Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Congressional Dems Eye Window Of Opportunity For Medicare Expansion
The Washington Post: Congressional Democrats Push Medicare Expansion, Defying White House
Congressional Democrats are planning to pursue a massive expansion of Medicare as part of President Biden’s new $1.8 trillion economic relief package, defying the White House after it opted against including a major health overhaul as part of its plan. The early pledges from some party lawmakers, led by prominent members of its liberal wing, threaten to create even more political tension around a package that is already facing no shortage of it. The expansion push comes as Biden on Wednesday stressed in his first address to Congress that he is still committed to making health care more affordable. (Romm and Min Kim, 4/29)
The Hill: Democrats Push To Add Drug Pricing, Medicare Measures To Biden Plan
Leading congressional Democrats are pushing to add drug pricing measures and even an expansion of Medicare eligibility to President Biden's American Families Plan after the White House left the proposals out of the $1.8 trillion package. Biden made a rhetorical call to pass drug pricing legislation in his address to Congress on Wednesday, but the administration’s decision not to include the measure in the president’s human-focused infrastructure proposal, despite pressure from Democratic lawmakers, is raising questions about his commitment. (Sullivan, 4/30)
In other news from Capitol Hill —
Stat: Biden Science Pick Lander Fends Off Controversy At Confirmation Hearing
Eric Lander, President Biden’s nominee to lead the White House’s science policy office, easily weathered a Senate confirmation hearing on Thursday that started with an examination of his past controversies but ended in a more philosophical discussion of the future of American research. The renowned genetics researcher pledged that if confirmed, he would leverage U.S. science to drive a new wave of disease cures. The Biden administration, he said, would also work to address climate change, increase access to STEM careers for women and people of color, and address an array of other issues ranging from cybersecurity to broadband access. (Facher, 4/29)
Stat: Congress: Stop Dialysis Providers From Gaming Reimbursement
The Covid-19 relief bill that President Joe Biden signed into law in March temporarily expanded the subsidies available to people who buy their health insurance through marketplaces established under the Affordable Care Act, and the administration has proposed to make those subsidies permanent as part of the American Families Plan. To help pay for that effort, Congress should end a game that big dialysis companies play with insurance to pad their profits at federal expense. (Erin E. Trish, Eugene Lin and Matthew Fiedler, 4/29)
