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Senate Republicans to force Democrats to go on record on ‘born alive’ abortion bill. The Senate will vote this afternoon on the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act, which would clarify that doctors must provide medical care to babies that survive an attempted abortion. The legislation will need 60 votes to pass and is unlikely to get to that count because Democratic leaders have vowed the party will unite against the bill, saying it is unnecessary because the U.S. already has laws against infanticide. GOP senators and anti-abortion groups have been pressuring Democrats to demonstrate whether they believe any limits should be placed on abortion following the loosening of third-trimester limits in New York and controversial comments by Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam, a Democrat, that appeared to indicate otherwise. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., rejected a motion to pass the bill via unanimous consent earlier this month, and the latest vote scheduled for 5:30 p.m. today will force each senator to go on the record to demonstrate where they stand on the issue.

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Anti-abortion Democrat dodges questions on party’s platform. Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards, a Democrat who has signed some of the nation’s most restrictive abortion laws, wouldn’t disclose Saturday how he felt about the controversies members of his party have faced for supporting loosening abortion access late into a pregnancy. “My record speaks for itself,” he said. “My record can only be contrasted with that,” he responded when pressed about the issue. “I obviously believe in the approach that we are taking and my record of being pro-life.” Edwards deflected several questions regarding his thoughts on policies other states have put in place to provide better access to abortion later in a pregnancy or what he thought about his party’s direction on abortion. Asked whether he believed the party should be more open to Democrats who identify as “pro-life,” Edwards replied, “Sure, absolutely.”

Arizona governor tight-lipped on vaccine bills as legislature weighs exemptions. Republican Gov. Doug Ducey wouldn’t reveal his plans Saturday for bills advancing through the legislature that would loosen vaccine rules in the state, but reiterated his support for vaccines. “I typically don’t comment on legislation as it’s moving through the legislature,” Ducey told the Washington Examiner. “Of course, when we are talking about public health, I want to make sure that our kids are as safe and protected as possible and I’m hopeful that’s where the legislature is going to land.” Asked to clarify his stance on vaccination, he replied: “I am supportive of vaccination. I have three boys, they have all been vaccinated.” Ducey has said before that Arizona should consider tighter rules against exemptions. The bills in Arizona would provide a “religious exemption” to vaccines and would no longer obligate parents to sign a state health department form to get the exemption. Another would obligate doctors to tell patients about possible vaccine side-effects and where they could file complaints. The third measure would have doctors offer to give children a blood test to determine whether they are immune to a particular illness.

Trump administration moves to cut off some Planned Parenthood funding. The Trump administration posted a final rule Friday that would require family planning clinics to be housed in separate buildings from abortion clinics, a move that would cut off Planned Parenthood from some federal funding. The rule applies to a $286 million-a-year grant, known as Title X, that pays for birth control, testing of sexually transmitted diseases, and cancer screenings for 4 million low-income people. The latest change requires the “physical and financial” separation of family planning services and abortion. The rule would either force facilities to make major changes or forgo tens of millions of dollars. A second part of the rule has been dubbed a “gag rule” by critics because it would block providers from referring for abortions for the purpose of family planning or promoting the practice if they are receiving Title X grants. Federal funds are not permitted to go toward abortions except in the cases of rape, incest, or if a woman’s pregnancy threatens her life. Abortion foes, however, have long fought for rules along the lines of the one advanced Friday because they say allocating federal funds toward clinics such as Planned Parenthood frees up additional funds to provide abortions. Planned Parenthood receives between $50 million and $60 million from Title X. The rule takes effect 60 days after it is published in the Federal Register but clinics will have a year to comply with the new building requirements.

Planned Parenthood vowed to do everything it could to fight back. Planned Parenthood suggested to reporters that Planned Parenthood would consider no longer participating in Title X if the rules stay in place, saying her organization was committed to providing abortions, but stressed the first course of action would be to fight back. “Planned Parenthood will fight the Trump-Pence administration through every avenue so this illegal, unethical rule never goes into effect,” said Dr. Leana Wen, Planned Parenthood’s president, speaking to reporters on a press call. The organization said the requirements would force its facilities to build separate entrances and exits, construct new health centers, or hire a second staff of doctors, nurses, and administrative staff. One of the main purposes of the proposal is to shift federal funds from Planned Parenthood and other organizations that provide abortions to community and rural health centers, or otherwise pressure Planned Parenthood and other facilities to stop providing abortions.

Democrats blasted the administration over Title X. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said the rule “imposes radical Republican views on American women by strategically putting obstacles in the way of accessing the health care they deserve. This is yet another example of the systematic healthcare sabotage that Republicans have been implementing since day one of the Trump administration, but this time, women’s reproductive rights are the casualty.” Sen. Patty Murray, the top Democrat on the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee said it would “further undermine a woman’s constitutionally protected right to safe, legal abortion in the United States of America” and disproportionately affect low-income women and women of color.

Senate committee kicks off bipartisan investigation on insulin prices. The Senate Finance Committee on Friday launched an in investigation into price increases of insulin manufactured by Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk, and Sanofi. Sens. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Ron Wyden, D-Ore., sent letters to each company, requesting information about how list prices are determined, and what the companies pay for research and marketing. “When one insulin product costs the taxpayer more than a billion dollars in one year, the American people ought to know how the company prices its product.” the senators wrote. The prices of insulin have vast impact in the U.S., where more than 30 million people have diabetes. “We are concerned that the substantial increases in the price of insulin over the past several years will continue their upward drive and pose increasingly severe hardships not only on patients that require access to the drug in order to stay alive but also on the taxpayer,” the letter said.

New Mexico governor on Medicaid buy-in for the state: ‘We’re watching it.’ Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said that she was “cautiously optimistic” about how the legislature in New Mexico was working toward creating a Medicaid buy-in, which would allow a government coverage option to compete against private plans. “We’re watching it,” she said of the work already underway, noting she would need to see how it gets administered, who would be covered, and the costs to the state. New Mexico has several avenues it could take in crafting a Medicaid buy-in, and no other state has set up such a system yet. A bill to allow people to pay premiums toward Medicaid passed committee earlier this month. “I am feeling very good that my legislature is having an earnest, quality, substantive debate about this issue, because we are going to get healthcare right in New Mexico, that’s for sure,” Lujan Grisham said.

Warren’s universal child care plan faces a worker shortage problem. Elizabeth Warren’s plan for providing child care to all U.S. families who want it would require the creation of a massive, highly qualified workforce for an occupation that already struggles to attract workers. Advocates for universal child care aren’t sure precisely how many workers would be needed for the endeavor, but they know the U.S. already is facing a drastic worker shortage. One analysis,from the left-leaning Center for American Progress, found that half of families live in places with no available child care. “As much as I’m supportive of improving our child care in this country, there are some very deep-seated issues that will take a lot of public will and money to take us where we need to be,” said Kristin Schubert, a child health expert at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Klobuchar changes family leave policy after critical report. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., has changed a policy that required staffers who took up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave to remain employed in her Senate office for three times as many weeks once they returned to work, or pay back their salary. If an employee left after returning from maternity or paternity leave, they would be required to pay back what they were paid while they were on leave, the New York Times reported Friday. “We offer 12 weeks of paid maternity and paternity leave for our staff and have one of the strongest paid leave policies in the Senate,” Klobuchar spokeswoman Elana Ross said. “We’ve never made staff pay back any of their leave.” Klobuchar announced earlier this month that she is running for president in 2020.

Drug industry-backed group slams Florida over plans to import drugs. The Partnership for Safe Medicines, an industry-backed groups, warned that people’s lives would be at stake if Flordia were to pass a measure to legalize the importation of drugs from Canada. “Passing drug importation is akin to giving counterfeit criminals the stamp of approval.” Shabbir Safdar, executive director for the group, said in a statement. “The U.S. is in the midst of one of its most harrowing public health emergencies — the opioid crisis, fueled in part by counterfeit drugs made with illicit fentanyl,” he continued. “By allowing drug importation, leaders in the state would make it easier for non-FDA-approved drugs and dangerous substances to enter the country. And Florida has already seen enough incidences and deaths related to counterfeit medicines.” Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican, announced Feb. 20 that he and President Trump were in agreement that Florida should consider enacting a drug importation plan.

RUNDOWN

Politico ‘It’s finally pharma’s turn’: Drug CEOs face Capitol Hill reckoning

Science United States extends fetal tissue contract and revives one experiment

Axios Ancestry firms share your DNA test data more than you think

The Boston Globe Here’s how Insys schemed to deceive insurance companies

Associated Press Severely ill children left in limbo by Venezuela-US crisis

The New Yorker The jail health-care crisis