The actuary for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services predicted that the healthcare law repeal-and-replace bill that cleared the U.S. House last month will mean 10 million fewer uninsured than forecast by the Congressional Budget Office. In May the CBO estimated that the so-called Trumpcare bill would mean 23 million people would lack health […]
Capitol Hill
Senate drug price hearing turns into debate over healthcare reform
Members of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committee gathered last week to discuss the rising costs of prescription drugs. But the hearing quickly morphed into a heated back-and-forth between senators over the Republican’s efforts to reform healthcare. When you need to get quick access to money, no fee loans are one of the […]
These medical device companies are holding the most cash offshore
Several medical device companies are among the S&P 500 companies that have parked nearly $1 trillion in cash overseas. The list of the 50 companies with the most cash offshore, compiled by Bloomberg, comes as Capitol Hill mulls a tax reform plan that would in part encourage companies to repatriate that money. During last year’s […]
House panel advances user fee bill
A U.S. House panel yesterday advanced the Lower Chamber’s version of the bill to reauthorize the user fee deal between the medical device and drug industries and the FDA. Medical device and drug companies pay user fees to have the FDA review their products. The last Medical Device User Fee Act in 2012 doubled user fees from $295 […]
Trump admin spares NIH director Collins
The Trump administration will be keeping on Obama-appointed NIH director Francis Collins, according to a report from The Hill. The decision comes after 4 key Republicans urged Trump to keep him in his role in a letter sent last December, which stated that “his distinguished scientific experience, effective leadership skills, and long standing relationships with […]
Senate GOP to write new healthcare bill during recess
Senate Republicans, said to be dispirited over their party’s failure to enact its own version of healthcare reform despite holding the White House and both chambers of Congress, reportedly plan to write their own healthcare legislation over the Memorial Day recess. Budget committee chairman Sen. Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.), along with Sens. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and Orrin […]
CBO: Trumpcare bill cuts deficit, but millions would lose insurance
An estimated 23 million people would lose their health insurance by 2026 under Republican legislation to repeal and replace Obamacare, according to a non-partisan Congressional Budget Office report released yesterday. The CBO said that the so-called “Trumpcare” bill, which narrowly passed by U.S. House earlier this month, would also reduce federal deficits by $119 billion between 2017 and […]
Trump proposes deep cuts to Medicaid, NIH funding
President Donald Trump’s proposed budget would slash Medicaid funding and cut support for major biomedical research programs at the National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention. The budget blueprint drew condemnation from healthcare advocates and lawmakers from both sides of the aisle. Senate majority whip Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) reportedly said earlier […]
US House to send Trumpcare bill to senate in coming weeks, Speaker Ryan “cautious” about CBO score
The US House of Representatives will send its ‘Trumpcare’ bill on to Senate and the next step towards passage in a few weeks, US House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) said today. The delay on moving the bill forward was “out of an abundance of caution,” Ryan said during a radio interview, as the Congressional Budget […]
New FDA commish extends time for comments on off-label communication rules
Under the agency’s new commissioner, Dr. Scott Gottlieb, the FDA has reportedly extended the time for comments in its review of off-label communication rules. In the past, Gottlieb has advocated for off-label uses of medical products, arguing that doctors are adequately trained to make decisions in the best interest of their patients. The FDA maintains […]
HHS chief Price: Cut FDA’s budget and hike user fees
Secretary of Health and Human Services Tom Price penned a letter to Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) asking the Senate Health, Education, Labor & Pensions committee to consider increasing user fees that the medical device and drug industries pay to the FDA, while slashing the agency’s budget. “To ensure the FDA has the critical resources needed […]