Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Biden Will Use Title 42 Health Policy To Expel Migrants From 4 Nations
The Wall Street Journal: Biden Administration Leans On Trump-Era Policies To Combat Migrant Wave
Beginning on Thursday, the administration will use a pandemic-era border measure known as Title 42 to rapidly expel migrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela, the countries that have posed the greatest challenge to the administration in the past year. The administration is taking the step even as the Supreme Court prepares to hear oral arguments in the case and the administration has argued that the measure is no longer justified on public-health grounds and must end. (Hackman and Parti, 1/5)
CNN: The Biden Administration Keeps Shifting Its Stance On A Controversial Policy
President Joe Biden just made a point that’s surprising to those of us who’ve been closely following his administration’s approach to migration at the southern border. “I don’t like Title 42,” Biden told reporters following a speech at the White House Thursday afternoon. That comment was startling because it came minutes after his administration announced a program that effectively expands the controversial public health restrictions yet again. (Shoichet, 1/5)
In related news about immigration —
The Texas Tribune: Texas AG Ken Paxton Sues Biden Over “Public Charge” Enforcement
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit on Thursday against President Joe Biden, accusing his administration of nullifying a federal law that prevents immigrants from obtaining a green card if they are likely to depend on government social services. ... In 2019, the Trump administration expanded a rule that would allow immigration officials to deny permanent resident status — also known as a green card — to immigrants if they previously received or in the future expected to receive food assistance, Medicaid, housing assistance or other public benefits. (Garcia, 1/5)
In other administrative health updates —
Bloomberg: Biden EPA Backs Off Plan To Crack Down On Smog From Permian Oil Drillers
The Biden administration is deferring a plan to crack down on smog in the drilling hotbed of the Permian Basin, handing a win to oil producers along with their allies in Texas and New Mexico. The Environmental Protection Agency had been considering formally labeling parts of the region as violating federal air quality standards for ozone — a designation that would have spurred new pollution curbs and potentially deterred drilling in the world’s biggest oil field. (Dlouhy, 1/5)
KHN: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’: Year-End Bill Holds Big Health Changes
The year-end government spending bill includes a lot of changes to federal health programs, including changes to Medicare payments and some structure for states to begin to disenroll people on Medicaid whose eligibility has been maintained through the pandemic. Separately, the Biden administration took several steps to expand the availability of the abortion pill, which in combination with another drug can end a pregnancy within about 10 weeks of gestation. Anti-abortion forces have launched their own campaign to limit the reach of the abortion pill. (1/5)
