Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Biden Administration Delays Trump's Drug Pricing Rebate Rule For A Year
Stat: Biden Administration Pumps Brakes On Signature Trump Drug Pricing Proposal
The Biden administration has agreed to delay for a year the implementation of one of President Trump’s signature drug pricing policies. The policy at issue would prevent drug makers and middlemen from negotiating rebates on prescription drugs. The prohibition was scheduled to go into effect in January 2022, but the Biden administration agreed to delay it until 2023, a court order filed Saturday showed. (Cohrs, 1/31)
Modern Healthcare: CMS Pauses Organ Procurement, Part D E-Prescribing Rules
The Biden administration on Friday paused two Trump-era regulations affecting organ procurement organizations and Part D prescription drug plans. CMS delayed a rule that would revamp quality reporting measures to boost transparency in the organ procurement and transplantation process, according to the agency. It also pushed back a rule that would mandate Part D plans to support a new electronic prior authorization standard for their Part D e-prescribing plans. Both regulations were set to take effect on Feb. 1 but will now start on Mar. 30. It's unclear whether the Biden administration will ultimately move forward with either rule. (Brady, 1/29)
In other news related to the Trump administration —
Politico: Biden Toughens Workplace Safety Guidelines But Lets Stand DPA Meat Production Order
President Joe Biden set a record for the flurry of executive actions he issued on his first day in office. But despite his calls on the campaign trail for tougher worker safety enforcement during the pandemic, one Trump-era executive action is still in place that worker safety advocates have argued would allow unsafe meat producers to remain open. ... Several meat companies have cited the executive order in court to challenge lawsuits over Covid-19-related worker illnesses and deaths. (Rainey, 1/31)
The Hill: GAO: Trump Administration Spent $200M To Send Foreign Nations 8,700 Ventilators
A new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) shows that the Trump administration spent $200 million to send 8,722 ventilators to other countries during the coronavirus pandemic last year. The watchdog found that the initiative was not based on guidance from U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). The GAO is not sure what guidelines Trump was using for the distributions of ventilators. (Lonas, 1/29)
Stat: Trump Officials Lobbied To Deny States Money For Vaccine Rollout Last Fall
Top Trump officials actively lobbied Congress to deny state governments any extra funding for the Covid-19 vaccine rollout last fall — despite frantic warnings from state officials that they didn’t have the money they needed to ramp up a massive vaccination operation. (Florko, 1/31)
