Biden administration The White House's phantom pandemic office
Congress in December created a new pandemic response office at the White House so that the government doesn't have to frantically search for a czar every time the country faces a public health crisis.
The problem? The White House hasn't gotten around to creating the new office, or even appointing someone to lead it, just a month before the public health emergency ends. White House Covid-19 Response Coordinator Ashish Jha has been publicly saying that it's time for the emergency phase of the pandemic response to end.
But it's unclear what the post-emergency infrastructure will look like. Experts told STAT that the closer the election gets, the harder it will be to stand an office up. Read more in my story out this morning, including a comment from one key lawmaker who is watching the process with great interest.
regulation watch The Biden administration cracks down on Medicare Advantage denials
The Biden administration is moving forward with proposals that would crack down on Medicare Advantage insurers that deny care inappropriately, my colleague Bob Herman reports.
The rule means that if traditional Medicare has to cover a procedure, drug, test or supply, Medicare Advantage plans have to cover it, too.
The federal government also specifically called out the use of algorithms being used to reject care. A recent STAT investigation by Bob and Casey Ross found Medicare Advantage companies increasingly have used unregulated algorithms to determine when they can cut off patients' care. Read more.
congress User fee leftovers on the menu
The buzz on K Street this week is that the Senate could warm up some leftovers from last year's bipartisan user fee package, in a modest new effort that looks likely to include some bipartisan health care policy.
I needed a refresher on some of the Senate user fee policies from last May that didn't make the final cut, so I sorted through all the documentation — and I thought I'd share my work here to make your life easier.
The buzziest unresolved items would give the government authority to regulate diagnostic tests developed in clinical labs (e.g. Theranos), empower the FDA to regulate dietary supplements, and require the FDA to issue regulations allowing drug importation from Canada. Have any ideas on what might actually make it in? Drop me a line!
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