Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Health Programs Among Those Biden Warns Would Be Hit By A Shutdown
CBS News: Biden Warns Against Shutdown, Makes Case For Second Term With VP At Congressional Black Caucus Dinner
One week ahead of a potential government shutdown, President Biden issued a stark warning that "America could be forced to pay the price" if Republicans in Congress fail to act. "Let's be clear: if the government shuts down, that means members of the Congress — members of the U.S. military are going to have to continue to work and not get paid," Mr. Biden said at a dinner hosted by the Congressional Black Caucus, or CBC, in Washington Saturday night. "A government shutdown can affect everything from food safety to cancer research to Head Start for children." (Killion, 9/24)
The Hill: Senate Democrats Put McCarthy In Shutdown Squeeze
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) is ramping up the pressure on Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) to avoid a government shutdown by moving first on a stopgap funding bill that will pass the Senate next week, a few days before the Sept. 30 deadline. The Senate’s plan is to send the bill to the House and put pressure on McCarthy to bring it to the floor for a vote it would pass with bipartisan support if given the chance, said senators who are calculating how the endgame will play out. (Bolton, 9/25)
Other news from the administration —
Stat: CFPB Takes On Medical Debt. Here's What Could Be Next
The dramatic impact of medical debt on credit scores may soon be a thing of the past. On Thursday, the White House announced a plan outlined by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to eliminate medical debt from credit reports. The move — which follows an earlier decision from the three main credit bureaus to eliminate paid medical debt, medical debt that’s less than a year old, and medical debt balances lower than $500 from credit reports — could affect the tens of millions in the U.S. who have unpaid medical bills. (Merelli, 9/22)
KFF Health News: Journalist Assesses Federal Push To Remove Medical Debt From Credit Reports
In two radio appearances this week, KFF Health News senior correspondent Noam N. Levey discussed medical debt in the U.S. and contextualized a new federal push to keep unpaid medical bills from affecting patients' credit scores. (9/23)
More from Capitol Hill —
Modern Healthcare: Why Congress Is Targeting Provider-Insurer Contracts
A federal bill would ban anti-steering and all-or-nothing provisions used in contracts between providers and insurers. (Kacik, 9/25)
Stat: Senators: Long-Delayed Opioids Study Would Put Patients At Risk
Two Democratic senators are warning the Food and Drug Administration not to proceed with a controversial trial meant to measure opioids’ effectiveness as a chronic pain treatment. In a letter shared with STAT, Sens. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) and Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) warned FDA Commissioner Robert Califf against using the method in the agency’s ongoing work to evaluate whether opioids, despite their widespread use, are effective at treating chronic pain. (Facher, 9/22)
Also —
KFF Health News: Officials Agree: Use Settlement Funds To Curb Youth Addiction. But The ‘How’ Gets Hairy
When three teenagers died of fentanyl overdoses last year in Larimer County, Colorado, it shocked the community and “flipped families upside down,” said Tom Gonzales, the county’s public health director. Several schools began stocking naloxone, a medication that reverses opioid overdoses. Community organizations trained teens to use it. But county and school officials wanted to do more. (Pattani and Featherston, 9/25)
NPR: 1 in 4 inmate deaths happens in the same federal prison. Why?
The Butner federal prison complex in North Carolina is where a quarter of federal inmate deaths occur. It includes a medical facility but inmates aren't getting needed care, there or at other prisons. (Anderson, 9/23)
The Washington Post: Programs Tracking Misinfo Are Buckling Amid Campaign Led By Rep. Jim Jordan
Academics, universities and government agencies are overhauling or ending research programs designed to counter the spread of online misinformation amid a legal campaign from conservative politicians and activists who accuse them of colluding with tech companies to censor right-wing views. The escalating campaign — led by Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) and other Republicans in Congress and state government — has cast a pall over programs that study not just political falsehoods but also the quality of medical information online. (Nix, Zakrzewski and Menn, 9/23)
