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Many House conservatives backed the budget last month and spared GOP leaders another showdown with their right flank for one big reason: They were under the impression the spending blueprint would help them — finally — get an Obamacare repeal to the president’s desk. Now they’re concerned that Speaker John Boehner and company have other plans. (Bade, 4/27)

Deficit hawk lawmakers have found something they want to spend money on: medical research. They say they want to cure cancer and other diseases by boosting the budget for the National Institutes of Health, and they argue that investing in those cures now will save taxpayer money later by lowering health care costs over time. Spearheaded by conservatives in the Republican-controlled Congress, the unlikely campaign has the potential to unite both parties in a common cause and give the NIH its best chance at substantial budget growth in more than a decade. At stake is billions of dollars in grant money that could end up at research institutions in lawmakers’ own backyards. (Wise, 4/24)

Sources said the budget would focus on repealing Obamacare through the fast-track budgeting procedure known as reconciliation, which allows the bill to clear the Senate with just 51 votes. But it was unclear if it would specifically require only a repeal of the president’s signature health care law. House negotiators were pushing to keep their options open when it comes to how Republicans will use reconciliation. (Bade, 4/24)

Aiming to acquire more budget powers and take a swipe at Obamacare, Republicans will likely scrap a proposal that stirred controversy and helped launch Wisconsin congressman Paul Ryan on the national stage: privatizing the Medicare health program. Ryan's bold Medicare "premium support" plan would be sacrificed to ensure passage of Congress' first full budget in six years and allow Republicans a rare opportunity to use a powerful procedural tool to ease passage of other legislation. (Lawder, 4/24)

The House Energy & Commerce Committee this week is expected to unveil a revised version of controversial legislation overhauling the Food and Drug Administration's regulatory process, with a hearing scheduled for Thursday. But as of late last week, there were still unresolved issues. The 21st Century Cures Act, supported by the drug and device industries, would make sweeping changes in the regulation of drugs, devices, health information technology and telehealth. Backers say its provisions would accelerate review of new products, make promising medications and devices available to the public faster, and significantly cut costs associated with product development. (Tahir, 4/25)