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One leading contender is reserving the technique, which short circuits filibusters in the Senate by letting tax and spending bills pass with a majority vote, to move any legislative response needed to a Supreme Court decision unraveling the Affordable Care Act. The court is expected to decide the case, King v. Burwell, in late June. The court is considering complaints that the law does not permit the administration to provide health insurance subsidies in states that did not set up their own exchanges. A ruling against the administration could cut off financial assistance to as many as 8 million Americans, creating chaos in the program and demanding a quick legislative fix from Congress. (Faler, 3/11)

Doctors hail many of these [specialty drugs] as breakthroughs, since they can conquer or control diseases that were once almost untreatable. But they can cost more than $80,000 for a single course of treatment .... Legislatures in Connecticut, Massachusetts and Illinois, among other states, are considering bills that would limit prescription drug costs for patients. Six states, including New York and Maryland, have already passed such measures. Rep. David McKinley, a Republican from West Virginia, will soon introduce a bill for Congress to consider. Some of these bills and laws restrict overall drug costs to patients, while others target specialty medications with measures that aim to keep their costs more in line with other drugs. (Murphy, 3/11)

Sen. Cory A. Booker (D., N.J.) joined with Sens. Rand Paul (R., Ky.) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D., N.Y.) Tuesday to announce a bipartisan bill to lift federal restrictions against medical marijuana.The legislation would remove the specter of federal prosecution in the 23 states that have medical marijuana programs - including New Jersey - and any others that may be considering one. Washington, D.C., also has a program, and a dozen other states have laws permitting patients to buy Cannabidiol, an ingredient in cannabis that does not produce a high but has been reported to be effective in curbing seizures and treating epilepsy. (Hefler, 3/10)

A bipartisan group of U.S. senators who want to loosen federal medical marijuana laws shouldn't expect support soon from Iowa's senior senator. Republican Rand Paul of Kentucky and Democrats Kirsten Gillibrand of New York and Corey Booker of New Jersey introduced a bill this week that would make it easier for people to use state medical marijuana programs without worrying about facing federal charges. (Leys, 3/11)

A Senate blowup over a bill to crack down on human trafficking marks Republicans' latest attempt to expand the reach of language inserted in various spending bills to bar federally-funded abortions — a gambit that has landed the GOP in hot water before. Lawmakers agreed to consider a bipartisan trafficking bill (S 178) Monday, with Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., vowing to work with Democrats to advance the measure. But efforts quickly derailed Tuesday when abortion rights supporters discovered that the contentious language was tucked into the underlying bill. (Zanona, 3/11)