| |   | Happy recess week, D.C. Diagnosis readers! Enjoy the quiet, as this summer could heat up fast if Democrats’ reconciliation talks pick up momentum. If you’re in the mood to listen to even more health policy news, subscribe to the What the Health podcast. You’ll find myself and other D.C. reporters chatting all about the biggest health policy news. New episodes come out every Thursday afternoon. | | | How Covid-19 prepared the White House for monkeypox  White House Special Assistant to the President Raj Panjabi (Getty Images) The White House hasn’t always had an official point person for infectious disease threats over the past two decades. It’s been the subject of a whole lot of drama, in fact. But the Biden team does have a top global health and biodefense official, and he has a big new challenge in the ongoing monkeypox outbreak. Raj Panjabi, a physician and longtime public health professional, worked in Liberia during the Ebola epidemic and served as President Biden’s malaria coordinator before he joined the National Security Council in February. He sat down with me to talk about how the Covid-19 pandemic has informed the White House’s response to monkeypox, writing a new pandemic playbook, and how he’s hoping to squeeze $88 billion out of Congress. Read the conversation here. | Collins: Lander's fall from grace 'heartbreaking' Francis Collins never foresaw the workplace-abuse scandal that led to Eric Lander's ouster as White House science adviser, he said Wednesday.
"His resignation was heartbreaking," Collins told STAT's Lev Facher in an interview this week. "Here's a guy of enormous talent and vision who I have had the privilege of working with for over 20 years. ... [I] certainly did not expect that this was the way it would turn out."
Lander, a longtime Collins collaborator on the Human Genome Project, resigned in February after OSTP aides accused him of verbal abuse and demeaning behavior. His absence led President Biden to tap Collins, who'd stepped down only months before as director of the National Institutes of Health, as Lander's temporary replacement. Collins has remained in touch with Lander since then, he said, calling the situation "a very difficult outcome for him and his wife Lori." | Doctors could take their surprise billing dispute to the ballot box  Molly Ferguson for STAT Doctors have long resented the Biden administration’s interpretation of Congress’ surprise billing ban, and my colleague Bob Herman reports on a new tactic they could use to protect their profits — taking their cause to the ballot box. The Arizona Medical Association, which has been the leading force behind the ballot measure, decided last month to postpone their effort to include the initiative on this year’s midterm ballot. Envision Healthcare, a large physician staffing firm owned by private equity giant KKR, has also been involved with the ballot measure. The effort could be a template for disgruntled physicians in other states to find a new avenue to escalate a yearslong conflict between insurers, providers and the federal government. Read more. | Sign up for our free pop-up newsletter: ADA in 30 seconds Get insightful analysis of the data presented at the conference of the American Diabetes Association with this newsletter. STAT will be on top of all the news out of the event and will recap the most important advances in research and care for you from June 4-6. Sign up now. | House Republicans are telling us exactly what their health care agenda is As the midterm elections get closer, the question of what exactly House Republicans want to do on health care pollicy looms larger. It’s flying under the radar now, but a task force made up of key GOP lawmakers is churning out a series of policy white papers that give a pretty detailed blueprint into what they’re hoping to do with power should they get it.
The group, dubbed the “Healthy Future Task Force,” includes Energy & Commerce health care subcommittee ranking member Brett Guthrie (R-Ky.) and contender for the Ways & Means chair next year Vern Buchanan (R-Fla.). Their latest report details their plans for the future of telehealth, including permanently allowing seniors to access telehealth from their homes. Past reports detail their ideas for drug pricing and public health. | Getting in Joe Manchin’s head on drug pricing Washington’s favorite parlor game this Congress has been guessing what policies Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) could support in a reconciliation package. Your D.C. Diagnosis author has, for the last 16 months, listened to a whole lot of Manchin tape, and the senator’s comments at an AARP event in West Virginia this week were a marked shift from what I’ve heard before.
“Drug pricing is something we all agree on. If we do nothing else this year, and I think we can do a lot more, but if we do nothing more this year, that is the one thing that must be done,” Manchin said. That’s quite distinct from his stance a few weeks ago that without tax reform, nothing goes forward. | What we're reading -
Justice Department says sweeping lab test fraud in Texas involved dozens of doctors and front companies, STAT -
Lawmakers will basically have to start from square one on how to pay for a stalled Covid aid package, POLITICO -
‘Nobody wants to mess this up’: A WHO official weighs in on the challenges of responding to monkeypox, STAT -
Pandemic restrictions led to lower rates of breastfeeding, which is exacerbating the baby formula shortage, Wall Street Journal - Theranos whistleblower Tyler Shultz on lessons learned, venture capital, and shutting down his own business, STAT
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