SIGN UP! If you’d like to continue receiving Washington Examiner’s Daily on Healthcare newsletter, SUBSCRIBE HERE: http://newsletters.washingtonexaminer.com/newsletter/daily-on-healthcare/
Merck CEO resigns from White House council. The CEO of one of America’s largest pharmaceutical companies said he is leaving Trump’s American Manufacturing Council because of how Trump responded to Saturday’s violence in Charlottesville, Va. After a woman was run down and killed by a man who sided with pro-white supremacist groups during a clash of protesters, Trump released a statement condemning “hatred, bigotry and violence on many sides,” but did not single out white supremacist groups. Merck CEO Kenneth Frazier, who is black, said Monday morning he would resign from Trump’s council, making it clear he was protesting Trump’s reply. “Our country’s strength stems from its diversity and the contributions made by men and women of different faiths, races, sexual orientations and political beliefs,” Frazier wrote. Frazier was among 28 business leaders who joined Trump’s council in January. Frazier isn’t the first member of the council to resign as a response to Trump’s actions. For instance, after Trump announced that he was withdrawing the U.S. from the Paris climate accord, Tesla’s Elon Musk and Disney’s Robert Iger announced they were leaving the group. Other members may be pressured to make similar exits.
Trump took to Twitter to slam Frazier’s resignation. “Now that Ken Frazier of Merck Pharma has resigned from President’s Manufacturing Council, he will have more time to LOWER RIPOFF DRUG PRICES!” Trump tweeted Monday.
Wall Street shrugs. Trump’s tweets against drug manufacturers and other companies typically send stocks tumbling, but Merck’s shares inched up Monday, opening at $62.64 and reaching $62.98 around 11 a.m., roughly the same price it held about a week ago. Merck’s price rose 1 percent, the biggest jump the company has seen in about a month.
Welcome to Philip Klein’s Daily on Healthcare, compiled by Washington Examiner Managing Editor Philip Klein (@philipaklein), Senior Healthcare Writer Kimberly Leonard (@LeonardKL) and Healthcare Reporter Robert King (@rking_19). Email [email protected] for tips, suggestions, calendar items and anything else. If a friend sent this to you and you’d like to sign up, click here. If signing up doesn’t work, shoot us an email and we’ll add you to our list.
On Obamacare, here’s what we’re watching for this week. A score from the Congressional Budget Office is expected on the impact of Trump cutting off Obamacare’s cost-sharing reduction subsidies. Insurers have exit clauses in some states that would allow them to drop people from coverage within a couple of months, and others have said that they would look to increase premiums by an average of 20 percent for coverage they sell that would go into effect next year.
Republicans defend Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. Trump and McConnell’s feud began when the Senate majority leader, speaking last Monday at a Rotary Club meeting in Kentucky, said the president’s “excessive expectations” hindered the Senate’s ability to pass major legislation, including a bill overhauling the healthcare system. Trump lashed out at McConnell throughout the week, saying that the party had been promising to repeal Obamacare for more than seven years and questioning his leadership. Senate Republicans, however, threw cold water on the suggestion that McConnell should step down. Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C. called for unity within the GOP and credited McConnell with getting Neil Gorsuch, Trump’s nominee for Supreme Court justice, confirmed. “As a former Speaker in NC, I know how difficult it is to manage a diverse caucus with different viewpoints and push major legislation. @SenateMajLdr is the single biggest reason why Neil Gorsuch is now a SCOTUS justice,” Tillis said in a series of tweets. “@SenateMajLdr will continue to lead our caucus & bring us closer together to keep the promises we made to the American people. Now more than even, all GOP officials must work together so we can advance our shared agenda to create opportunity for all Americans.” And Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., said he is confident McConnell will be instrumental in pushing the president’s legislative priorities across the finish line. “From healthcare to tax reform to infrastructure, tough issues to tackle this fall and none better than @SenateMajLdr to get a good outcome,” he tweeted.
Billboards on Las Vegas Strip slam Sen. Dean Heller for healthcare vote. The Nevada Republican is up for a contested re-election next year, and the Democratic National Committee is waging attacks against him for his votes on a healthcare bill that would have repealed portions of Obamacare. A new video billboard shows Heller laughing, while words across the screen read, “Senator Heller told us he’d protect our healthcare. Then he voted to threaten healthcare for 328,000 Nevadans. Tell Heller to wipe that grin off his face and start working for Nevadans. Our health care isn’t a joke.” Heller voted in favor of a procedural move to start debate on the House healthcare bill, as well as for the “skinny repeal” that would have repealed the individual mandate and altered some of Obamacare’s taxes. He had raised concerns about GOP efforts to make changes on Medicaid and voted against a repeal amendment that would have delayed a replacement for two years, as well as against the amendment that would have repealed Obamacare and immediately replaced it.
More Democrats than Republicans like Sen. John McCain. The Arizona Republican’s vote torpedoing efforts to repeal parts of Obamacare has done wonders for his approval rating — among Democrats. The latest Gallup survey revealed that the Arizona senator’s standing among Democrats soared 22 points after the vote, which surprised some in his own party. Currently, 71 percent of Democrats have a favorable view of McCain, compared with 51 percent of Republicans.
Anthem to leave Obamacare exchange in Virginia, Optima fills empty counties. The move means that people who had Anthem coverage this year will have to shop for a new healthcare plan beginning in November if they have the option, and the change in coverage could mean patients will have to see new doctors and change hospitals. Other insurers, including UnitedHealthcare and Aetna, have made similar announcements, which would have left 50 counties in the state without an insurer to buy tax subsidized coverage from. Optima Health, however, plans to offer coverage in all of those counties and has asked for rate increases of 19.3 percent for next year.
Healthcare’s door revolves as Trump settles into White House. After a presidential administration changes hands, top federal officials often move into industry or advocacy jobs, while the new administration picks people from those groups to fill its own top openings. This “revolving door” of politics gives interest groups greater access to members of Congress or to the administration, which allows them to advance their policy positions. Here are some of the job changes in healthcare that have occurred since around the time President Trump was sworn in to the White House. See the list.
State legislatures making progress on major issues that are still stuck in Congress. State legislatures around the country have made significant progress passing bills on issues such as immigration, policing and healthcare, even as Republicans in Congress and President Trump have struggled to make similar progress at the federal level. As expected, the states aren’t all seeing these issues as Trump sees them. Several Republican legislatures, for example, have introduced or passed bills prohibiting sanctuary policies and backing law enforcement, but others controlled by Democrats have pushed their own views on issues such as healthcare. Five states considered bills for universal healthcare or a public option. The California Senate, for example, passed a bill establishing a commission to study how to introduce universal healthcare in the state. The New York State Assembly passed legislation establishing a single-payer system for state residents. Some states have backed Trump and the GOP-led Congress on imposing work requirements for Medicaid recipients. New Hampshire and Arkansas enacted laws requiring enrollees in their respective Medicaid expansion programs to adhere to a work requirement.
Trump signs bill helping vets get access to private medical care. The bill signed into law on Saturday will provide more than $2 billion to open new Department of Veterans Affairs medical facilities and fund care for veterans seeking medical care outside the government system. “This bill will ensure that veterans continue to have the ability to see the doctor of their choice,” Trump said during a press conference at the bill’s signing. “You’re going to have immediate medical care for our veterans.” The legislation, which passed the House unanimously, provides funding for veterans who seek treatment from a private doctor in certain cases. It also allows Veterans Affairs to lease 28 facilities around the country, in an attempt to expand access to government-provided care. That makes it a compromise in the larger debate between conservative and liberal proponents of VA reform.
RUNDOWN
Stat News FDA puts new restrictions on hiring of foreign scientists, documents show
The Associated Press A stronger Medicaid emerges from GOP health overhaul debate
Modern Healthcare Results of CMS’ readmissions program has hospitals, experts questioning its purpose
Associated Press Experts: Herd immunity outside U.S. slows Zika in Florida
Wall Street Journal Why early peeks at drug trials are giving investors whiplash
Axios What people think of high deductibles — and what surveys don’t tell you
Washington Post At raucous town halls, Republicans have faced another round of anger over healthcare
Kaiser Health News Climbing cost of decades-old drugs threatens to break Medicaid bank
Calendar
MONDAY | Aug. 14
Congressional Budget Office expected to release an estimate of the effect of ending cost-sharing reduction subsidies this week.
Aug. 14-16. Crowne Plaza Atlanta Perimeter at Ravinia, Atlanta. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Conference. Details.
4:30 p.m. CST/5:30 p.m. EST. Fort Dodge Middle School Auditorium. 800 N 32nd St. Fort Dodge, Iowa. Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, to hold town hall. Details.
6 p.m. Kennesaw State University. 488 Prillaman Way. Kennesaw, Ga. Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., to hold town hall. Details.
6:30 p.m. YMCA Camp Ingersoll Amphitheater. 94 Camp Ingersol Rd. Portland, Conn. Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., to hold town hall. Details.
TUESDAY | Aug. 15
Aug. 15-16. Washington Plaza Hotel, 10 Thomas Circle NW. Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology holds forum on “Beyond Boundaries: ONC’s 2017 Technical Interoperability.” Details.
Aug. 15-17. Hyatt Regency Atlanta Hotel. National Conference on Health Communication, Marketing and Media. Details.
7:30 a.m. MDT/9:30 a.m. EST. Pikes Peak Community College. 5675 S. Academy Blvd, Colorado Springs, Colo. Sen. Cory Gardner, R-Colo., to hold town hall. Details.
11 a.m. Webcast with S&P Global ratings on “U.S. Life Insurance, Property & Casualty Insurance, and Bermuda Re/Insurance: Sector Earnings And Credit Trends.” Details.
Noon MDT/2 p.m. EST. University School Auditorium. 6519 W. 18th St., Greeley, Colo. Sen. Cory Gardner, R-Colo., to hold town hall. Details.
12:30 p.m. CST/1:30 p.m. EST. Washington High School Auditorium. 1111 S. B Ave, Washington, Iowa. Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, to hold town hall. Details.
12:30 p.m. HST. Kualapuu Community Center. 1 Uwao St, Ho’olehua, Hawaii. Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, to hold town hall. Details.
3:30 p.m. MDT/5:30 p.m. EST. Colorado Christian University. 8787 W. Alameda Ave., Lakewood, Colo. Sen. Cory Gardner, R-Colo., to hold town hall. Details.
THURSDAY | Aug. 17
9 a.m. PST/Noon EST. USC Caruso Center. Los Angeles. National Hispanic Medical Association leadership summit on “Cardiovascular Disease and Hispanics.” Details.
MONDAY | Aug. 21
9 p.m. House Speaker Paul Ryan to appear in CNN town hall. Details.
