| | | | |  | | By Chelsea Cirruzzo and Ben Leonard | | | With Megan R. Wilson, Robert King and Daniel Payne
| | |  Lobbyists say progress is being made in Congress to mitigate Medicare's cuts to doctors' pay. | Logan Westom/The Columbian via AP | AP Photo | MEDICARE PAY ON THE MIND — The Senate cleared a stopgap funding bill Thursday night for President Joe Biden’s signature, buying more time to finalize half a dozen spending bills that congressional leaders aim to pass next week. With the immediate threat of a government shutdown averted — for now — jockeying has begun for the packages that will fund key agencies, including the FDA and HHS, through September. Doctors’ groups are focused on the congressional talks to mitigate the cut to their pay from Medicare, which have advanced this week, Megan, Robert and Daniel report. Five lobbyists said they believe a pay bump — between 1.25 percent and 1.75 percent — could be in order. That proposal would still leave much of the 3.4 percent cut in effect. Lobbyists said a deal on the amount is close to being done. “The number has bounced around a bit during negotiations, in part as a trade-off for the size of the package, and in particular the size of the community health center provisions,” said Dean Rosen, a partner at Mehlman Consulting who’s been working on the issue. “With the leadership reaching an agreement on the broader spending framework, work has accelerated over the last 24 hours on the healthcare package.” But “the health package is still under negotiation,” a spokesperson for Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer told Daniel in an email. There also appears to be a consensus on extending some small pandemic preparedness proposals until the end of the year. The provisions, most likely to be in the March 8 package, include one that exempts manufacturers of medical countermeasures used in responses to pandemics or bioterrorism from antitrust rules during an emergency. However, the prospects for reauthorizing the larger law — the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act, better known as PAHPA — are becoming increasingly bleak. Most of its provisions expired on Sept. 30. Next week on the Hill: Several health care bills are headed to the House floor, including legislation that would: — Allow state Medicaid enrolled to pay providers a fixed fee for a defined set of primary care services — Reauthorize federal funding for state-based maternal mortality review committees through fiscal 2028 — Reauthorize a state grant program to increase access to dental care. — Require Customs and Border to review and update its policies related to inspections at ports of entry, aimed at preventing fentanyl from coming into the U.S. WELCOME TO FRIDAY PULSE. Happy March! D.C.’s cherry blossoms are expected to be in full bloom between March 23-26 this year. Send your tips, scoops and feedback to ccirruzzo@politico.com and bleonard@politico.com and follow along @ChelseaCirruzzo and @_BenLeonard_.
| | | | A message from Coalition for Medicare Choices: There are 33 million reasons to protect Medicare Advantage. That’s how many Americans count on the program for more affordable health care with additional benefits and better health outcomes. In fact, Medicare Advantage saves seniors an average of $2,400 annually compared to fee-for-service Medicare – savings that are particularly important because Medicare Advantage serves a population that is disproportionately low-income. Protect Medicare Advantage. | | | | | | | 
Rep. Nancy Mace introduced a resolution in support of in vitro fertilization after an Alabama Supreme Court deemed embryos to be persons. | Mariam Zuhaib/AP | MACE BACKS IVF — Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) introduced on Thursday a resolution heralding support for in vitro fertilization, brushing off criticism from a leading anti-abortion group, Robert reports. The resolution is the latest effort by Republicans to express support for the popular reproductive method after an Alabama Supreme Court ruling jeopardized access in the state. On Thursday, Alabama’s GOP-controlled legislature voted to give doctors who provide in-vitro fertilization civil and criminal immunity for any death or damage to embryos. Mace told Robert that she’s also working on a bill on the issue. She brushed off criticism from the leading anti-abortion group Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America. The group said Wednesday the resolution ignores the families that filed the “Alabama lawsuit“ because they saw their embryos as their children who were recklessly destroyed.” But Mace was not deterred, responding that “if the far left and far right don’t like it, I am right where I need to be.” She added that when the chamber discusses legislation, they'll have that debate, but the resolution is meant to only “express our sentiment as a body in the House that we support IVF.” The resolution has five Republican co-sponsors: Nick LaLota (R-N.Y.), David Schweikert (R-Ariz.), Anthony D’Esposito (R-N.Y.), Don Bacon (R-Neb.) and Jen Kiggans (R-Va.).
| | | | CONGRESS OVERDRIVE: Since day one, POLITICO has been laser-focused on Capitol Hill, serving up the juiciest Congress coverage. Now, we’re upping our game to ensure you’re up to speed and in the know on every tasty morsel and newsy nugget from inside the Capitol Dome, around the clock. Wake up, read Playbook AM, get up to speed at midday with our Playbook PM halftime report, and fuel your nightly conversations with Inside Congress in the evening. Plus, never miss a beat with buzzy, real-time updates throughout the day via our Inside Congress Live feature. Learn more and subscribe here. | | | | | | | | | 
| BECERRA’S WHIRLWIND TRAVEL SCHEDULE — HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra has traveled to dozens of cities across the country since the Inflation Reduction Act was signed into law to highlight a key message for President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign: how the administration is trying to lower Medicare drug prices. On Tuesday, he was in Birmingham, Alabama, where he spoke with families affected by the recent state court ruling declaring that embryos created through in vitro fertilization should be considered children. The White House has blasted the decision. Becerra’s visits come as Biden tries to capitalize on the promises he made during his 2020 campaign, including protecting the Affordable Care Act from Republican attacks and reducing health care costs. Biden is expected to run heavily on his work on the Inflation Reduction Act, record-high ACA enrollment numbers and efforts to preserve abortion access amid growing restrictions — and Becerra is carrying that message forward. Between September 2022 and February 2024, Becerra has made at least 72 public appearances — including in Boston, Chicago, Denver, Phoenix and Portland — to highlight the administration’s health priorities. During at least 18 visits, Becerra has explicitly discussed Medicare price negotiations, emphasizing insulin price caps and free preventive vaccines for Medicare enrollees. Becerra’s trips have also focused on reproductive health care access, such as maternal health; contraception; and the Biden administration’s support for abortion rights in at least 16 stops, including in Baltimore, Columbus, Oakland and Richmond. “Whether it's working to bring down the costs of prescription drug costs and health care premiums or protect access to reproductive health care, Secretary Becerra and the Biden Administration are focused on the issues that matter most to Americans,” HHS national press secretary McKenzie Wilson told Pulse in a statement.
| | | | A message from Coalition for Medicare Choices:   | | | | | HOW EFFECTIVE IS THE FLU VACCINE? This year’s flu vaccine is estimated to be 45 percent effective against illness, according to a new CDC report out Thursday. That’s a lower rate than last year’s vaccine — estimated at 54 percent effective — but higher than in the 2021-2022 season at 36 percent effective. While flu activity remains elevated across the U.S., positive tests slightly declined from the prior week as of Feb. 17. Nationally, 47.6 percent of adults have received a flu vaccine. The latest report looked at lab test results for more than 670,000 people who received a flu test in California between Oct. 1 and Jan. 31. It found that the vaccine “provided moderate protection” against the flu for all age groups. Vaccine effectiveness was highest among people under 18 at 56 percent and declined with age to 30 percent among adults 65 and older. The study had limitations, researchers noted, including that it tested patients in only one state and was conducted the first year the agency required reporting negative test results to a centralized data system, meaning some incomplete reporting could have taken place. A second report out Thursday, which analyzed data across four CDC networks that track vaccine effectiveness, found that the pediatric flu vaccine is estimated to be between 52 and 61 percent effective against flu-associated hospitalizations. For adults, the estimated effectiveness against hospitalization was between 41 and 44 percent. FEWER HEP C PRIOR AUTH REQUIREMENTS — As of this month, 28 states no longer have prior authorization requirements in their Medicaid programs for hepatitis C treatment, according to a 2024 snapshot. Why it matters: Between 2010 and 2021, cases of hepatitis C, which can cause liver damage, cancer and death, rose in the U.S. The CDC estimates 2.2 million adults in the U.S. live with the disease — despite it being curable in most cases. According to the report by the Center for Health Law and Policy Innovation of Harvard Law School and the National Viral Hepatitis Roundtable, between August 2023 and February 2024, three states, Connecticut, Kansas and North Carolina, removed their prior authorization requirements. What’s next? The Biden administration has requested from Congress in its fiscal 2024 budget more than $12 billion over five years in an initiative to eliminate hepatitis C — though it’s still unclear whether that money will be included in an eventual funding deal.
| | | | YOUR TICKET INSIDE THE GOLDEN STATE POLITICAL ARENA: California Playbook delivers the latest intel, buzzy scoops and exclusive coverage from Sacramento and Los Angeles to Silicon Valley and across the state. Don't miss out on the daily must-read for political aficionados and professionals with an outsized interest in California politics, policy and power. Subscribe today. | | | | | | | | | Melissa Burroughs has joined CareQuest Institute for Oral Health as public policy director. Previously, she was director of strategic partnerships at Families USA. Dickon Waterfield has been named president of Employer Direct Healthcare. He previously was the company’s chief commercial officer.
| | The Washington Post reports on challenges in studying marijuana’s health benefits in Michigan due to federal restrictions. STAT reports that the Change Healthcare cyberattack outage could last weeks.
| | | | A message from Coalition for Medicare Choices: When 33 million beneficiaries renew their coverage in October 2024, they will be counting on stability in the savings, benefits and choices that are only available through Medicare Advantage. The combination of better care with lower out-of-pocket costs is why Medicare Advantage is such a valued choice for diverse and low-income beneficiaries, and a growing number of seniors in rural communities.
Stability is needed because there are far-reaching reforms to Medicare Advantage still being implemented, and big changes to seniors’ prescription drug coverage going into effect next year as well. Let’s make sure there’s no erosion in the benefits and affordability seniors and people with disabilities count on in Medicare Advantage. Protect Medicare Advantage. | | | | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Follow us | | | | |
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