Overnight Health Care: Dem senators offer ‘Medicare X’ bill | McConnell tells Trump Senate won’t take up ObamaCare repeal | Insulin makers to testify | Scalise moves to force vote on abortion bill
Welcome to Tuesday’s Overnight Health Care.
It’s been a busy day. Mitch McConnell says he put the kibosh on President Trump’s efforts to get Congress to return to ObamaCare repeal and replace. Republicans are eager to move on to other issues, like abortion. Meanwhile, moderate Senate Democrats have re-introduced a public option health plan.
We’ll start with a new version of old legislation:
Bennet, Kaine offer ‘Medicare X’ plan for public option
Two Democratic senators rolled out a proposal Tuesday that would allow anyone to buy Medicare plans, a blueprint they say is more realistic for implementing than Medicare for all, which would eliminate private insurance companies and reshape the American health care system.
The introduction of “Medicare X” comes as the Democratic Party debates its next steps on health care, with the left wing of the caucus pushing for a single-payer system and more moderate members supporting efforts to strengthen the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
{mosads}”I just think this is a much more practical way of trying to achieve the objective of universal coverage, and over time, a reduction in our expenditures on health care, then practically any other proposal that’s been made since the ACA was passed,” said Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), who is weighing a run for president and sponsored the bill with Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Hillary Clinton’s running mate in 2016.
Why it matters: It shows yet another divide within the Democratic party about what the next steps should be on health care. While Medicare for all has been embraced by several 2020 presidential contenders, some would likely say this bill doesn’t go far enough.
As Kaine said in the call, the bill “preserves everything about the existing system.” But that would face opposition from progressive Democrats who consider the current ‘system’ to be the problem with rising health costs in the U.S.
Context: This is just one of many proposals to expand Medicare but will likely be part of the discussion should Democrats gain more power in the 2020 elections.
Democrats rally at Supreme Court ahead of ObamaCare vote
House and Senate Democrats rallied on the steps of the Supreme Court Tuesday ahead of a vote on a resolution asking the Department of Justice (DOJ) to reverse its decision to side with a lower court ruling ObamaCare unconstitutional.
The symbolic resolution will likely pass the Democratic-controlled House Wednesday, but it won’t get a vote in the Senate, where Republicans are in the majority.
But it gives Democrats another chance to highlight the Trump administration’s efforts to repeal ObamaCare, which they see as a winning issue ahead of the 2020 elections.
“We need our Republican colleagues to come to the table and defend their constituents instead of the president,” said Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), the Senate sponsor of the resolution.
Why it matters: Democrats want to keep drawing attention to the Trump administration’s actions in the ObamaCare lawsuit, viewing it as a winning issue ahead of 2020. The House will also vote on the resolution tomorrow, forcing Republicans to take another hard vote on health care.
The other side: Republicans note that the resolution is meaningless, and argue that Democrats aren’t actually doing anything to protect people should the law be struck down. Republicans have been pushing for a vote on a bill that they say would protect people with pre-existing conditions, but Democrats said it doesn’t go far enough.
McConnell to Trump: We’re not repealing and replacing ObamaCare
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is making it clear that he does not want to dive back into the ObamaCare repeal debate that ended in failure for his party in 2017.
McConnell told President Trump in a conversation Monday that the Senate will not be moving comprehensive health care legislation before the 2020 election, despite the president asking Senate Republicans to do that in a meeting last week.
“We had a good conversation yesterday afternoon and I pointed out to him the Senate Republicans’ view on dealing with comprehensive health care reform with a Democratic House of Representatives,” McConnell told reporters Tuesday, describing his conversation with Trump.
The politics: With Democratic control of the House, there is no chance of actually signing into law ObamaCare repeal legislation before 2021. Therefore, reopening the debate means diving back into an issue that divides Republicans and galvanizes Democrats.
What to watch for: McConnell and other Republicans will try to keep the attention on Medicare for all, which they see as a political loser for Democrats.
Another issue where the GOP wants to put the focus instead… abortion. Steve Scalise is moving to force a floor vote on an abortion bill.
House Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) on Tuesday took a step toward forcing a floor vote on legislation that would require medical care protections for infants that survive an abortion.
Introduction of the discharge petition is the latest attempt by Republicans to circumvent Democratic control of the House floor and force members across the aisle to cast a vote on a politically divisive topic.
“It should be the easiest decision to make, to sign the discharge petition,” Scalise told The Hill. “Whether you’re pro-life or pro-choice you should be able to stand up for babies who were born alive outside the womb.”
But opponents of the bill, like Planned Parenthood, say it’s an effort to criminalize doctors and further stigmatize abortion.
“Today’s filing was yet another out of touch attack on women’s health and rights – based on dangerous lies,” said Jacqueline Ayers, vice president of government relations for Planned Parenthood.
“Republican leadership is shaming women and criminalizing doctors for a practice that doesn’t exist in reality.
Insulin manufacturers to testify as part of House pricing probe
The only three companies that manufacture insulin in the United States will testify in the House next week about their pricing practices.
Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.), chairwoman of the House Energy and Commerce oversight subcommittee, said the three companies– Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk and Sanofi– will testify April 10.
“We want to know why the cost of this life-saving drug has skyrocketed in recent years, and why they’re not offering more lower-cost alternatives to patients,” DeGette said.
The hearing will be the committee’s second in two weeks examining rising insulin prices, and what Congress can do to make the drug more affordable.
Degette said the panel will also hear from the three largest pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) about their role.
Drug pricing is complicated: Drugmakers say the list price of insulin isn’t what patients actually pay, because secret rebates negotiated by pharmacy benefit managers will reduce it.
Insurers say they spread the savings from discounts to lower overall premiums. For the first time, there are bipartisan and bicameral probes from the top health care committees to get to the bottom of it.
Former Massachusetts AG joins e-cigarette maker Juul
Former Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley (D) is joining the government affairs team at e-cigarette maker Juul, the company said Tuesday.
Coakley, who previously lost races for Senate and governor in Massachusetts, will be working primarily with state officials, regulators and organizations to educate them on ways Juul is fighting underage use.
She had been advising Juul for several months as a partner at the law firm Foley Hoag.
Juul is the country’s most dominant vaping manufacturer. Late last year, the country’s largest cigarette company, Altria, which makes Marlboro cigarettes, spent more than $12 billion to buy a 35 percent stake in Juul.
Meanwhile: Coakley’s successor, Maura Healey, is currently investigating Juul and other online e-cigarette retailers over concerns about the marketing and sale of e-cigarettes to minors.
HHS inspector general resigns
Daniel Levinson, the head of the agency’s watchdog division, announced Tuesday he will be stepping down from his position effective at the end of May. Levinson served for 15 years. Principal Deputy Inspector General Joanne Chiedl, who has worked alongside Levinson for nine years, will step in as acting inspector general on June 1.
“Dan Levinson has been a valued friend and colleague since our time together beginning at HHS in the 2000s, and all of HHS is grateful for his more than three decades of federal service,” Secretary Alex Azar said in a statement.
What we’re reading
Mick Mulvaney’s nonsensical math on ObamaCare (The Washington Post)
Cory Booker says the filibuster saved ObamaCare. Is he imagining things? (Slate)
CBD is getting buzz, but does it work? And is it legal? (Associated Press)
Trump retreats on health care, saying Republican plan will appear only after the 2020 election (The New York Times)
Skimpy health plans touted by Trump bring back familiar woes for consumers (Los Angeles Times)
State by state
Tennessee erased insurance for at least 128,000 kids. Many parents don’t know (The Tennessean)
Altered hemp bill sails through Idaho Senate, but House members are not happy (Idaho Statesman)
Louisiana governor shelves Medicaid work requirement idea (Associated Press)
From The Hill’s opinion page:
New guidelines for family planning centers mandate bad medicine
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Harris calls for ending filibuster for abortion rights
