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House this week will consider bills to boost health savings accounts. The House plans to consider three major bills this week that aim to expand the use of health savings accounts. Health savings accounts, which allow a consumer to set aside pre-tax money for healthcare expenses, have long been popular among Republicans, who have argued it gives Americans more control over their healthcare dollars and is a way to keep costs down. Several Obamacare repeal bills included measures to boost the use of health savings accounts. One of the bills to be taken up next week seeks to boost the contribution limits for health savings accounts, while another would allow the inclusion of certain over-the-counter products as qualified medical expenses. Another would allow catastrophic plans sold on Obamacare’s exchanges to qualify for HSA contributions, which currently such plans cannot do. The bill for catastrophic care plans ignited opposition from Democrats on the House Ways & Means Committee, which advanced the bills last week during a contentious markup hearing. Democrats charged that the bill would take away premium tax credits for plans that cover women’s health such as abortion services.

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Senate set to confirm Robert Wilkie as VA secretary. The Senate will vote this afternoon on whether to confirm Robert Wilke for the top spot at the Department of Veterans Affairs. Wilkie is expected to be confirmed because his nomination moved easily through the VA Committee, where only Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., voted against his confirmation saying that he was likely to “privatize” the VA. Wilkie was nominated to replace the former secretary, David Shulkin, who was fired following ethics charges. President Trump’s initial pick to lead the VA was the White House physician, Dr. Ronny Jackson, who withdrew his nomination following allegations of drinking on the job and loosely dispensing medications to the president’s staff. Wilkie has vowed to “shake up complacency” at the agency. Patients have faced long wait times for care in the past and a bill recently signed into law by Trump allows for diversion to the private sector in certain cases.

Liberal states move to enshrine abortion rights in fear of Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade. Liberal states are moving to enshrine abortion rights in fear that Trump’s Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh could be the deciding vote to overturn Roe v. Wade. The landmark 1973 Supreme Court decision made abortion legal nationwide until fetal viability, understood at roughly 24 weeks, but a different court makeup could change this. Pro-abortion rights groups have been sounding the alarm about this possibility under Kavanaugh, who will tilt the Supreme Court to the right if confirmed to replace retiring Justice Anthony Kennedy, who had been a vote to uphold Roe. Many states, even some liberal ones where public support for legalized abortion is high, still have laws on the books restricting abortion that predate the Roe decision. With Roe comfortably in place, there was no reason to revisit these laws — but Trump’s reshaping of the Supreme Court is changing the thinking of state lawmakers. Abortion rights advocates are using the the looming possibility that Roe v. Wade may be overturned or weakened to push states to scrap old laws restricting abortion and to pass new ones enshrining the right. Some states, particularly liberal ones including Massachusetts, Illinois, and New York, are already taking action.

New poll shows why Democrats are going on offense on Obamacare. A poll from the Democratic-leaning firm Public Policy Polling  poll found that 64 percent of respondents oppose the Trump administration’s decision to partially support a lawsuit that aims to gut Obamacare. The pollwas released Monday on the one-year anniversary of the defeat of Obamacare repeal in the Senate, and provides insight into why Democrats have hammered the administration over the lawsuit, even making it part of their attacks against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh. Texas and 19 other states charge in a federal lawsuit that as an indirect result of last year’s repeal of the penalties for going uninsured, Obamacare is no longer constitutional and must be struck down. The poll found that 64 percent of people oppose the decision by the administration and only 19 percent support it. The poll also found more support for a generic Democratic candidate for Congress who supports Obamacare (56 percent) compared with a Republican candidate for Congress who wants to repeal it (40 percent). Public Policy Polling surveyed 514 voters and the poll had a margin of error of 4.3 percentage points.

Birth control device Essure will no longer be sold in the US after FDA warning. Bayer announced Friday that it will discontinue sales and distribution of its Essure permanent birth control device at the end of the year after a warning from the Food and Drug Administration. The agency back in April restricted sales and distribution of Essure after a series of safety issues surrounding the device, which is an implant that provides permanent birth control. The decision by device maker Bayer, which goes into effect on Dec. 31, is the culmination of a series of moves by the agency to respond to reports of safety issues.

Pediatricians warn that food additives are harming kids. Chemicals that are used to dye, package or preserve food are harming children and need better government oversight, according to the nation’s leading pediatrics organization.The American Academy of Pediatrics is calling on Congress to overhaul the regulations in this area, which are overseen by the Food and Drug Administration. They cited evidence that the chemicals, used either in packages or in the food itself, contribute to obesity or thyroid problems. Other evidence suggests the chemicals can induce early puberty or contribute to fertility problems later in life.

CVS fires pharmacist for refusing hormone medication to transgender customer. CVS Health has fired a pharmacist in Arizona for refusing to dispense hormone medication to a transgender woman. The company released a statement of apology to the woman, Hilde Hall, saying that the pharmacist “violated company policies and does not reflect our values or our commitment to inclusion, nondiscrimination and the delivery of outstanding patient care.”

New Jersey state senator fears ‘sex toy oils with marijuana’ after pot is legal. An influential New Jersey lawmaker said last week he’s concerned that legalizing marijuana would result in stores selling intoxicating lipsticks, candies, and cupcakes — as well as “sex toy oils with marijuana.” State Sen. Ron Rice, a Democrat, made the remark in a videotaped interview with NJTV. He told the Washington Examiner in an email he is concerned about “marijuana infused oils, not toys.” Rice is chairman of the New Jersey Legislative Black Caucus, a group described by NJTV as the “chief obstacle in Trenton to marijuana legalization.” The group’s opposition has helped frustrate an effort to legalize recreational marijuana within 100 days of Gov. Phil Murphy taking office in January. Murphy is also a Democrat.

Bill would ensure vaccines covered under federal program. A new bill would ensure that all new maternal and childhood vaccines are covered under a federal program that resolves injury claims linked to vaccine use. The bill would streamline the taxation step for new vaccines that become eligible under the program. The goal is to add new vaccines to the compensation program faster. “As scientific research yields new vaccines that can protect us from illness, we must ensure the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program is updated in a timely manner,” said Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., one of the four sponsors of the bill. The work builds on the 21st Century Cures Act that adds new vaccines to the program. The compensation program lets any individual who received a vaccine covered by the program and was injured file a petition for compensation. Sens. Bill Cassidy, R-La., Ben Cardin, D-Md., and Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., also sponsored the bill.

New Jersey senate candidate doubled price of vital cancer drug, group charges. Former pharmaceutical CEO and New Jersey Senate hopeful Bob Hugin doubled the price of a vital cancer drug, a new report charges.The advocacy group called Patients for Affordable Drugs Action released a report Monday on Hugin’s tenure at the helm of drugmaker Celgene. Hugin is challenging Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., who is up for re-election this fall. The report charges that during Hugin’s tenure, the price of a blood cancer drug Revlimid doubled from $9,853 in 2010 to $18,546 in 2017. It also said that Celgene actively worked to delay generic competition for Revlimid. Generic companies have accused Celgene of refusing to sell samples to them. A generic company needs up to 5,000 samples of a product in order to perform testing required for approval from the Food and Drug Administration. Celgene’s action isn’t an aberration. Brand drugmakers sometimes deny samples to generic companies.

RUNDOWN

Reuters Apollo to buy LifePoint in latest private equity bet on healthcare

New York Times Sniffles? Cancer? Under Medicare plan, payments for office visits would be same for both

CNBC Alzheimer’s researchers hope that near-100 dementia drugs in trial are moving closer to a breakthrough

STAT News Unpacking the bold and the bluster in Trump’s plan to bring down drug prices

Forbes Trump’s Medicaid work rules hit states with costs and bureaucracy

Kaiser Health News Can a community hospital stay true to its mission after sale to a large corporation?