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Trump moves to defund Planned Parenthood. The Trump administration is filing a request Friday to block facilities from receiving federal funding for family planning if they are housed in the same facility as a clinic that provides abortions. The intent of the proposal is to shift federal funds from Planned Parenthood, an avowed foe of Republicans and the Trump administration, to community and rural health centers, or otherwise pressure Planned Parenthood to no longer provide abortions. The $286 million in funds, known as Title X, also would be cut from clinics or programs that support abortion or refer patients to where they can get one for the purpose of family planning, rather than in cases where a pregnancy would endanger women’s lives or health, or when it’s the result of rape or incest. The proposal is likely to be challenged in court. Planned Parenthood blasted the administration for its move, which it had been anticipating and fighting against with Democrats in Congress. “Everyone has the right to information about their healthcare — including information about safe, legal abortion, and every woman deserves the best medical care and information, no matter how much money she makes or where she lives. No matter what,” said Dawn Laguens, executive vice president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America. “They won’t get it under this rule.” The proposal is being filed with the Office of Management and Budget. “Donald Trump ran as a pro-life candidate, and has governed as a pro-life president — another promise made and kept,” a Trump administration official said. “He continues working to protect the lives of the unborn, and ensure the abortion industry is no longer supported by taxpayers.”

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Democrats bash proposed rule as assault on women’s health. Before the announcement, a group of 200 congressional Democrats wrote to the Trump administration opposing plans for the rule. Now Democrats are blasting the administration’s decision to follow through. “It could mean that doctors and healthcare providers could lose federal funding for so much as mentioning abortion to their own patients, and it could result in millions of people across the country losing access to basic healthcare services like cancer screenings and contraception,” said Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash. Murray was among the Democrats who challenged the effort earlier this week.

Stack of opioid bills advances out of key panel. The House Energy and Commerce Committee on Thursday advanced 32 bills targeting the opioid crisis to the full House for a vote. The bills moved after a seven-hour markup. Another package of 25 bills advanced out of committee earlier this month. Some arguments played out during the markup as lawmakers offered their amendments. Democrats blasted Republicans for voting against debate on one bill, the Addiction Treatment Access Improvement Act, which would allow clinical nurse specialists, certified registered nurse anesthetists, and certified nurse midwives to prescribe buprenorphine to patients and to expand the number of patients who can be prescribed the medication by a doctor. Republicans voted against having a vote on the bill because officials from the Drug Enforcement Administration said they were concerned buprenorphine would be diverted to people who weren’t prescribed it. House leaders hope to pass a legislative package on the floor ahead of the Memorial Day recess to combat overdose-related deaths and addiction.

Senate to take up sweeping VA bill ahead of Memorial Day. The Senate will take up a bill that would allow more veterans to see doctors outside the Veterans Affairs system, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., announced Thursday. The legislation passed the House Wednesday 347-70 and has the support of President Trump. It would allow more veterans to go outside the VA healthcare system and use private-sector doctors when VA medical centers can’t provide appointments within a month, veterans have to drive more than 40 minutes to access care, or when care is determined inadequate by VA leaders.

Trump donates first-quarter salary to VA. Trump’s first-quarter salary of $100,000 will go toward the Department of Veterans Affairs, the White House announced Thursday. The president’s donation will primarily support care-giving programs at the VA, press secretary Sarah Sanders told reporters. Acting VA Secretary Robert Wilkie added that it “underscores [Trump’s] promise to do all that he can for veterans, which includes supporting those who care” for those returning from war. Trump has donated his salary to various government agencies each quarter since taking office. Previous donations have gone to the Department of Transportation, the National Park Service, the Department of Education and the Department of Health and Human Services.

Paul Ryan hints at compromise for drug prices bill. House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., said a compromise is in the works for a bill that aims to lower drug prices by helping generic competitors make cheaper alternatives. Ryan said Thursday at an event at the law firm BakerHostetler that a compromise could be reached by committees working on the CREATES Act, which would clamp down on drug companies that delay generic competition. The legislation aims to make it easier for generic drug companies to get samples of a brand-name drug so they can make a cheaper alternative of it.

Democrats blast Trump for lack of opioid plan. House Democrats on Thursday chided the Trump administration for not releasing a drug control strategy in the midst of the opioid crisis. Lawmakers said during a hearing about the epidemic that a national drug control strategy was due in February but the White House didn’t submit one. “Trump has shown no leadership,” said Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., during a hearing of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. “Congress must step into the void and do a bipartisan commitment to this fight in a better manner.” Trump issued a national emergency declaration on the opioid epidemic in October, but Democrats have criticized the administration for a lack of action since then.

WHO considers issuing emergency declaration on Ebola. The World Health Organization is deciding whether to declare Ebola a “public health emergency of international concern,” a day after the Ebola virus spread to a large city in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The agency announced through its Twitter account Friday that Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO’s director-general, had convened an emergency committee that would make its decision public later in the day.

Bill Gates reveals details of encounter with Trump. Microsoft founder Bill Gates said in a leaked video that Trump did not appear to be aware of the difference between HIV, a virus which can lead to AIDS if untreated, and HPV, a sexually transmitted infection that causes cancer. He also repeatedly asked Gates at the White House if vaccines were a “bad thing.” The video contained remarks Gates made before staff from his foundation, obtained by MSNBC and aired Thursday on “All in with Chris Hayes.”

Stay out of the hotel pool. Hotel pools, hot tubs and water parks are cesspools for parasites and bacteria, a new federal study revealed. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released a study Wednesday showing that those pools are responsible for one-third of swimming-related diseases. From 2000 to 2014, the agency recorded 493 outbreaks, which caused eight deaths and at least 27,219 illnesses. One of the most common diseases is caused by a parasite called Cryptosporidium, or “Crypto,” which is responsible for 58 percent of outbreaks and 98 percent of illnesses. Crypto is strong enough to survive even when pools are cleaned properly, and spreads after someone who is sick with the parasite has diarrhea in the water and other swimmers swallow the contaminated water.

CMS warns Part D plans to cut out pharmacy ‘gag clauses.’ The Trump administration is demanding Medicare Part D private plan sponsors not include “gag clauses” that prevent a pharmacy from telling a customer they can get a drug cheaper out of pocket than through insurance. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services sent a letter Thursday to all sponsors under Part D, which is Medicare’s prescription drug plan. The letter reminded the sponsors that existing policy requires enrollees to pay the lesser of the part D negotiated price or co-pay or be subject to CMS compliance actions. “We want to make it clear that CMS finds any form of ‘gag clauses’ unacceptable and contrary to our efforts to promote drug price transparency and lower drug prices,” the letter said.

But what about everybody else? The letter applies only to seniors on Medicare Part D. But the issue of “gag clauses” also occurs with private health plans. A bipartisan group of senators introduced legislation this year to ban the practice in all health plans. However, it has gone nowhere in Congress. A Senate aide recently told the Washington Examiner there is the possibility of using a procedure called hotlining, which is used to quickly move a bill if it is not controversial. There is no schedule for the legislation.