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Conservative groups gear up for another summer Obamacare war, but they may be flying solo. After last year’s attempt to repeal and replace Obamacare went down in flames, the issue has largely been written off for dead, but one group is now gearing up for one last war over Obamacare this summer ahead of the midterms. The group of more than 40 conservative policy analysts aims to release a proposal in June to revive the Republican healthcare reform process, according to a source familiar with the effort. The recommendation, which is being spearheaded by former Sen. Rick Santorum, R-Pa. and includes participation from the Heritage Foundation, would convert the law’s Medicaid expansion and insurance subsidies into block grants provided to states. These changes would not apply to traditional Medicaid. The group is targeting June to coincide with the initial release of rates for Obamacare in most states. Several states have released major rate hikes for Obamacare next year, blaming Trump administration policies and the repeal of the individual mandate’s penalties for the boost in premiums. The goal is to have the Senate take up the block grant recommendation this summer. “Our plan will come out in June and then they have July and part of August really to get their work done,” the source said. “There is really no way you are going to have an impact on 2019 [Obamacare coverage year] premiums unless they act this summer.” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is toying with eliminating the Senate’s month-long recess in August. Some GOP senators are polling their colleagues to determine which issues have enough support to be considered via reconciliation, a procedure that allows budget bills to be considered in the Senate with only 51 votes instead of the 60 needed to stop a filibuster. The GOP currently has a 51-vote majority, but Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., is recuperating from brain cancer treatment. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., said recently that he wanted to take up healthcare during the recess, but it is not clear how many of his colleagues want to take another stab at Obamacare repeal a few months before the 2018 midterms.

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Ron Johnson warns FDA not to mess with law giving patients ‘right to try’ experimental drugs. Sen. Ron Johnson warned the Food and Drug Administration not to interfere with a new law that lets terminally ill patients try experimental treatments. The Wisconsin Republican wrote to FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb Thursday in response to comments Gottlieb made recently about the need for regulations to balance patient protections with the law that President Trump signed Tuesday. “This law intends to diminish the FDA’s power over people’s lives, not increase it,” Johnson wrote in the letter. “It is designed to work within existing FDA regulations, definitions, and approval processes. It is not meant to grant the FDA more power or enable the FDA to write new guidance, rules, or regulations that would limit the ability of an individual facing a life-threatening disease from accessing treatments.”

Democratic governors threaten to sue Trump over planned abortion restrictions. A group of 14 Democratic governors threatened to sue the Trump administration if it moves forward with changes to family planning grants that would defund Planned Parenthood. The governors sent a letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar Thursday outlining their opposition to the proposed changes to Title X, which provides federal funding to organizations that provide birth control, testing for sexually transmitted diseases, and cancer screenings. The Trump administration proposed this month restricting funding under the program to organizations that also perform abortions if they are housed in the same facility. It would place restrictions on when doctors and nurses can discuss abortion with patients, which opponents call a “gag rule.” The proposal has not been finalized.

Democrats make last-ditch effort to stop short-term plan expansion. A group of House and Senate Democrats are calling for the elimination of the Trump administration’s proposal to extend the duration of cheaper, low-quality health plans. The lawmakers sent a letter to the Trump administration Thursday that said a recent analysis on the proposal to expand short-term plans from 90 days to nearly 12 months was dubious. Democrats argue that the expansion could destabilize Obamacare’s insurance exchanges because short-term plans are cheaper since they do not have to meet Obamacare’s quality requirements. “These junk plans do not offer the consumer protections that are required under current law, and leave consumers uncovered for major medical expenses,” according to a release on the letter. It added there are “wide differences” between an analysis prepared by the Trump administration and analyses from nonpartisan healthcare groups that show the plans could destabilize the exchanges. The comment period on the proposal recently ended and the Trump administration is expected to issue the final regulation later this year. Democratic Sens. Patty Murray of Washington and Ron Wyden of Oregon and Reps. Frank Pallone Jr. of New Jersey, Richard Neal of Massachusetts and Robert “Bobby” Scott of Virginia signed the letter.

Four more deaths reported from tainted romaine lettuce. Four more people have died after eating Romaine lettuce that was infected with E. coli, raising the death toll from the food poisoning to five. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Friday that two deaths occurred in Minnesota and other deaths occurred in Arkansas and New York. The previously reported death was in California. The latest data comes from May 16, showing that 25 more people were sickened by the bacteria after eating the lettuce, bringing the total since the beginning of the outbreak to 197 illnesses. Some people who became sick said they did not eat romaine lettuce but had close contact with someone else who had gotten sick from eating it. Arkansas, North Carolina and Arizona were the latest additions among the 35 states that have reported infections.

It’s hard to find a price for healthcare procedures. At least that’s what a new study finds. The study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association looked at 122 hospitals and determine if their ability to provide a price for a procedure called a total hip arthroplasty improved from 2011 to 2016. It apparently did not. The survey found that in 2011, 14 percent of hospitals were not able to provide any price for the procedure. In 2016, that number spiked to 44 percent. The findings come as some lawmakers want to improve price transparency. Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., made price transparency a key plank in a white paper he released earlier this week on ideas to improve healthcare affordability.

RUNDOWN

Vox Single payer’s big test: Can Medicare-for-all win in competitive House districts?

Politico Grisham campaign says her firm did not make millions from high-risk insurance pool

CNN A ‘wake up call’ on what is killing America’s youth

Wall Street Journal Trump administration targets state rules that women must be told of abortion services

Reuters Leading oncology group is wary of Trump drug price proposals

Bloomberg Pot lounges will soon light up West Hollywood’s bar scene

Washington Post Arkansas abortion pill restriction seen as both protecting women and a major rights setback

The Hill Planned Parenthood cancels abortion appointments in Arkansas after Supreme Court declines to hear case