The Trump administration’s proposed budget, released today, would double the user fees medical device companies pay to have the FDA review the safety and efficacy of their products. The budget proposal would set user fees at $2 billion for 2018, about $1 billion more than the fee schedule for this year (annualized to correspond to the calendar year). In […]
Capitol Hill
Medtech stocks slump on 18% NIH cut in Trump budget plan
The Trump budget plan to slash more than 18% from the budget for the National Institutes of Health sent medical device stocks down today on Wall Street as investors reacted to the proposal. The budget proposal, released today, would cut the NIH budget by $5.8 billion, to $25.9 billion – an 18.3% cut. The proposal would […]
Trump’s pick for FDA chief faces questions over ties to drug industry
Although President Donald Trump’s nominee for FDA commissioner has won approval from lawmakers across the aisle, he is facing questions from consumer watchdog Public Citizen over his ties to the drug industry that will likely arise during his confirmation hearings. The Medical Device Manufacturer Association has voiced its approval for Scott Gottlieb, saying “Dr. Gottlieb is a […]
Senate confirms Verma to head CMS as debate intensifies over Obamacare replacement
The U.S. Senate voted yesterday 55-43 to confirm Seema Verma to head the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Verma is the founder & CEO of SVC Inc, a healthcare consulting firm, and worked with now-Vice President Mike Pence when he was governor of Indiana to redesign the state’s Medicaid program. In an earlier committee […]
Report: Gottlieb is Trump’s top pick for FDA head
Former FDA deputy commissioner Scott Gottlieb is the Trump administration’s top choice to head the agency, according to a Bloomberg report. Gottlieb has held several senior positions at the FDA during the George W. Bush administration, and has regularly spoken on plans to lower prescription drug cost through modernizing the federal watchdog’s approval process, according […]
Boston Scientific co-founder Abele: Mexico should buy Twitter to thwart Trump
John Abele, the co-founder of Boston Scientific (NYSE:BSX), joked that Mexico should buy Twitter to stop President Donald Trump’s social media attacks on the country at the Connected Patient Big Data Challenge last night. “The solution for Mexico to stop Donald from dumping on it is for them to buy Twitter. That’s innovation,” Abele said, passing along a joke […]
UPDATE: Energy & Commerce, House Ways & Means pass Trumpcare bill
The House of Representatives’ Energy & Commerce committee, as well as the Ways and Means Committee, today approved the new “Trumpcare” healthcare legislation, backed by Republicans and Donald Trump, clearing its 1st hurdle to implementation. The bill was passed by the Ways & Means Committee along party lines this morning after nearly 18 hours of […]
Tea Party hardliners, AMA strongly oppose GOP’s Obamacare replacement plan
Republican legislation that looks to dismantle and replace Obamacare is facing serious opposition from many angles, including from hardline conservatives and the American Medical Association. Republican U.S. House of Representatives leaders yesterday released their new legislation which looks to eliminate Obama’s Affordable Care Act, including the medical device tax. The plan would also eliminate more than […]
House GOP healthcare plan would kill the medical device tax
A plan to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act floated by Republicans yesterday – which critics have already dubbed “Trumpcare” or “Obamacare Lite” – would permanently repeal the medical device tax effective Jan. 1, 2018. A hold on the 2.3% tax on U.S. medical device sales went into effect at the beginning of 2016 and is slated […]
Senate panel confirms Verma as CMS chief
The U.S. Senate’s Finance Committee yesterday approved Seema Verma as head of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, after the panel deadlocked at 9-9 earlier this week. The panel of 14 Republicans and 12 Democrats voted along party lines in the 13-12 vote to send the nomination to the full Senate; Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.) did […]
Tie forces 2nd Senate Finance vote on CMS nominee Verma
A tie vote yesterday by the U.S. Senate’s Finance Committee on Seema Verma, the nominee to head the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, reportedly prompted the panel to schedule another ballot today. The finance panel deadlocked at 9-9 yesterday on whether to pass Verma’s nomination on to the full Senate for a confirmation vote; […]