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House to vote on allowing experimental cures for terminally ill. The House will vote next week on the Right to Try Act, which would give terminally ill patients access to possibly life-saving experimental medicine. House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., made the announcement Thursday morning, which comes nearly two months after the House passed a different version of right to try, but could not get it through the Senate. The Senate unanimously passed its version of the bill in August. That version was introduced by Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., and Sen. Joe Donnelly, D-Ind., and is the one the House is now poised to vote on. “Families across the country receive the devastating news of a diagnosis every day and next week the House will vote to give seriously ill patients the right to try experimental treatments when there are no other options left,” McCarthy said. “This will not only offer a chance for the patient to possibly find treatment but could open possibilities to help others do the same.” The bill would prevent the government from blocking patients’ access to drugs and medications that have undergone only preliminary testing by humans. Individuals must try all other possible treatments before being able to try those medications. Additionally, the legislation would give drug manufacturers and those involved in testing the drug on humans liability protections if problems arose after a drug or treatment.

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House passes Trump-backed bill allowing veterans to see more private doctors, hospitals. The House passed legislation Wednesday to allow more veterans to see doctors outside the Veterans Affairs system. The bill, the VA MISSION Act, passed the House 347-70. 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. Through a statement from White House press secretary Sarah Sanders, Trump hailed the bill’s passage and urged the Senate to take it up swiftly. The $52 billion plan includes $5.2 billion to avoid shutdown of the Choice program, which is expected to run out of funds as early as May 31. Choice was created as a reaction to the scandals involving long wait times for care in the VA system, in which veterans died while they waited to receive medical care.

FDA reveals drugmakers that game the system. The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday announced the names of drugmakers that are limiting access to generic competition by denying access to their products. The agency released a list of 52 brand name drugs to which generic companies are trying to get access so they can make a cheaper version but say they are having difficulty. The new list of 52 drugs is part of a larger effort by the Trump administration to clamp down on drug prices. Administration officials have criticized drugmakers that “game” the patent system by denying generic companies access to samples needed for receiving FDA approval for a cheaper alternative.

House committee advances opioid bill senators call ‘weak.’ A key House committee advanced an opioid prevention bill Wednesday that has come under fire by senators as a “weaker” alternative to their version. The House Ways and Means Committee advanced four legislative packages and three standalone bills. Among them, the measure that has come under fire is the Synthetics Trafficking and Overdose Prevention Act, which would require the U.S. Postal Service to scan incoming packages from overseas for opioids. Senators argue the House version isn’t strong enough because it doesn’t carry any penalties if the Postal Service doesn’t comply. It also would give the agency up to 2022 to full implement the changes, while the Senate requires them within a year.

Energy and Commerce marks up opioid legislation today. The House Energy and Commerce Committee is marking up 34 bills today to address the opioid epidemic. House leaders hope to pass a final package ahead of the Memorial Day holiday.

Cancer groups approach drug price overhaul with caution. Cancer groups are questioning if one of the policies in the Trump administration’s blueprint to tackle high drug prices is the right move to lower prices for patients. The Trump administration wants to shift some drugs in Medicare Part B to Part D, saying the move would enable private vendors to negotiate with drugmakers to offer cheaper prices for Part B drugs, as they already do for drugs covered under Part D. Medicare Part B reimburses doctors for drugs administered in a doctor’s office, including vaccines and chemotherapy drugs. Medicare Part D is the prescription drug plan for Medicare enrollees.

Court dismisses Obamacare’s CSR lawsuit. The White House, House and states settled a lawsuit Wednesday over Obamacare’s cost-sharing reduction payments, which Trump ended in October. The lawsuit was initiated under the Obama administration under former House Speaker John Boehner, and a court ruled at the time that the White House had broken the law by authorizing the funds without congressional appropriation. The Obama administration appealed the case and on Wednesday the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals dismissed the appeal. The decision follows several months of legal battles from state attorneys general. Speaker Paul Ryan, said the court’s decision solidified the House’s authority over government spending. “When former Speaker John Boehner initiated this suit, it was to protect one of the House’s most primary authorities: the power to spend,” he said. “Fighting for a successful conclusion has been an important priority for my speakership, and the result today preserves that only Congress, not the executive, can authorize spending.”

Court allows Democratic states to intervene on Obamacare individual mandate lawsuit. A federal judge has granted 17 Democratic state attorneys general the right to intervene in a lawsuit that seeks to dismantle Obamacare. The lawsuit was filed in February, when 20 states sued the Trump administration saying that Congress’s decision to repeal the tax penalty as part of the Republican tax law invalidates the mandate and all of Obamacare. States represented on the Democratic side are Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Virginia, Vermont, Washington, and the District of Columbia.

FDA approves first non-opioid medication to treat addiction. The Food and Drug Administration has approved lofexidine, known as Lucemyra, to treat opioid withdrawal symptoms. The agency noted that the drug lessens the severity of withdrawal symptoms but doesn’t completely prevent them, so it approved the drug to be prescribed to patients for up to 14 days. “We know that the physical symptoms of opioid withdrawal can be one of the biggest barriers for patients seeking help and ultimately overcoming addiction,” said FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb. “The fear of experiencing withdrawal symptoms often prevents those suffering from opioid addiction from seeking help. And those who seek assistance may relapse due to continued withdrawal symptoms.” Lucemyra’s side effects include low blood pressure, slow heart rate, sleepiness and dizziness, and it also was associated with fainting.

E. coli illnesses from contaminated lettuce spread to 32 states. Iowa, Nebraska, and Oregon have been added to the list of states where people have gotten food poisoning after eating romaine lettuce, bringing the total to 32. The contaminated lettuce has sickened at least 172 people and killed one, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The latest numbers are from May 2. Of the 157 people for whom officials have information, 75 were hospitalized, including 20 who developed a type of kidney failure from the illness.

Ebola spreads to large city in Congo. The Ebola virus has spread to a large city in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, a development the World Health Organization is calling “concerning” and a “game changer” that will make public health efforts more challenging. The virus was found in Mbandaka, a city with more than 1.2 million residents. The case, which was confirmed by lab tests from the Congo’s Ministry of Health, is in a patient who was more than 90 miles away from where the current outbreak is, in Bikoro, an area that is difficult to get to. The case was confirmed as health officials are sending shipments of an experimental vaccine to the area, where 44 Ebola cases have been reported and 23 people have died.

When the Delta crew asked if there was a doctor on board, they got a yes — from the surgeon general. When Delta cabin crew inquired Wednesday whether a doctor was on board to help a passenger who had passed out, they probably weren’t expecting to get help from “America’s Doctor.” But Surgeon General Jerome Adams, who was standing just outside the flight at the airport, eagerly answered the call on Wednesday. “On my Delta flight to Jackson, Mississippi (by way of Atlanta), and they asked if there was a doctor on board to help with a medical emergency – why yes – yes there was,” he said, posting a selfie on Twitter. “Patient doing well and like a good USPHS officer, I was glad to be able to assist!” The USPHS stands for the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, a division of the federal government’s health agency.

Vermont law allows patients to buy cheaper drugs from Canada. Vermont Gov. Phil Scott, a Republican, signed a bill into law that would allow residents to buy cheaper drugs from Canada, a policy that has growing support from congressional Democrats. The law is likely to face a legal battle. A similar measure passed in 2013 in Maine was struck down by a judge two years later. Vermont also clashed with the Food and Drug Administration when it unsuccessfully sued the agency in 2008 to allow drug reimportation from Canada. The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America said it is concerned the law could exacerbate the opioid crisis. “It is highly irresponsible for Vermont legislators to promote an importation scheme that would create more avenues for counterfeit drugs to enter the country in the middle of an unprecedented opioid crisis,” the drug industry’s main lobbying group said. On Wednesday, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar called the proposal a “gimmick.”

Judge overturns California’s assisted suicide law. A judge overturned a California law that allows doctors to prescribe life-ending medications to terminally ill patients who request it. Judge Daniel Ottolia of the Riverside County Superior Court ruled that the state’s assisted suicide law, the End of Life Option Act, had been passed unconstitutionally because it was done by the legislature during a special session that had been intended to focus on healthcare. The judge is holding his ruling for five days to allow the state time to file an emergency appeal. California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said he plans to.

FDA targets more e-cigarette makers over youth appeal. The FDA demanded information from four more e-cigarette makers about the youth appeal of their products. The agency’s request comes after it called for documents from JUUL Labs on its product, which is popular among youths. The request for information is part of a larger crackdown from the FDA on use of e-cigarettes among minors. “We’ll explore all of our regulatory options, including enforcement actions, based on what we learn from the information these manufacturers are required to provide,” FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said. The letters come after the agency warned companies to stop advertising liquids used in e-cigarettes to resemble kid-friendly foods.

RUNDOWN

Washington Post San Francisco will bring anti-addiction medication to users on the streets

Bloomberg America’s heaviest smokers don’t want to know if they have cancer

STAT News It’s a long-shot idea for a major Medicare change. But drug makers are already scared

Dayton Daily News Ohio overhauling how it pays for addiction, mental health

Kaiser Health News Opioid overdoses are rising faster among Latinos than whites or blacks. Why?

Wall Street Journal Reducing use of Roche drug for breast cancer didn’t hurt efficacy, study says