Coburn Issues ‘Wastebook’ That Includes ‘Unnecessary’ Spending At NIH

Oklahoma Republican Sen. Tom Coburn's list includes various programs that continue to receive funding even as National Institutes of Health officials express concern about the slowing of disease research.

Politico: Tom Coburn Skewers NIH In Final 'Wastebook'
This particular study on rodent rubdowns cost $387,000 -- a tiny fraction of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases’ more than $4 billion budget. But the ranking member of the Senate’s Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee cites many “unnecessary” spending programs that continue while NIH officials argue that important disease research has slowed (Everett, 10/22).

Also in the news, another congressional committee is examining possible waste in the Medicare Advantage program --

Center for Public Integrity: GAO Takes On Medicare Advantage Spending
A Congressional committee has taken aim at waste in the popular Medicare Advantage health insurance program for seniors, ordering an extensive audit of billing errors and overcharges by insurers -- mistakes estimated to cost taxpayers billions of dollars every year. The Government Accountability Office, the watchdog arm of Congress, is conducting the probe at the request of the House Ways and Means Committee. Results are due next spring (Schulte, 10/20).