Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Watchdog Finds That Gaps In CMS Oversight Cost Medicare Part B Millions
Axios: Medicare Part B Oversight Gaps Cost Millions Of Dollars
Medicare and its enrollees were unable to realize millions in savings because of gaps in the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' oversight of the Part B program, according to a federal watchdog report released Tuesday. (Reed, 1/4)
Modern Healthcare: HHS Medicaid Rule Clarifies Nonclinical Care Reimbursement
CMS' guidance allows Medicaid agencies to pay for nonclinical services such as housing, nutrition and transportation that would reduce health costs by preventing adverse health events. States must determine such services are appropriate and a cost-effective substitute for medical care. It requires such substitutes, known as in-lieu-of services, be written into managed care contracts and considered when determining payment to private insurers. (Tepper and Hartnett, 1/4)
On drug pricing —
Stat: 3 Drug Pricing Issues To Watch In 2023
The legislative saga on drug pricing is mostly over for now, but drug pricing policy will still offer plenty of controversy in 2023. (Cohrs, 1/5)
Also —
Politico: EPA Advances Hot-Button Air Toxics Rule For Sterilizers
EPA is advancing a long-delayed air regulation to limit the release of a cancer-causing gas from medical sterilization facilities, sending its proposal to the White House for inter-agency review just before Christmas. (Snider, 1/4)
Reuters: Sotomayor Felt 'Shell-Shocked' After U.S. Supreme Court's Abortion Decision
Liberal Justice Sonia Sotomayor on Wednesday told legal educators she felt a "sense of despair" at the direction taken by the U.S. Supreme Court during its previous term, during which its conservative majority overturned the constitutional right to abortion. (Sloan, 1/4)
Stat: Improving Global Access To Medicines: Can Voluntary Licensing Show The Way?
At first blush, the deal was hailed as a breakthrough. Last fall, Novartis agreed to license a best-selling cancer drug so that generic companies could make copies for distribution to 44 low- and middle-income nations, marking the first time a voluntary license was arranged for a cancer medicine. Until then, such deals typically involved drugs for infectious diseases, such as HIV and hepatitis C. One public health official said it might point to a “paradigm shift.” (Silverman, 1/5)
In news relating to Jill Biden —
Axios: Jill Biden To Have Lesion Removed Above Right Eye In Surgery
First Lady Jill Biden will undergo surgery to remove a small lesion found above her right eye after a routine eye cancer screening, the White House said Wednesday. The procedure, recommended in an abundance of caution, is scheduled for next Wednesday at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. "We will offer an update after the procedure is completed and we have more information," Kevin O'Connor, physician to the president, wrote in a memo. (Chen, 1/4)
Meanwhile, in developments concerning Florida's Surgeon General —
Washington Post: Fla. Surgeon General Used ‘Flawed’ Vaccine Science, Faculty Peers Say
Joseph A. Ladapo, a professor of medicine at the University of Florida and the state’s surgeon general, relied upon a flawed analysis and may have violated university research integrity rules when he issued guidance last fall discouraging young men from receiving common coronavirus vaccines, according to a report from a medical school faculty task force. But the university says it has no plans to investigate the matter. (Stripling, 1/4)
Politico: UF Won’t Probe Ladapo After Faculty Question ‘Careless And Contentious’ Vaccine Research
The University of Florida has declined to investigate claims raised by its medical faculty alleging that Covid-19 vaccine research led by controversial state Surgeon General Joseph A. Ladapo was “seriously flawed.” (Atterbury, 1/4)
