First Edition: July 14, 2017

Kaiser Health News: Senate Health Bill Still Short On ‘Yays’ But Leaders Vow Vote Next Week
Democrats remained steadfastly opposed to the measure. “The meat of this bill is exactly the same as it was before, and in some ways, they’ve somehow managed to make it even worse,” said Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.). (Rovner, 7/13)

Kaiser Health News: GOP Seeks To Sweeten Health Savings Account Deals. Will Consumers Bite?
A growing number of employers are offering workers insurance that links to health savings accounts, and now congressional Republicans want to expand the contribution limits and uses for these tax-exempt funds. But do consumers want them? (Andrews, 7/14)

Kaiser Health News: Opposition To GOP Repeal Bill Inches Up, Intensifies
Public opposition to the Republican effort to replace the Affordable Care Act grew stronger this month, but a core group of Republicans remained in support, according to a poll released Friday. Sixty-one percent of the public said this month they did not like the GOP health care effort, now undergoing a revised push in the Senate. (Rau, 7/14)

Kaiser Health News: Medicare’s Financial Outlook Slightly Improved, Trustees Say
The Trump administration said Thursday that the financial outlook for Medicare’s hospital insurance trust fund improved in the past year due to health costs rising more slowly than expected and predictions that enrollees will use hospital services less often. The report said that trust fund would last through 2029, one year later than what was projected last year. Two years ago, 2030 was the projected depletion date. (Galewitz, 7/13)

Kaiser Health News: Transgender Health Care Targeted In Crusade To Undo ACA
Solorah Singleton has been waiting years for breast augmentation. She doesn’t want to jinx it now, but the Philadelphia resident thinks it’s finally within reach. Singleton, 36, was born male but identifies as female. For seven years, she has had regular hormone therapy, never seeing surgery as an option. She previously didn’t have health insurance and didn’t think she could cover the cost of the procedure out-of-pocket. (Luthra, 7/13)

Kaiser Health News: Medical Transportation Provider Accused Of Disserving L.A.’s Frail Patients
Some days, the drivers showed up late to take Julian Myers to and from dialysis. Other days, they didn’t come at all. When that happened, Myers, who has end-stage kidney disease, scrambled to find a ride. “My blood pressure was rising and I’d get anxious,” he recalled. “I was frustrated. It’s a regular appointment. They should be here on time.” (Gorman, 7/14)

The New York Times: Senate Republicans Unveil New Health Bill, But Divisions Remain
Senate Republican leaders on Thursday unveiled a fresh proposal to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, revising their bill to help hold down insurance costs for consumers while allowing insurers to sell new low-cost, stripped down policies. (Pear and Kaplan, 7/13)

The New York Times: Republicans Made 4 Key Changes To Their Health Care Bill. Here’s Who They Were Trying To Win Over.
Republican senators have added a set of changes to their bill to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. These changes are efforts to appease different groups of senators and move the bill closer to a vote. At least 50 of the 52 Republican senators must support the bill for it to pass. (Park, Parlapiano and Sanger-Katz, 7/13)

The Associated Press: Revised GOP Health Bill Stresses Bare-Bones Private Coverage
The latest changes to the Senate Republican health care bill are geared to increasing access to bare-bones private insurance. There's also an additional $45 billion to help states confronting the opioid epidemic. But Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., would keep in place Medicaid cuts that GOP governors and Senate moderates have objected to. No Democrats are supporting the plan. (Alonso-Zaldivar, 7/13)

Politico: Revised Senate Repeal Bill Keeps Obamacare Taxes, Adds Funding For Poor And Opioid Epidemic
The latest plan does make some minor changes to the Medicaid program that could address the concerns of some senators. For example, it would allow the cap on Medicaid payments to be lifted in the event of a medical emergency, a provision sought by Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, which has been battling the Zika outbreak. (Demko, 7/13)

USA Today: Senate Health Care Bill: Republicans Woo Conservatives In Latest Draft
The draft bill, released on the Senate Budget Committee's website, tries to appeal to conservatives by including a version of an amendment by Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, that would allow the sale of deregulated insurance plans as long as Obamacare-compliant plans are also still sold. Cruz confirmed to reporters that his amendment is in the bill and called that "very significant progress." “If this is the bill, I will support it,” Cruz told reporters Thursday afternoon. But Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, who helped craft the original amendment with Cruz, was undecided about how he would vote on the bill because the amendment was changed during negotiations, his spokesman said. (Kelly, Collins and Shesgreen, 7/13)

USA Today: Sick? You Might Not Like The GOP's Latest Health Bill
The Senate dropped a new version of its beleaguered health bill Thursday, tacking on a Ted Cruz proposal in order to win over conservatives like Ted Cruz. It basically lets people buy cheap, bare-bones insurance plans alongside more robust, Obamacare-compliant plans. That's good news for the healthy, and bad news for the sick: If healthy folks flock to cheaper plans, the other plans covering pre-existing conditions will grow more expensive — destabilizing the market in the process, insurance companies say. (Hafner, 7/13)

Los Angeles Times: Divided Senate Republicans Unveil New Version Of Obamacare Repeal Bill
The bill would earmark an additional $70 billion in federal money to help stabilize health insurance markets across the country, funded in part by preserving two Obamacare taxes on wealthy Americans that the previous GOP legislation eliminated. And in an effort to woo several GOP senators from states dependent on Medicaid to address the opioid crisis, McConnell earmarked an additional $45 billion in the bill to confront the epidemic. (Mascaro and Levey, 7/13)

NPR: Who Gains, Who's Left Out In The Latest Senate Health Care Bill
Perhaps the biggest change in the document released Thursday is that it leaves in place the Affordable Care Act taxes on wealthy individuals. It uses that money to reduce the number of people left without insurance coverage by the law's changes. (Grayson, Hurt and Kodjak, 7/13)

The Wall Street Journal: New Senate Health Bill Aims To Bridge GOP Gaps, But Resistance Remains
The latest version of the bill would preserve a 0.9% payroll tax and a 3.8% tax on investment income. Both taxes apply only to individuals with incomes above $200,000 and married couples making over $250,000. (Armour and Peterson, 7/13)

The Wall Street Journal: What The Senate’s 3.8% Surtax Means For American Taxpayers
With Senate Republicans planning to retain a 3.8% surtax on investment income in their health-care bill, it is a good time for American taxpayers to know exactly how this tax works. (Saunders, 7/14)

The Washington Post: The GOP’s Under-The-Radar Tax Break For The Upper Middle Class
A new tax break for the upper middle class was offered up Thursday in Senate Republicans' revised version of their bill to dismantle the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare. The legislation would make health insurance premiums more affordable for consumers who buy the kinds of inexpensive policies that are crucial to the GOP health-care agenda. Yet independent analysts caution that the benefits would mainly accrue to affluent households, and the provision might not substantially expand coverage among the uninsured. (Ehrenfreund, 7/13)

The Wall Street Journal: Hospitals Could Gain Under New GOP Health Bill
Among the provisions in the revised version of the Senate Republicans’ health bill is a provision that would restore certain federal funding to some hospitals—but with a catch. Under the Affordable Care Act, hospitals were set to lose out on extra funding known as Medicaid “disproportionate share” payments meant to help cover uninsured patients. The Senate GOP’s early health bill restored the funds, but exclusively to hospitals in states that didn’t expand Medicaid. (Evans, 7/13)

The Associated Press: Alaska Would Score A Sweet Deal In Proposed Health Care Bill
Among the Republican holdouts needed to pass the bill is one of Alaska's senators, Lisa Murkowski. Her state has unusually high medical costs because much of Alaska is remote, and it relies heavily on Medicaid, which the Republican bill would cut. (Alonso-Zaldivar, 7/14)

NPR: Senate Health Care Bill Revisions Released In Attempt To Appease GOP Critics
Here are some of those big changes that this new version of the bill would make to the original BCRA, and what they would mean. (Kurtzleben, 7/13)

Politico: Senate Republicans One Vote Away From Obamacare Repeal Failure
Majority Whip John Cornyn acknowledged GOP leaders don’t have the minimum 50 votes right now but insisted, "We're making good progress." He said he and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell were not making "state-specific" promises to wavering senators and were instead merely trying to convince them that the bill is better than Obamacare."We're not through yet," Cornyn said of his and McConnell's work. (Everett and Haberkorn, 7/13)

The Washington Post: Senate Health-Care Bill Changes — Cruz Amendment, Opioid Funding, Alaska Money
The bill makes almost no effort to recruit moderates such as Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), who has already stated her objection to the new bill. Those senators have asked for more Medicaid funding, which the CBO projected would be cut by 26 percent over the next decade and 35 percent the decade after. (Soffen, Din and Uhrmacher, 7/13)

The Associated Press: Trouble For Revised Senate Health Bill; Trump Wants Action
Moderate Sen. Susan Collins of Maine told reporters she had informed McConnell she would be voting against beginning debate on the bill, citing in part cuts in the Medicaid health program for the poor and disabled. Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, who has repeatedly complained that McConnell's efforts don't amount to a full-blown repeal of Obamacare, also announced he was a "no." That means McConnell cannot lose any other Republican senators. (Werner and Fram, 7/14)

The Washington Post: Revised Senate Health-Care Bill Still Lacks The Votes To Pass
“The revised Senate health-care bill released today does not include the measures I have been advocating for on behalf of the people of Arizona,” said Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) in a statement, adding he planned to offer amendments to change it. (Sullivan, Eilperin and Snell, 7/13)

The Washington Post: Senate Health-Care Bill – Which Senators Are Opposed
Three Republicans opposed to the bill would effectively kill it. (Phillips, Fischer-Baum, Schaul and Uhrmacher, 7/13)

Politico: Graham Introduces Repeal Back-Up Plan
A new health care proposal from GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham that would direct much of Obamacare's federal funding directly to the states could offer a starting point for Congress if the Senate GOP effort fails next week, according to a summary of the bill obtained by POLITICO. The bill from Graham is intended to appeal to Republicans as a replacement plan for Obamacare, while he hopes to sell the effort to Democrats as a repair plan. (Everett, 7/13)

USA Today: Senate Health Care Bill: 5 Hurdles Republicans Are Facing To Pass The Bill
Senate Republicans hope their latest proposed bill to replace Obamacare will attract enough votes from the moderate and conservative wings of their party to pass next week. But there are at least five hurdles that could derail efforts to reach consensus. (Kelly, 7/13)

The Associated Press: Analysis: Trump Will Take Health Care Credit Or Cast Blame
If congressional Republicans succeed in repealing and replacing "Obamacare," expect a big Rose Garden celebration with President Donald Trump taking credit. If they fail? Trump has already indicated he will hold Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell responsible, setting up an intraparty blame game that could be devastating for the GOP. (7/14)

The Associated Press: GOP Health Care Plan Draws Mixed Reaction From Governors
U.S. governors responded largely along partisan lines Thursday to the latest Republican health care overhaul, although the plan's long-term rollback in Medicaid funding remains a concern among many from both parties. (McDermott, 7/13)

Politico: Richest Americans Gain The Most From The Senate’s Health Care Bill
The latest Congressional Budget Office analysis of the Senate’s revised health care bill won’t be available until next week, but the overarching trend of the three GOP plans analyzed so far is clear — more Americans will be uninsured and the majority of them will be poor. (Frostenson, 7/14)

The New York Times: U.S. Charges 412, Including Doctors, In $1.3 Billion Health Fraud
Hundreds of people nationwide, including dozens of doctors, have been charged in health care fraud prosecutions, accused of collectively defrauding the government of $1.3 billion, the Justice Department said on Thursday. (Ruiz, 7/13)

Reuters: Doctors, Nurses Among Hundreds Charged With Defrauding U.S. Health Programs
A total of 412 people, including almost 115 doctors, nurses and other medical professionals, have been charged in the sweeping enforcement action, the biggest ever by the multi-agency Medicare Strike Force, the Justice Department said in a statement. More than 120 people were accused of illegally prescribing and distributing opioids and other dangerous narcotics, charges that come as about 91 Americans die daily from opioid-related overdoses. (Simpson, 7/13)

The Washington Post: DOJ Announces Charges Against 400 People For $1.3 Billion In Health-Care Fraud
“One American dies of a drug overdose every 11 minutes and more than 2 million Americans are ensnared in addiction to prescription painkillers,” Attorney General Jeff Sessions said at a news conference. “We will continue to find, arrest, prosecute, convict and incarcerate fraudsters and drug dealers wherever they are.” (Horwitz and Merle, 7/13)

The Wall Street Journal: U.S. Charges More Than 400 With Committing Health Care Fraud
Justice Department officials said the charges were filed in the past few weeks, and the initiative was the “largest health-care fraud takedown operation” in U.S. history, Mr. Sessions said. New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu, who represents one of the states hardest hit by the opioid epidemic, called the Justice Department action a “great first step” and a sign that the new presidential administration is taking the scourge seriously. (Wilber, 7/13)

Los Angeles Times: U.S. Charges More Than 400 People In Health Fraud Schemes And Opioid Scams Worth $1.3 Billion
Most of the cases involve false billings of Medicare for pills, equipment and services that were never provided. All told, the cases involve more than $1.3 billion in fraud, officials said. (Tanfani, 7/13)

Los Angeles Times: The U.S. Should Rethink Its Entire Approach To Painkillers And The People Addicted To Them, Panel Urges
To reverse a still-spiraling American crisis fueled by prescription narcotic drugs, a panel of experts advising the federal government has recommended sweeping changes in the ways that physicians treat pain, their patients cope with pain, and government and private insurers support the care of people living with chronic pain. (Healy, 7/13)

The Washington Post: Half A Million Medicare Recipients Were Prescribed Too Many Opioid Drugs Last Year
Nearly 70,000 people on Medicare's drug plan received “extreme” amounts of narcotic painkillers in 2016 and more than 22,000 others appeared to be “doctor shopping” for drugs, patterns that put both groups “at serious risk of opioid misuse or overdose,” a government watchdog reported Thursday. (Bernstein, 7/13)

The New York Times: A Tide Of Opioid-Dependent Newborns Forces Doctors To Rethink Treatment
Just 24 hours old, Jay’la Cy’anne Clay already was having a rough day. Convulsions rocked her tiny body as she lay under warming lights in the nursery of the Baptist Health Richmond hospital. She vomited and made strange, high-pitched cries. The infant was going through opioid withdrawal. (Saint Louis, 7/13)

The Washington Post: Medicare’s Hospital Trust Fund Will Run Out Of Money In 2029
The trust fund that pays Medicare's hospital expenses will run out of money in 2029, a year later than the most recent projection, according to a federal report. The Social Security program will remain solvent until 2034, a projection unchanged from last year. (Johnson, 7/13)

The Wall Street Journal: Social Security, Medicare Face Depletion Within 17 Years, Trustees Say
The trust funds were built when more people paid into the system than received benefits. As the population ages, benefit payments are projected to exceed revenues, drawing down fund balances. Under current law, when the trust funds are emptied, benefits from the programs will be abruptly reduced. The latest projections say retirement benefits would be slashed by 25%. The status of the funds is thus a potential trigger for reforms in the programs. (Zumbrun, 7/13)

The Associated Press: Investors: 'Pharma Bro' Shkreli Was Shady-And Profitable
The jury at the securities fraud trial of "Pharma Bro" Martin Shkreli has heard investors accuse the quirky former biotech CEO of repeatedly giving them the runaround when they tried to pull their money out of his failing health care hedge fund. But the government witnesses have made a concession that the defense hopes plays in its favor: In the end, they made a killing. (7/13)

The Associated Press: Confusion Over How Anti-Abortion Bill Could Affect St. Louis
Missouri lawmakers are at a standstill on broad anti-abortion legislation more than a month after Republican Gov. Eric Greitens called them into a special session to deal with abortion issues. The legislation calls for several new regulations, such as annual state inspections of abortion clinics. But one of the provisions causing the most confusion addresses a St. Louis ordinance that city leaders say is intended to prevent discrimination based on reproductive health decisions, such as pregnancy and abortion. (7/14)

Los Angeles Times: AIDS Healthcare Foundation Claims Victory As Court Throws Out Lawsuit Over Its Billing Of L.A. County
The AIDS Healthcare Foundation, long at battle with Los Angeles city and county officials over policies and payments, claimed a victory recently when a court dismissed a lawsuit involving charges that the foundation had overbilled L.A. County for HIV/AIDS-related services. (Agrawal, 7/13)

Los Angeles Times: Silicon Valley Firm And Abbott Labs Team Up On System For Managing Diabetes
When Jeffrey Brewer’s son was 15, the boy nearly lost his life because he took too much insulin. The diabetic teen took insulin so he could eat a large bag of chips late at night. But about 20 minutes later, he forgot about that first dose and took another. He spent two days in the hospital, his father said. (Schencker, 7/13)

The Washington Post: ‘We’re Losing More People To The Sweets Than To The Streets’: Why Two Black Pastors Are Suing Coca-Cola
William Lamar, the senior pastor at D.C.’s historic Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church, is tired of presiding over funerals for parishioners who died of heart disease, diabetes and stroke. So on Thursday, he and another prominent African American pastor filed suit against Coca-Cola and the American Beverage Association, claiming soda manufacturers knowingly deceived customers about the health risks of sugar-sweetened beverages — at enormous cost to their communities. (Dewey, 7/13)