CASH AID FOR HACKED STATE PROVIDERS — Sen. Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.) met Thursday with the CEO of UnitedHealth Group and said she’s secured “new commitments” to give cash aid to providers in her home state impacted by a massive cyberattack. At a Senate Finance Committee hearing Thursday, Hassan told HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra, who was on Capitol Hill to discuss the proposed fiscal 2025 budget, that she met with CEO Andrew Witty. “Mr. Witty and I had what I would call a constructive conversation this morning,” she said. “UnitedHealth Group has made new commitments to provide cash aid today to the providers in my state who need it, without any unfair or risky terms.” UnitedHealth owns Change Healthcare, which handles billions of medical bills annually. The company was hit by a cyberattack in February, delaying payments to providers. Following the attack, UnitedHealth created a temporary aid program for impacted providers, but Hassan criticized it earlier this week for being inadequate. Lawmakers, officials and providers have called on the company to move faster to get payments out the door. HHS also said it would consider accelerated Medicare payments for some providers. Becerra, who earlier this week urged UnitedHealth to take more responsibility for the attack, said HHS would meet Friday with payers impacted by the attack. HHS on cannabis: At the hearing, Becerra also defended the FDA's review of cannabis science and its recommendation to loosen federal marijuana restrictions, POLITICO’s Natalie Fertig reports. “There has been a lot of science that’s been collected over the years on cannabis,” Becerra said during the hearing before the Senate Finance Committee. “We have far more information now.” NEXT WEEK ON THE HILL — HHS Secretary Becerra will continue his tour to discuss the HHS proposed fiscal 2025 budget, visiting the House Appropriations’ health subcommittee and the House Ways and Means Committee on Wednesday. — Also on Wednesday, the Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on reproductive health care. — On Thursday, the House Veterans’ Affairs Health Subcommittee will hold a hearing on several bills, including one to research the use of medical cannabis for veterans. BIO’S BACKTRACK ON CHINESE BIOTECH RESTRICTIONS — The Biotechnology Innovation Organization flip-flopped on a bill restricting Chinese biotech companies from accessing U.S. funding, which Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.), chair of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, applauded Thursday, Carmen reports. The lobby group said Wednesday it would cut ties with Chinese member company WuXi AppTec and back legislation to ban it and similar companies from inking U.S. federal contracts, in an about-face from the group’s earlier position against the bill. The Gallagher legislation would prohibit federal agencies from obtaining equipment from Chinese companies BGI, MGI, Complete Genomics and WuXi AppTec. The bill would also prohibit federal contracts with these companies. “I applaud Mr. Crowley and BIO's commitment to the BIOSECURE Act and its recognition of the threat that CCP-backed companies like WuXi AppTec pose to America’s biotechnology industry,” Gallagher said in a statement, referring to BIO’s CEO. WuXi AppTec has rejected the accusation, saying it upheld “the highest intellectual property, data and privacy protection standards” and doesn’t pose a national security threat to any country.
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