Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
ARPA-H To Spend $160M On Gene Editing Drug Development
Stat: ARPA-H Invests $160 Million To Make Custom Gene Editing Routine
ARPA-H, the U.S.’ “moonshot” agency for health research, announced Thursday that it will spend up to $160 million to push forward custom gene editing treatments for a spate of rare diseases. The program, called THRIVE, will back seven different teams pursuing various groups of conditions affecting different organ systems. (Mast, 7/9)
In other Trump administration developments —
Becker's Hospital Review: White House’s Grant Overhaul Proposal: Where Things Stand
The Trump administration’s proposed overhaul of federal grantmaking has drawn nearly 99,000 public comments, with the July 13 deadline to submit comments now days away. The Office of Management and Budget’s proposal, published in the Federal Register on May 29, would update how the federal government awards and manages grants across more than 40 agencies, including HHS, the National Institutes of Health and National Science Foundation. The proposal includes more than 320 changes to the government’s existing grant guidance, according to the Association of American Universities. (Bean, 7/9)
NOTUS: The White House Killed An RFK Jr. Ad Campaign. He Can Blame Kristi Noem.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had big plans for his much touted “Take Back Your Health” campaign last year. The Health Department he leads requested bids for “bold, edgy” pitches for TV and digital ads warning about the dangers of processed foods. Kennedy wanted to appear in ads wearing a device used by diabetics to track blood sugar. None of it ever came together. Former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem had rained on Kennedy’s parade. (Winfield Cunningham, 7/9)
NPR: Disability Groups Left Concerned, Confused After Ed. Dept. Briefing
In a call with disability rights advocates Thursday, officials from the U.S. Department of Education tried to ease concerns about plans to move the agency's special education offices to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The effort seemed to fail. (Mehta, 7/9)
KFF Health News: They Harvest The Nation’s Food, But A New Rule May Strip Them Of Health Insurance
Seasonal work. Inconsistent hours. Frequent moves. Cash payments and informal jobs. For farmworkers who rely on Medicaid, these common employment patterns could put their health coverage at risk. It’s a heightened concern for the estimated million-plus farmworkers who are U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents, as new work requirements kick in for the federal-state healthcare program that serves low-income and disabled Americans. (Andalo, 7/10)
Bloomberg: EPA Proposes Rollback Of Emission Standards For Heavy-Duty Trucks, Buses
The US Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday proposed rolling back emission standards for new heavy-duty trucks, including buses, garbage trucks and semis. Under the proposal, EPA is looking to scale back future warranty mandates from 10 years to 5 and to delay requirements to extend the period in which the vehicles are subject to pollution limits. If finalized, this action could result in lower costs for truck manufacturers while potentially also boosting air pollution. (Hirji, 7/9)
The latest from Capitol Hill —
The Hill: Lawmakers Urge HHS To Monitor For Assisted Suicide Discrimination
A bipartisan group of lawmakers is urging Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to set up new monitoring rules for hospices to root out discrimination against vulnerable populations in the provision of medically assisted suicide. In a letter sent to Kennedy on Thursday, Sens. James Lankford (R-Okla.) and Tim Kaine (D-Va.) and Reps. Greg Murphy (R-N.C.) and Luis Correa (D-Calif.) recommended that Kennedy’s HHS establish reporting requirements in the hospice program to better monitor the provision of medically assisted suicide for discrimination against people with disabilities, older adults and other vulnerable populations. (Huiskes, 7/9)
The Hill: Thomas Massie Calls Out Republicans For Obamacare Inaction
Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie (R) on Wednesday said ObamaCare might as well be renamed “Trumpcare” as premiums increase and Republicans haven’t moved to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA). “Might as well call it Trumpcare now. Our party has made no serious effort to repeal Obamacare and legalize affordable health insurance after taking control of the House, Senate & White House,” Massie wrote Wednesday on the social platform X. “Why? Because the current system enriches insurance and hospital companies,” he added. (Fields, 7/9)
Gearing up for the midterm elections —
The Hill: Planned Parenthood's $47M Midterm Election Investment
Planned Parenthood is investing a near-record $47 million into the November midterm elections aiming to unseat the Republicans who voted to cut off the organization from federal funding last year. The “We Decide” campaign from Planned Parenthood Votes — an independent Super PAC affiliated with Planned Parenthood — will target ads and voter outreach in battleground House races in Arizona, California, Colorado, Iowa, Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. (Weixel, 7/9)
The 19th: Planned Parenthood Survived Medicaid ‘Defunding’ — Just In Time For Elections
A year ago, abortion opponents were celebrating one of their biggest victories under the Trump administration: Planned Parenthood, the movement’s arch-villain, had been temporarily kicked out of Medicaid, one of the nation’s largest health insurance programs. (Luthra, 7/9)
KFF Health News: KFF Health News’ ‘What The Health?’: The Politics Of Health At Midyear
As health costs rise and insurance coverage falls, Democrats appear to be doubling down on the healthcare issue as they press their case to take control of Congress in November’s midterm elections. Meanwhile, on Capitol Hill, Republicans — and some Democrats — are taking aim at nonprofit hospitals and whether they are delivering enough “community benefit” to justify not having to pay taxes. (Rovner, 7/9)
The latest about the Mitch McConnell mystery —
CNN: McConnell Was Loaded Into Ambulance On A Stretcher, According To Eyewitness And New Video
Emergency responders took Sen. Mitch McConnell to an ambulance on a stretcher after being called to his home last month for a report of an unconscious person, according to new video of the incident and an eyewitness account. (Grayer, 7/10)
