Senate Republicans are showing early divisions over what to do about ObamaCare’s protections for people with pre-existing conditions.
Some conservatives, including Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah), want to simply repeal those provisions and other ObamaCare regulations and leave them up to the states.
But advocates of a more centrist approach, like Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), are speaking out in favor of pre-existing condition protections and endorsing a “Jimmy Kimmel test” for the bill, where no one can be denied coverage.
{mosads}Other senators are exploring a middle ground where states would have to automatically enroll people in health insurance before they could get a waiver for the regulations, though conservatives object to that idea as Washington overreach.
The disagreements over what to do about preexisting conditions point to the larger difficulty facing Senate Republicans as they seek to find consensus on a host of contentious issues in the healthcare bill.
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Trump backtracks on cuts to anti-drug office
President Trump has reversed course on a proposal to nearly eliminate the nation’s anti-drug office in the face of opposition from Democrats, Republicans and advocates.
The president’s budget, released Tuesday, reduces funding for the Office of National Drug Policy (ONDCP) by $11 million, a 3 percent cut.
According to a document sent to The Hill, the White House just weeks ago had floated slashing the ONDCP’s budget by nearly 95 percent.
Read more here: http://bit.ly/2rxGpNt
Trump’s $5.8 billion cut to NIH encounters swift opposition
The House Republican overseeing the purse strings for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is pushing back on President Trump’s proposed funding cuts for the agency.
Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.) said he didn’t think the decrease in funding would survive in Congress, saying, “I don’t think it’s a wise choice.”
“I certainly understand wanting to plus up defense, but you have to remember part of defending the American people is protecting them from pandemics,” said Cole, the chairman of the House health appropriations subcommittee. “Part of getting hold of the long-term expenses of the federal government is dealing with things like Alzheimer’s.”
Read more here: http://bit.ly/2rxsF5t
GOP senators meet with insurer for input on ObamaCare repeal
The Senate’s working group on healthcare Tuesday met with Blue Cross Blue Shield as Republicans look to get input on their ObamaCare repeal bill.
“We really focused on the insurance aspect — how do we build a plan that works for the insurers in terms of making sure they participate and helping keep premium costs down?” said Sen. John Hoeven (R-N.D.).
Insurance companies have also been pushing for the continued funding of ObamaCare’s cost-sharing reduction subsidies, which reimburse insurers for giving discounted deductibles to low-income enrollees.
Insurers have threatened to pull out of the insurance market or raise premiums substantially if the payments aren’t funded.
Read more here: http://bit.ly/2rQS0Ur
Trump budget makes heavy cuts to science research
President Trump’s fiscal 2018 budget unveiled Tuesday proposes massive cuts for the National Science Foundation.
The plan would cut $776 million, an 11 percent reduction, from the foundation, which gives grants for non-medical research in science and engineering.
Mick Mulvaney, the director of the Office of Management and Budget, defended the proposal, accusing the foundation of wasteful spending.
Read more here: http://bit.ly/2q8laCa
Mnuchin pressed on Trump’s promise not to cut Medicaid
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin was pressed Tuesday about President Trump’s broken campaign promise not to cut Medicaid to reduce healthcare costs.
Trump’s budget, released Tuesday, includes $1.4 trillion in cuts to Medicaid over 10 years, thought the president promised repeatedly while campaigning that he wouldn’t slash Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid benefits for current recipients.
Mnuchin said at the Peter G. Peterson Foundation fiscal forum Tuesday that Trump is trying to reduce healthcare costs, though he didn’t specify how cutting insurance assistance for needy families would do that.
Read more here: http://bit.ly/2qe7KAz
What we’re reading
Trump budget contains little on drug prices despite tough talk (Bloomberg)
GOP senator slams his party’s process for crafting healthcare bill (Huffington Post)
W.H.O. elects Ethiopia’s Tedros as new director general (New York Times)
State by state
Health debate heats up in Montana for this week’s special election (Montana Public Radio)
Privatized Medicaid appears to be saving Iowa money, but is it real? (Des Moines Register)
Will Jerry Brown expand healthcare to undocumented adults in California (Sacramento Bee)