Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Speaker Johnson Hopeful He'll Secure A Quick End To Government Shutdown
The Washington Post: House Speaker Mike Johnson ‘Confident’ Shutdown Will End By Tuesday
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) said Sunday that he is “confident” he will have enough support from Republicans in the House conference to end the partial government shutdown by Tuesday. In an interview with NBC News’s “Meet the Press,” Johnson said the House will vote to reopen the government “at least by Tuesday.” (Alfaro, 2/1)
Modern Healthcare: Senate Passes Funding Bill Extending Telehealth, Regulating PBMs
The Senate passed legislation Friday to enact key healthcare priorities, but it did so too late to avoid a partial government shutdown starting at midnight. Passage was delayed after Democrats insisted on changes to the portion of the bill funding the Homeland Security Department in the wake of federal agents killing two Minneapolis residents. (McAuliff, 1/30)
Also —
The Washington Post: In Texas, Democrats Narrow GOP’s U.S. House Majority, Win Upset In State Senate
Democrats narrowed Republicans’ U.S. House majority and flipped a state Senate seat on conservative terrain in a pair of Saturday special election runoffs in Texas with national implications. Democrat Christian Menefee won the special election runoff Saturday for Texas’s 18th Congressional District, paring House Republicans’ slim advantage by securing a long-vacant seat in a heavily Democratic area. In a second election runoff in Tarrant County, which includes Fort Worth, Democrats won in a notable upset, with Taylor Rehmet defeating Republican Leigh Wambsganss in a district where President Donald Trump won by 17 points in 2024. (Tucker, 2/1)
Politico: Cassidy Questioned RFK Jr. Now Kennedy’s Followers Are Out To Get Him.
As Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., seeks a third term, [HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s] followers haven’t forgiven the senator for grilling Kennedy at that hearing or for criticizing his efforts as health secretary to cast doubt on vaccine safety. Add to that President Donald Trump’s decision this month to endorse challenger Rep. Julia Letlow in the race, and Cassidy is in a fight for his political life. (Ollstein and Levien, 2/2)
