Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Biden Administration Likely To End Trump's 'Public Charge' Rule
Modern Healthcare: Biden Admin To Review Rule Discouraging Immigrants From Using Medicaid
Health and immigration advocates cheered the Biden administration's announcement Tuesday that it will review a Trump-era rule that allowed immigrants' use of Medicaid and other public programs to weigh against their residency applications. The White House's instruction that agencies review the so-called public charge rule was tucked into a broader executive order the administration said is designed to restore faith in the country's legal immigration system and promote integration of new Americans. (Bannow, 2/2)
Politico: Biden Signs Executive Orders On Family Separation And Asylum
President Joe Biden on Tuesday signed executive orders to launch a long-awaited task force to reunite families separated at the border under the Trump administration, as well as begin a review of a Trump-era program that has forced tens of thousands of people to remain in Mexico while their asylum cases are processed. (Rodriguez, 2/2)
Politico: Trump Aides Made A Late Request To Team Biden To Extend Their Parental Leave. They Said No.
After four years in the Trump administration, Vanessa Ambrosini was looking forward to three months of parental leave when she and her husband welcomed a baby a week before Christmas. The Commerce Department’s human resources office had given her approval for it. But then she was surprised to find out the benefit was no longer available because of the change in administration. “I got completely screwed,” she said in an interview. “There were no caveats in that language saying anything about if the administration turns, you get nothing and of course, that happened and so I got nothing.” (Lippman, 2/2)
In news about Vice President Kamala Harris —
Politico: Call In Kamala: Biden Turns To The Veep To Sell Covid Vax To Communities Of Color
One of Vice President Kamala Harris’ first tasks in office could very well be her most important: getting skeptical communities — mainly people of color — to put the Covid-19 vaccine in their arms. The task falls on her for an obvious reason. She’s the highest ranking and most visible person of color in the federal government, and the African American community has been among the most skeptical of any about getting the Covid vaccine. (Daniels, 2/1)
AP: Interview Flap Shows Challenges As Harris Settles In As VP
Vice President Kamala Harris has spent her first two weeks in office working with the president on coronavirus relief, consulting with the head of the World Health Organization and talking with the prime minister of Canada. It’s her interview with a local news station in West Virginia, though, that’s getting more attention — and not in a good way. West Virginia Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin, a moderate whose support is critical to the success of President Joe Biden’s agenda in Congress, didn’t take kindly to the vice president’s effort to put public pressure on him in his home state by urging passage of a $1.9 trillion virus relief package, especially when he had no warning it was coming. (Jaffe, 2/2)
