NSF Doesn’t Have To Restart Research Funding Just Yet, Judge Rules
U.S. District Judge John Cronan in New York declined to grant a preliminary injunction on the funding freeze while the case is winding through the courts. Plus, President Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act delays Medicare price negotiations for some top-selling drugs.
AP:
NSF Can Withhold Research Funding, Federal Judge Rules
The National Science Foundation can continue to withhold hundreds of millions of dollars from researchers in several states until litigation aimed at restoring it plays out, a federal court ruled Friday. U.S. District Judge John Cronan in New York declined to force the NSF to restart payments immediately, while the case is still being decided, as requested by the sixteen Democrat-led states who brought the suit, including New York, Hawaii, California, Colorado and Connecticut. (Ramakrishnan, 8/1)
CBS News:
Democratic Senators Negotiated For Release Of Billions In Funds In Exchange For Confirmation Deals, Sources Say
In a whirlwind of negotiations over three days, Democrats asked for multiple billions in government funds to be released in exchange for a vote on a batch of nominees President Trump wanted confirmed before lawmakers left for their August break, sources told CBS News. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer was negotiating with GOP leadership for $5 billion for the National Institutes of Health, $1 billion for the Global Fund, $300 million for the World Food Program, $50 million to fight HIV in developing countries, about $140 million for the United Nations Children's Fund, and other money funding that had been previously approved, sources said. (He, 8/3)
AP:
Senate Heads Home With No Deal To Advance President Trump’s Nominees
The Senate left Washington Saturday night for its monthlong August recess without a deal to advance dozens of President Donald Trump’s nominees, calling it quits after days of contentious bipartisan negotiations and Trump posting on social media that Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer can “GO TO HELL!” (Jalonick and Cappelletti, 8/2)
More on the GOP's health care policy —
The Wall Street Journal:
How Trump’s ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ Will Keep Drug Prices Higher Longer And Cost Medicare Billions
Thousands of Medicare recipients will have to wait longer to get some price relief on the expensive cancer drugs they depend on for treatment, while others might not get any reprieve at all. Two little-known provisions in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act signed by President Trump in July will delay Medicare price negotiations for some of the biggest-selling drugs in the world, including Merck’s Keytruda, which is used to treat cancer and had $17.9 billion in U.S. sales in 2024. Other drugs, such as Johnson & Johnson’s Darzalex, will be excluded entirely. (Walker, 8/3)
KFF Health News:
Work Requirements And Red Tape Ahead For Millions On Medicaid
Now that the Republicans’ big tax-and-spending bill has become law, new bureaucratic hurdles have emerged for millions of Americans who rely on Medicaid for health coverage. A provision in the new law dictates that, in most states, for the first time, low-income adults must start meeting work requirements to keep their coverage. Some states have already tried doing this, but Georgia is the only state that has an active system using work requirements to establish Medicaid eligibility — and recipients must report to the system once a month. (Mador, 8/4)
The New York Times:
The 2 Beliefs Driving Conservative Health Care Policy
When Congress passed President Trump’s signature domestic policy bill last month, Republicans voted to take health care coverage away from about 10 million people. In the past, Republicans have typically shied away from promoting plans to end health benefits for millions. But in this case, they openly boasted about part of it. About half of the 10 million will lose coverage because of a new requirement that people who enroll in Medicaid prove that they are working, looking for work or unable to work. (Kliff, 8/1)
On the high cost of prescription drugs —
Stat:
Drug Companies’ Price Transparency Reports Paint Murky Picture
Over the past decade, pharmaceutical companies have released carefully curated “price transparency” reports that make it appear the prices of their medicines are barely increasing — or even going down. But the reports disclose no pricing information about specific drugs, manipulating the reality of how much Americans spend on prescription drugs. (Herman, 8/4)
The Wall Street Journal:
Longevity Firms Push Montana To Become Hub For Biohacking, Experimental Treatments
Montana is well known for luring visitors with outdoor activities such as fly fishing and hiking. Now, longevity companies are exploring investments in the state in a moonshot bid to make it a medical tourism hub. State legislators have backed measures designed to ease patients’ access to therapies not approved by the Food and Drug Administration. The measures, known as “Right to Try” laws, exist in more than 40 states. But Montana has pushed even further by adopting rules to make it easier for businesses to provide experimental drugs, therapies or devices and profit from selling them. (Janin, 8/3)
