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Congressional:
House Passes Budget Resolution
On Tuesday, the House passed the Republican FY25 budget resolution (H.Con.Res.14) by a vote of 217-215. Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) was the only Republican to vote no. The House budget resolution would allow for $4.5 trillion in tax cuts, border, and defense spending paired with $2 trillion deficit-reduction measures and an increase in the statutory federal borrowing cap. The House Energy and Commerce Committee has been instructed to find at least $880 billion in spending reductions over a decade.
In an interview with CNN Wednesday night, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) ruled out putting per-capita caps on Medicaid in the eventual budget reconciliation bill. He also said that changes to the Federal Medical Assistance Percentage are off the table, stating, “We’re not going to cut into those programs that way.” He noted that, “We’re talking about finding efficiencies in every program, not cutting benefits for people who rightly deserve them.”
Last week, the Senate passed its "skinny" budget resolution, which is different from the House version. The House and the Senate will need to resolve differences in their budgets before the reconciliation process can begin. This will require additional votes on a budget resolution in both chambers.
House Energy & Commerce Health Subcommittee Holds Hearing on PBMs
On Wednesday, the House Energy & Commerce Committee held a hearing on pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs). During the hearing, both Republicans and Democrats pointed to the anticompetitive behavior of PBMs and an increase in drug prices for consumers. Health Subcommittee Chair Buddy Carter (R-GA) conceded uncertainty as to the next steps for the PBM legislation but remarked, “I can assure you it will be cleared up soon.” Democrats underscored that comprehensive PBM reform legislation was ready to go last Congress and noted that it was ultimately dropped from a year-end spending package. Ranking Member Diana DeGette (D-CO) stated, “Here we are again, we're just talking in a topical hearing yet again about reforms we all agree upon, rather than just passing those reforms and moving onto other pressing business.” Democrats also noted that PBM reform alone would not fix healthcare issues if Medicaid and other social programs faced cuts and warned that Republican-led efforts to reduce Medicaid funding would harm millions. Read the witness testimonies here.
Senate HELP Committee Announces Confirmation Hearings for Jay Bhattacharya to lead NIH and Martin Makary to be FDA Commissioner
This week, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee announced the confirmation hearings for Jay Bhattacharya to be Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and Dr. Martin Makary to be Commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Bhattacharya’s hearing will be held on Wednesday, March 5, at 10 AM. Cassidy expressed support for Bhattacharya last week after meeting with him, posting on X, “Excellent conversation with Dr. Jay. He has a vision to restore faith in medical research for the American people, protect and improve the institution, and better distribute the benefits.” Dr. Makary’s nomination hearing will be held on Thursday, March 6, at 10:00 AM.
Sen. Grassley Pushes for Answers on UnitedHealth Group’s Medicare Advantage Billing Practices
On Tuesday, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and a former Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, sent a letter to UnitedHealth Group Chief Executive Officer Andrew Witty asking for detailed information on the company’s Medicare billing practices. Grassley’s letter cited reports of apparent fraud, waste, and abuse at UnitedHealth Group, including efforts to diagnose enrollees with obscure revenue-generating diagnoses that were irrelevant or inaccurate. In the letter, Grassley wrote, “Despite these oversight efforts, [Medicare Advantage Organizations] continue to defraud the American taxpayer, costing them billions of dollars a year. The apparent fraud, waste, and abuse at issue is simply unacceptable and harms not only Medicare beneficiaries, but also the American taxpayer.” Grassley requested that UnitedHealth provide its training manuals, guidance documents, compliance program details, audit results, and other documents. Read the press release and letter here.
Notable Bills Introduced:
Sens. Capito, Klobuchar Introduce Legislation to Increase Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Care Access
On Thursday, Senators Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) introduced the Increasing Access to Quality Cardiac Rehabilitation Care Act of 2025. The bipartisan legislation would expand and expedite access to cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation services by authorizing physician assistants, nurse practitioners, and clinical nurse specialists to order cardiac rehabilitation. Read the press release here and the bill here.
Grassley, Bennet Launch Bill to Improve Kids’ Access to Life-Saving Medical Care
On Thursday, Senate Finance Committee Members Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Michael Bennet (D-CO) introduced bipartisan legislation to improve health care access for children with complex medical conditions. The Accelerating Kids’ Access to Care Act simplifies out-of-state Medicaid screening and enrollment processes for pediatric care providers while retaining key safeguards to preserve the integrity of the program. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-IA) is leading companion legislation in the House. Read the press release here and the bill here.
Sen. Klobuchar Introduces Bipartisan Legislation to Increase Access to Health Care in Rural and Medically Underserved Areas
On Wednesday, Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Susan Collins (R-ME), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), and Thom Tillis (R-NC) reintroduced bipartisan legislation to increase the number of doctors working in rural and medically underserved areas. The Conrad State 30 and Physician Access Reauthorization Act would reauthorize the Conrad 30 programs, which allows international doctors who have completed their residency training in the U.S. to remain in the country under the condition that they practice in areas experiencing physician shortages. Companion legislation in the House was reintroduced by Reps. David Valadeo (R-CA), Brad Schneider (D-IL), Don Bacon (R-NE), and Robert Garcia (D-CA). Read the press release here and the bill here.
Sens. Fischer & Lankford Reintroduce Legislation Repealing Nursing Home Staffing Rule
On Wednesday, Sens. Deb Fischer (R-NE) and James Lankford (R-OK), reintroduced the Protecting Rural Seniors’ Access to Care Act. The legislation would reverse a Biden-era nursing home staffing rule finalized in April 2024. The legislation would also establish an advisory panel on nursing home staffing that includes voices from both urban and rural communities. The panel would submit a report to Congress that analyzes workforce shortages and makes practical recommendations to strengthen the workforce. Rep. Michelle Fischbach (R-MN) introduced identical companion legislation in the House. Read the press release here and the bill here.
Sens. Reed, Capito Lead Bipartisan Effort to Accelerate Pediatric Rare Disease Research & Treatment Advances
On Tuesday, Sens. Jack Reed (D-RI) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) introduced the Innovation in Pediatric Drugs Act. This bill would ensure drugs for rare diseases are studied in children and that drug companies complete pediatric study requirements. It would also close research gaps created by the growth in “orphan drug” approvals by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Read the press release here and the bill here.
Sens. Booker, Scott Reintroduce Legislation Addressing Sickle Cell Disease
On Tuesday, Sens. Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Tim Scott (R-SC) reintroduced the bipartisan Sickle Cell Disease Comprehensive Care Act. The legislation would allow State Medicaid programs to provide comprehensive and coordinated care to patients with sickle cell disease (SCD) through a health home model. Read the press release here and the bill here.
Reps. Carter, Clarke Introduce Bill to Help Lower Dental, Vision Care Costs
On Tuesday, Reps. Buddy Carter (R-GA) and Yvette Clarke (D-NY) introduced the bipartisan Dental and Optometric Care Access (DOC Access) Act to help lower dental and vision care costs. The legislation seeks to apply safeguards to federally regulated plans to help states progress toward lower costs, increased transparency, and more options for patients and providers. Read the press release here and the bill here.
Reps. Murphy, Davis, Hudson Introduce Legislation to Eliminate IRA "Pill Penalty" and Improve Small Molecule Drug Innovation
On Tuesday, Reps. Greg Murphy (R-NC), Don Davis (D-NC), and Richard Hudson (R-NC) introduced the Ensuring Pathways to Innovative Cures (EPIC) Act. The legislation would fix the Inflation Reduction Act's small molecule "pill penalty" to ensure continued R&D investments into small molecule medicines. Read the press release here and the bill here.
Reps. Bilirakis and Tonko Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Improve Seniors’ Access to Physical Therapy
On Tuesday, Reps. Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) and Paul Tonko (D-NY) reintroduced the Prevent Interruptions in Physical Therapy Act. The legislation builds upon a provision that was signed into law as part of the 21st Century Cures Act to give physical therapists in rural, medically underserved, and health professional shortage areas the ability to use locum tenens arrangements to ensure their patients continue to receive quality care with a temporary provider. The Bilirakis-Tonko legislation extends this arrangement to all physical therapists in the outpatient setting participating in the Medicare program. Read the press release here and the bill here.
Reps. Cammack & Dingell Introduce Bipartisan Charlotte Woodward Organ Transplant Discrimination Prevention Act
On Monday, Reps. Kat Cammack (R-FL) and Debbie Dingell (D-MI) introduced the bipartisan Charlotte Woodward Organ Transplant Discrimination Prevention Act. The bill prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities in the organ transplant system. It upholds, clarifies, and builds upon rights established in the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, Sec. 504 of the Rehab Act, and Sec.1557 of the Affordable Care Act. Additionally, the bill prohibits covered entities from determining that an individual is ineligible to receive a transplant, deny an organ transplant or related service, refuse to refer the individual to an organ transplant center, refuse to place an individual on a waiting list, or decline insurance coverage for a transplant or related service based solely on the fact that the individual has a disability. The bill passed the House in September of last year after passing the House Energy & Commerce Committee. Read the press release here and the bill here.
Sen. Peters & Daines Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Expand Access to Mental Health Care
On Monday, Sens. Gary Peters (D-MI) and Steve Daines (R-MT) introduced bipartisan legislation previously championed by former Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) to expand access to mental health care in areas experiencing shortages of mental health professionals. The More Behavioral Health Providers Act, would expand the eligibility for health care professionals to receive bonus incentives from the Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) Physician Bonus Program to include physician assistants, nurse practitioners, mental health counselors, and other specialists who provide mental health or substance use disorder services in a Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA). Read the press release here and the bill here.
Rep. Hudson, Sen. Tillis Introduce Bipartisan, Bicameral Legislation to Increase Access to Plasma-Based Medicines
On Monday, Rep. Richard Hudson (R-NC) and Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) introduced the bipartisan, bicameral Preserving Life-saving Access to Specialty Medicines in America (PLASMA) Act. This legislation would implement phased-in rebates for plasma-based medicines, ensuring patients of rare diseases and immunodeficiencies have access to these treatments. Read the press release here and the bill here.
Reps. Kustoff & Pappas Introduces Rural Health Innovation Act
On Monday, Reps. David Kustoff (R-TN) and Chris Pappas (D-NH) introduced the Rural Health Innovation Act. This legislation would strengthen access to care in rural areas by establishing a competitive grant program allowing Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) or Rural Health Clinics (RHCs) to increase staffing resources, increase hours of operation, acquire additional technology and equipment, and pay for construction costs related to emergency and urgent care. The bill would also establish a competitive grant program for rural health departments to improve rural emergency services, including primary care, triage, and air and ground ambulance services. Read the press release here and the bill here.
Executive Branch:
President Trump Announces Hospital Price Transparency Executive Order
On Tuesday, President Trump signed an Executive Order (EO) directing the Department of the Treasury, Labor, and Health and Human Services to “rapidly implement and enforce the Trump healthcare price transparency regulations.” Trump's initial transparency order, which he signed in June 2019, resulted in regulations requiring hospitals to disclose prices they charge for services publicly. It also required health insurers to inform patients of the prices they would pay for specific services. Tuesday’s EO specifies that the departments must ensure hospitals and insurers disclose actual prices, not estimates, and take action to make prices comparable across hospitals and insurers, including prescription drug prices. In addition, the departments must also update their enforcement policies to ensure hospitals and insurers are in compliance with requirements to make prices transparent. Read the EO here and the fact sheet here.
Trump Administration Cancels FDA Vaccine Advisers Meeting
On Wednesday, committee members of the Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee, which evaluates immunization data for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), were notified that a March meeting to discuss the composition of next season’s flu vaccine had been canceled. The committee routinely meets in March to recommend flu strains for inclusion in the seasonal vaccines, which are updated annually based on how the virus is spreading globally. The shots are made on a six-month production cycle, and the March recommendations would have set up the drug industry to deliver vaccines by September, when flu vaccination campaigns begin. A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services, Andrew Nixon, confirmed the cancellation and said the FDA would “make public its recommendations to manufacturers in time for updated vaccines to be available for the 2025-2026 influenza season.” The cancellation comes amid a previously announced postponement of the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) panel, which also meets regularly throughout the year to review the most recent data on vaccines and to vote on whether to recommend new vaccines.
Additional Round of Federal Workforce Reduction Announced
On Wednesday, the White House Office of Management and Budget and Office of Personnel Management (OPM) released a memo asking agency heads to submit plans by mid-March for “large-scale reductions in force.” The memo stated, “Pursuant to the president’s direction, agencies should focus on the maximum elimination of functions that are not statutorily mandated while driving the highest-quality, most efficient delivery of their statutorily required functions.” The memo directs agencies to submit these “agency RIF and reorganization plans” by March 13. Read the memo here.
Legal & Other:
Judge Temporarily Halts Trump Admin's Mass Firings of Federal Workers
On Thursday, U.S. District Judge William Alsup ordered the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to rescind directives that initiated the firing of probationary workers across the government, ruling that the terminations were probably illegal. Judge Alsup’s ruling came in a lawsuit filed by several labor unions, including the A.F.L.-C.I.O. and the American Federation of Government Employees, contesting the firings of thousands of probationary workers. Alsup stated that “The Office of Personnel Management does not have any authority whatsoever, under any statute in the history of the universe, to hire and fire employees at another agency. They can hire and fire their own employees.” The judge’s decision was limited to the agencies and offices that employ workers represented by a coalition of unions that had brought the lawsuit. A hearing has been scheduled for mid-March.
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