and helped develop many of the division's managers, analysts, and 
research assistants. He has also played a central role in reviewing 
written work produced by the division, helping to ensure its accuracy, 
completeness, and quality. Moreover, in his work as a division manager, 
Rich has served on numerous advisory panels that have recommended 
organizational practices and policies for CRS, many of which have been 
adopted.
  Rich's policy expertise has been broadly recognized. He is regularly 
sought for his expertise at professional meetings and conferences. He 
was nominated to the National Academy of Social Insurance in 2002 and 
has served on the steering committee of the National Health Forum. He 
has also been recognized with numerous Library of Congress special 
achievement awards.
  Rich has devoted nearly his entire distinguished professional career 
to supporting the work of Congress and to helping build and strengthen 
CRS and advance its mission.
  We will miss Rich, but we wish him and his family the best of luck 
moving forward.

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