OVERNIGHT HEALTH: Obama threatens to veto GOP abortion bill

Read more about the veto threat at Healthwatch.

Pay for delay: A divided U.S. Supreme Court ruled Monday that some “pay-for-delay” settlements between drug companies and their competitors violate antitrust laws. The 5-3 decision, a limited victory for the Obama administration, paves the way for federal regulators to challenge such deals in court.

{mosads}Pay-for-delay settlements typically occur when a company develops and patents a new drug to be released into the marketplace. Competitors that wish to introduce a generic version often challenge the patent. Rather than fight the challenge, patent-holding drugmakers have found it more lucrative to simply pay the competitor to keep generics off the market. The two firms then share monopoly profits that are, in some cases, much higher than open competition would yield, critics charge.

Read more at The Hill’s RegWatch blog. 

Questions on ObamaCare? You might need to call the White House. Some Republicans indicated to The Hill last week that they will not assist constituents in navigating the law and obtaining benefits. Others said they would tell people to call the Department of Health and Human Services.

People regularly call their representatives for help with Medicare, Social Security and other government programs. Yet, Republicans believe healthcare reform spells doom for the federal budget, private businesses and the U.S. healthcare system. They’re also enormously frustrated that the law has persevered through two elections and a Supreme Court challenge and believe a botched implementation could help build momentum for the repeal movement.

Read more at The Hill’s Healthwatch blog.

Issa subpoena: House Oversight Committee Chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) subpoenaed documents from a controversial ObamaCare program on Friday after charging that the Obama administration had denied his request several times. The committee is seeking information on a federal attempt to boost nonprofit health plans known as Consumer Oriented and Operated Plans (CO-OPs), which compete with traditional health insurance. The Affordable Care Act created a $3.4 billion federal loan program for CO-OPs that Republicans say might never be repaid because of some applicants’ financial troubles.

Read more at The Hill’s Healthwatch blog.

First ad: The political advocacy group born from President Obama’s reelection campaign debuted its first television advertisement Monday: a spot designed to highlight the benefits of his signature healthcare law. The 30-second campaign-style spot from Organizing for Action (OFA) features Americans who say they have benefited from the legislation, profiling a doctor who is treating more seniors and a man who received a rebate from his insurer.

“Better coverage and lower costs, that’s what ObamaCare means for them,” the ad’s narrator says.

See the video and read more at The Hill’s Video section.

Tuesday’s schedule

The Senate Finance Committee will meet to consider the state of healthcare costs in the United States, particularly why patients rarely know what they are. Witnesses will include Steven Brill, a contributing editor at Time magazine who wrote an influential piece on the issue, and several other experts.

The Senate Appropriations subcommittee governing the Food and Drug Administration will hold a business meeting to mark up a 2014 appropriations bill for Agriculture and the FDA.

The House Energy and Commerce subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations will look at the BioWatch program, which is designed to provide warnings about potential biological attacks. Republicans are worried that the costly program is ineffective.

The House Ways and Means subcommittee on Human Resources will look at the welfare system and how it helps — and fails — poor families.

Tuesday will be a big day for cancer patients and advocates as they gather to lobby congressional offices. Hundreds of people organized by the Alliance for Childhood Cancer and the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network will urge lawmakers to protect funding for cancer research and to stop the sequester’s cuts to the National Institutes of Health.

State by state

Arizona’s GOP governor signs Medicaid expansion

Va. Medicaid commission meets for first time

Tea Party threatens Mich. GOP lawmakers with primary battles over Medicaid

NH House, Senate negotiating over budget

Lobbying registrations

Peck Madigan Jones /  BioCryst Pharmaceuticals

Tiber Creek Health Strategies / BioCryst Pharmaceuticals

Reading list

Should physician pay be tied to performance?

Former CMS chief to run for Mass. governor

Medtronic’s Infuse no better than bone graft with risk

What you might have missed on Healthwatch

Liberty Mutual lures lobbyist from Citigroup

Lawmakers request review of mental health programs

New regs for Tuesday include ObamaCare exchange guidelines

NRSC hits Senate Dems on IRS, Obamacare

Week ahead: Abortion bill heads to House floor

Comments / complaints / suggestions?

Please let us know:

Sam Baker: sbaker@digital-staging.thehill.com / 202-628-8351

Elise Viebeck: eviebeck@digital-staging.thehill.com / 202-628-8523

Follow us on Twitter @hillhealthwatch