Taking the Pulse, A Health Care and Life Sciences Video Podcast | Episode 187: South Carolina Hospitals and Healthcare Industry Trends with Thornton Kirby, SCHA President
On the afternoon of July 4, President Trump signed into law H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act – comprehensive budget reconciliation legislation that represents the core of President’s second-term domestic agenda and...more
Welcome trends in health care put bad news in perspective We've had plenty of gloom-and-doom news about health care lately, but as we near the year-end holidays that focus on giving thanks, let's look at some positive...more
Tuesday’s midterm elections showed that healthcare is now a top issue among voters, according to exit polls. In an NBC News poll, healthcare was the top issue for a plurality of voters, ahead of the economy, immigration, and...more
Healthcare was a top voter priority in the 2018 midterm elections, with 41 percent of national voters stating that healthcare was their "most important" issue. Accordingly, the Democratic strategy to focus on healthcare...more
Last week’s election leaves two questions lingering about health care: Will politicians really hear what voters said? And, what help might beleaguered patients now expect from their elected officials?...more
The evidence accumulates that partisans’ persistent attacks on the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid run counter to their constituents’ needs and wishes, but will Republicans course-correct or will voters soon force them to?...more
To date, 34 states (including D.C.) have adopted Medicaid expansion. Of the remaining 17 states, some are considering expanding Medicaid. States with recent activity relating to Medicaid expansion include Florida, Idaho,...more
Let’s give the faintest cheer — maybe of the Bronx variety — to the Republican-controlled Congress for, finally, reauthorizing the Children’s Health Insurance Program, aka CHIP....more
Legislature Sustains Governor's Veto of Marijuana Implementation Legislation - On Monday, November 6, the Legislature met for the second day of the Special Session to take up the Governor’s veto of the marijuana...more
Congress is now back in session and, once again, focus has turned to health care. With all eyes on returning health care reform to the forefront, a flurry of activity has sparked new legislative efforts including the...more
Under the Dome: Inside the Maine State House provides a high-level overview of recent activity at the Maine State House. Republicans Challenge Wording of Medicaid Expansion Question on Fall Ballot - Question 2 on...more
After weeks of secrecy, the Senate has released a discussion draft of legislation that is the counterpart of the American Health Care Act (AHCA) previously passed by the House. The Senate legislation, entitled the Better Care...more
U.S. Senate Republicans on June 22, 2017, unveiled a "discussion draft" of their healthcare plan, the Better Care Reconciliation Act. This memorandum provides highlights of key provisions. The Congressional Budget Office...more
On June 22, 2017, Senate Republicans released a discussion draft of their proposal to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA), titled the “Better Care Reconciliation Act of 2017” (BCRA). Beyond the title change,...more
On June 22, 2017, Senate Republicans released a draft of the Better Care Reconciliation Act (BCRA), their much-anticipated version of the legislation to "repeal and replace" the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Despite rumors of a...more
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell recently gave a candid assessment of the chances of getting an Affordable Care Act (ACA) replacement bill through the Senate, saying “I don’t know how we get to 50 (votes) at the...more
The stunning failure of the U.S. House of Representatives to pass the American Health Care Act (AHCA) (which we previously reported on here) has political and policy implications that we cannot forecast. Nor it is it clear to...more
Republicans have long fumed about the federal government’s role in health care, ever since Medicare for the elderly and Medicaid for the poor were both passed in 1965. Now, though, we’re at a crossroads, where a frontal...more
With Congress back in session, attention in the health care policy universe is directed squarely at Washington, where Republicans in Congress and the Trump Administration are debating how to repeal and replace the Affordable...more
President-elect Trump has stated repeatedly that one of his initial goals is to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (the "ACA"). Because the Republicans control both houses of Congress, it seems likely that a repeal...more
Bicameral Bill Introduced to Provide HHS Authority to Reject Proposed Insurance Rates - Before Congress left for its Columbus Day recess, Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) and Sen. Diane Feinstein (D-CA) introduced the Health...more
On Oct. 8, the House Republican caucus did not select a candidate for Speaker of the House and selection has been delayed. The current Speaker, John Boehner (R-OH), had announced that he would step down and retire from...more
This Week: Congress Avoids a Government Shutdown... House and Senate Approves Measure to Expand the Affordable Care (ACA) Act Small Group Market to 100 Employees...Affordable Care Act (ACA) Health Insurers to Receive Only...more
This Week: House E&C Releases Discussion Draft of 21st Century Cures Legislation Ahead of Legislative Hearing... FDA Finalizes Biosimilar Guidance Documents... CMS Updates Wage Index and Payment Rates for the Medicare Hospice...more
This Week: Bipartisan, Bicameral Permanent SGR Fix Introduced... House Budget Committee Advances FY2016 Budget Proposal... National Coverage Determinations Proposed for Removal... HHS Releases Proposed Rules on EHR Incentive...more