What You Need to Know About the Drug Price Fight in Those TV Ads
At least nine bills introduced in Congress take aim at pharmacy benefit managers, the powerful middlemen that channel prescription drugs to patients.
U.S. Congress
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A Year Without Roe
Episode 304It鈥檚 been a year since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and, with it, the nationwide right to abortion. The decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women鈥檚 Health Organization set off widespread uncertainty in government and the courts about the legality or illegality of the procedure. But the decision has had other consequences too, including affecting where health professionals choose to locate. In this special episode of 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 鈥淲hat the Health?鈥 Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Shefali Luthra of The 19th, and Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call join 麻豆女优 Health News chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews 麻豆女优鈥檚 Alina Salganicoff about the organization鈥檚 research and other work on women鈥檚 health policy over the past year.
Slow Your Disenroll
Episode 302More than a million Americans have lost Medicaid coverage since pandemic protections ended. The Biden administration is asking states to slow disenrollment, but that does not mean states must listen. Meanwhile, a Supreme Court decision gives Medicaid beneficiaries the right to sue over their care, and a new deal preserves coverage of preventive services nationwide as a Texas court case continues. Rachel Cohrs of Stat, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, and Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call join 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Mary Agnes Carey to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner interviews Dan Mendelson, CEO of Morgan Health, a new unit of JPMorgan Chase, about employers鈥 role in insurance coverage.
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How the Mixed Messaging of Vaccine Skeptics Sows Seeds of Doubt
Some GOP members of the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic have two-stepped around vaccine skepticism, proclaiming themselves to be pro-vaccine while also validating the beliefs of people who oppose vaccine mandates. The result could have serious public health consequences.
By Darius Tahir Debt Deal Leaves Health Programs (Mostly) Intact
Episode 301The bipartisan deal to extend the U.S. government鈥檚 borrowing authority includes future cuts to federal health agencies, but they are smaller than many expected and do not touch Medicare and Medicaid. Meanwhile, Merck & Co. becomes the first drugmaker to sue Medicare officials over the federal health insurance program鈥檚 new authority to negotiate drug prices. Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico, Lauren Weber of The Washington Post, and Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call join 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 chief Washington correspondent, Julie Rovner, to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews 麻豆女优 Health News senior correspondent Sarah Jane Tribble, who reported the latest 麻豆女优 Health News-NPR 鈥淏ill of the Month鈥 feature, about the perils of visiting the U.S. with European health insurance.
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The Debt Ceiling Deal Takes a Bite Out of Health Programs. It Could Have Been Much Worse.
A bipartisan deal to raise the government鈥檚 borrowing limit dashed Republican hopes for new Medicaid work requirements and other health spending cuts. Democrats secured the compromise by making relatively modest concessions, including ordering the return of unspent covid funds and limiting other health spending.
By Julie Rovner When an Anti-Vaccine Activist Runs for President
Episode 299Robert F. Kennedy Jr.鈥檚 official entry into the presidential race poses a thorny challenge for journalists: how to cover a candidate who鈥檚 opposed to vaccines without amplifying misinformation. And South Carolina becomes the latest state in the South to ban abortion after roughly six weeks of pregnancy. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Rachel Cohrs of Stat, and Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet join 麻豆女优 Health News chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews 麻豆女优 Health News senior correspondent Aneri Pattani about her project to track the billions of dollars coming from opioid makers to settle lawsuits.
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Abortion Bans Are Driving Off Doctors and Closing Clinics, Putting Basic Health Care at Risk
Doctors say they are reluctant to practice in abortion-banned states, where making the best decision for a patient could run afoul of the law. Even former President Donald Trump鈥檚 surgeon general is concerned about the repercussions for women鈥檚 health, writes 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 chief Washington correspondent, Julie Rovner.
By Julie Rovner -
Are US Prescription Drug Prices 10 Times Those of Other Nations? Only Sometimes
Sen. Bernie Sanders鈥 broad statement that some U.S. drug prices are 10 times those of other nations doesn鈥檛 paint the full picture. Studies we examined generally found that U.S. prices were two to four times those in other countries, not 10.
The Abortion Pill Goes Back to Court
Episode 298A three-judge appeals court panel heard testimony this week about revoking the FDA鈥檚 22-year-old approval of a key pill used in medication abortion and miscarriage management. The judges all have track records of siding with abortion foes. Meanwhile, as the standoff over raising the federal debt ceiling continues in Washington, a major sticking point is whether to impose work requirements on recipients of Medicaid coverage. Victoria Knight of Axios, Rachel Roubein of The Washington Post, and Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call join 麻豆女优 Health News chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more.
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PBMs, the Brokers Who Control Drug Prices, Finally Get Washington鈥檚 Attention
Drugmakers, pharmacies, and physicians blame pharmacy benefit managers for high drug prices. Congress is finally on board, too, but will it matter?
By Arthur Allen -
Republicans Vow Not to Cut Veterans鈥 Benefits. But the Legislation Suggests Otherwise.
Sparing veterans and defense spending, as Republicans promise, would be extremely difficult, requiring cuts of more than 20% in other parts of the budget. The Republicans鈥 Limit, Save, Grow Act already proposes a $2 billion cut to the Department of Veterans Affairs by taking back unspent covid relief funding.
Dancing Under the Debt Ceiling
Episode 295House Republicans passed their plan to raise the nation鈥檚 debt ceiling, along with major cuts to health (and other domestic) programs. Unlikely to become law, it calls for new work requirements for adults on Medicaid. Meanwhile, state efforts targeting trans people bear a striking resemblance to the fight against abortion rights. Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call, Shefali Luthra of The 19th, and Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet join 麻豆女优 Health News chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Renuka Rayasam, who reported the latest 麻豆女优 Health News-NPR 鈥淏ill of the Month鈥 feature, about a specialist鈥檚 demand to be paid as much as $15,000 before treating a woman鈥檚 serious pregnancy complication.
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US Officials Want to End the HIV Epidemic by 2030. Many Stakeholders Think They Won鈥檛.
The federal government鈥檚 ambitious plan to end the HIV epidemic, launched in 2019, has generated new ways to reach at-risk populations in targeted communities across the South. But health officials, advocates, and people living with HIV worry significant headwinds will keep the program from reaching its goals.
By Daniel Chang and Sam Whitehead Will They or Won鈥檛 They (Block the Abortion Pill)?
Episode 294The Supreme Court is considering the future of the abortion pill mifepristone, after GenBioPro sued the FDA over limitations that effectively block generic production of the drug, a major part of the market. Congress is considering proposals that would impose Medicaid work requirements, crack down on pharmacy benefit managers, and more. And President Joe Biden moved to expand health coverage to young immigrants known as 鈥淒reamers.鈥 Rachel Cohrs of Stat, Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call, and Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico join 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Mary Agnes Carey to discuss these issues and more.
The Confusing Fate of the Abortion Pill
Episode 293The legality and availability of the abortion pill mifepristone is in question after a federal judge in Texas canceled the FDA鈥檚 approval of the first drug used in the two-drug medication abortion regimen. A 5th Circuit Court of Appeals panel overruled that decision in part, saying the pill should remain available, but only under the onerous restrictions in place before 2016. Meanwhile, another federal judge in Washington state issued a ruling in a separate case that conflicts with the Texas decision, ordering the FDA not to roll back any of its restrictions on the drug. Victoria Knight of Axios, Shefali Luthra of The 19th, and Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet join 麻豆女优 Health News chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more.
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Congressman Seeks to Plug 鈥楽hocking Loophole鈥 Exposed by KHN Investigation
A federal lawmaker has introduced a House bill that would close one of a laundry list of oversight gaps revealed in a recent KHN investigation of the system regulators use to ban fraudsters from billing government health programs, including Medicare and Medicaid.
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Sen. Sanders Shows Fire, but Seeks Modest Goals, in His Debut Drug Hearing as Health Chair
The Vermont independent and former presidential candidate was all fire and brimstone at his first hearing on drug prices as head of the Senate HELP Committee. He also pursued a more modest goal of covid vaccine price reductions. It isn鈥檛 clear whether Sanders will succeed in even that, but he has put affordability front and center.
By Arthur Allen -
Mobile Clinics Really Got Rolling in the Pandemic. A New Law Will Help Them Cast a Wider Safety Net.
Mobile clinics that provided covid-19 testing and vaccines at the peak of the pandemic are now being used to provide a range of health services in hard-to-reach communities. A law passed late last year allows qualified health care centers to use federal grants to expand the fleets.
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California Offers Bipartisan Road Map for Protecting Kids Online Even as Big Tech Fights Back
Last year, state lawmakers adopted the country鈥檚 toughest online privacy restrictions. The law offers Congress a path forward on federal protections even as it serves as a cautionary tale for taking on Big Tech.