Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Trump's Own Health Agenda Could Be Sabotaged By His Continuing Push To Gut The Affordable Care Act
Politico: Killing Obamacare Kills Trump’s Health Agenda, Too
President Donald Trump wants to eliminate HIV in the U.S., contain the opioid crisis and lower the cost of prescription drugs — but all of those need Obamacare to be successful. And Trump just promised to kill it. His HIV plan relies on key pieces of Obamacare to expand access to prevention and treatment services for Americans at risk of contracting the deadly virus. Expanding opioid prevention relies heavily on Medicaid, which expanded under Obamacare. And Trump’s push to lower drug prices would use an innovation program that tests drug cost modeling — and was created by Obamacare. (Karlin-Smith and Ehley, 4/1)
CQ: Trump Drug Proposal Relies On Health Care Law He Wants To End
President Donald Trump's support for the wholesale repeal of the 2010 health care law could undermine his own plan on prescription drug prices and his messaging on an important issue ahead of the 2020 election: the climbing cost of medicines. Less than two weeks before the midterm elections last year, Trump delivered a proposal to rein in the costs of outpatient drugs by pegging them to the lower prices paid by foreign countries. (Kopp, 3/29)
The Associated Press: Trump's Battle With 'Obamacare' Moves To The Courts
After losing in Congress, President Donald Trump is counting on the courts to kill off "Obamacare." But some cases are going against him, and time is not on his side as he tries to score a big win for his re-election campaign. Two federal judges in Washington, D.C., this past week blocked parts of Trump's health care agenda: work requirements for some low-income people on Medicaid, and new small business health plans that don't have to provide full benefits required by the Affordable Care Act. (Alonso-Zaldivar, 3/31)
The Hill: Trump's Health Overhaul Efforts Hit Legal Roadblocks
Key aspects of President Trump's health care agenda are struggling to overcome legal challenges in the courts. The administration, unable to repeal ObamaCare or enact conservative changes through Congress, has used its regulatory authority to try to push through changes to the Medicaid program and private insurance. (Weixel, 3/30)
The Hill: Five Major Court Battles Over Trump's Health Agenda
The Trump administration has found itself in court time and time again defending the president’s efforts to overhaul the American health care system. Here’s a rundown of where the major lawsuits stand, from cases challenging the administration’s approval of Medicaid work requirements to a lawsuit arguing the Affordable Care Act is unconstitutional. (Hellmann, 3/31)
The Hill: Mulvaney: No One Will Lose Health Care Coverage If Courts Rule Against ObamaCare
Acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney said Sunday that he could guarantee no Americans would lose health care coverage if President Trump eliminates ObamaCare. “Yes,” he said when asked by ABC's "This Week" host Jon Karl if he could guarantee that those with current health coverage under ObamaCare would keep their coverage even if the administration is successful at getting a court to rule the health law unconstitutional. (Rodrigo, 3/31)
