Health Care Checkup: April 23, 2021

Health Care Checkup

April 23, 2021

THE BIG PICTURE

Also this week, lawmakers introduced bills aimed at lowering the cost of prescription drugs. On Wednesday, House Energy and Commerce Committee Ranking Member Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), Ways and Means Committee Ranking Member Kevin Brady (R-TX), and Education and Labor and Committee Ranking Member Virginia Foxx (R-NC) released the Lower Costs, More Cures Act (H.R. 19). On Thursday, Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone Jr. (D-NJ), Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard E. Neal (D-MA), and Education and Labor Committee Chairman Bobby Scott (D-VA) reintroduced H.R. 3, the Elijah E. Cummings Lower Drug Costs Now Act.

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will make $80 million available in grants to Navigators in Federal Marketplaces for the 2022 plan year. Navigators are “a network of trained individuals that help consumers review their health coverage options as well as complete eligibility and enrollment forms.” The funding allocation, which is an eightfold increase from the previous year, is the largest amount ever devoted to the Navigator program.

What to Expect Next Week: President Biden is slated to address a joint session of Congress on Wednesday, April 28. There will also be several health-related Congressional hearings on Wednesday, including a Senate HELP hearing, titled "Examining Our COVID-19 Response: Using Lessons Learned to Address Mental Health and Substance Use Disorders." Additionally, the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health will hold a hearing, titled "The Long Haul: Forging a Path through the Lingering Effects of COVID-19."

DEEP DIVE

Biden Administration Calls on All Employers to Provide Paid Time Off for Employees to Get Vaccinated Against COVID-19

This week, the Biden Administration called on employers to give their employees paid time off to get the COVID-19 vaccine. President Biden announced a paid leave tax credit to offset the cost for employers with fewer than 500 employees. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released a fact sheet to help educate employers on how to claim the paid sick leave credit on their quarterly tax filings. The tax credit was signed into law in the American Rescue Plan and “will apply to nearly half of all private sector employees in America.” The President announced his expectation that we will meet his goal of 200 million shots administered in 100 days by Thursday, April 22, 2021. The President met his original goal of 100 million shots in 100 days on the 58^th day of his presidency.

Lawmakers Introduce Bills Aimed at Lowering Prescription Drug Prices

On Wednesday, House Energy and Commerce Committee Ranking Member Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), Ways and Means Committee Ranking Member Kevin Brady (R-TX), and Education and Labor and Committee Ranking Member Virginia Foxx (R-NC) released the Lower Costs, More Cures Act (H.R. 19). The legislation is aimed at lowering drug costs, without “limiting access to cures.” The bill would also cap prices for drugs like insulin for Medicare Part D beneficiaries. The sponsors of the bill circulated a letter on Wednesday to their Republican colleagues, suggesting the bill is an alternative to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s drug pricing bill (H.R. 3) from the 116^th Congress. A section-by-section summary of the Lower Costs, More Cures Act can be found here.

On Thursday, Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone Jr. (D-NJ), Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard E. Neal (D-MA), and Education and Labor Committee Chairman Bobby Scott (D-VA) reintroduced H.R. 3, the Elijah E. Cummings Lower Drug Costs Now Act. The Democratic Congressmen said that, “The historic legislation would empower the federal government to negotiate the cost of prescription drugs, put an end to Americans paying three or four times more for medicine than people in other countries, reverse years of unfair price hikes, and cap seniors’ out-of-pocket costs for prescription drugs at $2,000 per year.” In their announcement, the lawmakers referenced a Gallup poll, which found that approximately nine in ten Americans support direct negotiations by the federal government with drug manufacturers on the prices of prescription drugs.

HHS Announces $80 Million in Grants to Help Fund the Navigator Program

On Wednesday, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will make $80 million available in grants to Navigators in Federal Marketplaces for the 2022 plan year. Navigators are “a network of trained individuals that help consumers review their health coverage options as well as complete eligibility and enrollment forms.” The funding allocation, which is an eightfold increase from the previous year, is the largest amount ever devoted to the Navigator program. They connect vulnerable populations lacking health insurance with needed resources to help people gain coverage through the Federal Marketplace. The Biden Administration opened a Special Enrollment Period (SEP) for the Marketplace to help Americans gain health coverage during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The SEP, which will run until August 15, 2021, has already helped 500,000 Americans gain health coverage. In a statement, HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra said, “Navigators play a key role in helping us educate consumers about health plan options. Today’s announcement builds upon the steps the Administration has taken to ensure individuals and families can access quality, affordable health coverage during the COVID-19 pandemic.”

Debate Continues Over the Scheduling of Fentanyl Analogues

Fentanyl analogues, highly addictive synthetic opioids, are currently classified as Schedule I substances under the Temporary Reauthorization and Study of the Emergency Scheduling of Fentanyl Analogues Act. The Act, which was signed into law by former President Donald Trump, extended the temporary ban on fentanyl analogues until May 6, 2021. With the temporary extension soon expiring, lawmakers are still debating how best to handle the scheduling of these illicit substances. On Tuesday, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) advocated for the ban to be made permanent during remarks on the Senate floor. A bill in the House, H.R. 2630, would extend the ban until September 2021. In the Senate, Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), and John Cornyn (R-TX) introduced their own legislation, S. 1216, which would continue the drug’s temporary Schedule I classification until July 6, 2022. While many lawmakers have pushed for the illicit substances to either be permanently banned or temporarily banned, over 100 organizations, including the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), have pushed for restrictions on fentanyl analogues to be lifted, as they claim that continuing the policy will increase drug-related prosecutions.

Biden’s Health Nominees Proceed to Confirmation Votes

On Thursday, the Senate Finance Committee voted to advance the nominations of Chiquita Brooks-LaSure and Andrea Palm. Brooks-LaSure was nominated by President Biden to lead CMS and Andrea Palm was nominated by the President to serve as Deputy Secretary of HHS. The Committee voted 20-8 to advance Palm and 14-14 to advance Brooks-LaSure. Earlier this week, Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) put a hold on Brooks-LaSure’s nomination. The move came days after the Biden Administration revoked the extension of Texas’s Medicaid waiver that provided billions of dollars to Texas hospitals for uninsured patients’ care. The waiver was granted in the final days of the Trump Administration and did not undergo the typical public notice and comment period. CMS wrote a letter to Texas last Friday and revoked the waiver. In response to the Administration’s decision, Cornyn is blocking the Senate confirmation of Brooks-LaSure. A spokesperson for the Senator said on Tuesday that Cornyn is waiting to see if CMS reverses its decision on the waiver. While the Senator’s hold is expected to slow Brooks-LaSure’s nomination by requiring additional floor time, it will not block it. Leader Schumer is expected to file a discharge petition process to bring the nomination to the floor (similar to how he brought now HHS Secretary Becerra’s nomination to the floor after Becerra also deadlocked in the Finance Committee).

Tennessee Sued Over Trump-era Medicaid Block Grant

Tennessee is being sued over a Medicaid block grant that was approved in the waning days of the Trump Administration. The National Health Law Program, along with the Tennessee Justice Center are leading a lawsuit against the state. The suit alleges that the plaintiffs in the case, thirteen individuals with disabilities, “will see their access to health care suffer under the new project, and have been denied the opportunity to submit comments opposing the project.” The block grant, which was approved on January 8, 2021 for a ten-year extension, caps Medicaid funding for the state. While the Biden Administration has not yet rolled the grant back, it is expected that it will.

COVID-19 Vaccine Updates

On Friday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) is meeting to further discuss the safety of Johnson & Johnson’s (J&J) COVID-19 vaccine. It is expected that the Committee will vote on a recommendation for the vaccine at Friday’s meeting. Administration of J&J’s vaccine has been halted in the U.S. due to cases of a rare blood clot disorder that occurred in some individuals who received the vaccine.

This week, Dr. Ozlem Tureci, the co-founder and Chief Medical Officer of BioNTech, the company that developed the Pfizer vaccine, said that a third dose of the vaccine will likely be needed as immunity eventually wanes. While both Pfizer and Moderna’s COVID vaccines have been shown to remain highly effective at the six-month mark, scientists and physicians expect that the protections offered by the vaccines will eventually diminish and that it is likely a third shot will be needed.

SENATE HEARINGS AND EXECUTIVE SESSIONS

Senate Appropriations Committee - Hearing

Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: Addressing Health Disparities in Indian Country: Review of the Indian Health Service’s COVID Response and Future Needs

Wednesday, April 28 at 10:00 AM ET

Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee - Hearing

Full Committee Hearing: "Examining Our COVID-19 Response: Using Lessons Learned to Address Mental Health and Substance Use Disorders."

Wednesday, April 28 at 10:00 AM ET

Senate Appropriations Committee - Hearing

Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies: VA Telehealth Program: Leveraging Recent Investments to Build Future Capacity

Wednesday, April 28 at 3:00 PM ET