Senators Discuss Making Medicare’s Relaxed Telehealth Rules Permanent
It’s the rare Senate hearing when the only disagreements occur not between senators, but between panelists themselves. Yet that’s what happened at Tuesday’s Senate Finance Healthcare Subcommittee hearing on making particular telehealth rules permanent for the Medicare program. The senators present all agreed on one thing: the current flexible rules for telehealth — such as […]
House Members Mull Bills to Cut Red Tape and Improve Docs’ Medicare Pay
A House hearing on ways to increase payments and cut red tape for physicians who treat Medicare patients also included a discussion over whether Republicans wanted to cut Medicare benefits for seniors. “Just yesterday, in a speech on the House floor nominating [Rep.] Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) as their candidate for Speaker, Republicans expressed concern with […]
Have a Story About Private Equity Ownership? The FTC Wants to Hear From You
PHILADELPHIA — The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is interested in hearing from physicians about their experiences with private equity involvement in healthcare as well as other marketplace issues, FTC chair Lina Khan said Wednesday at the annual meeting of the American College of Emergency Physicians. “It’s difficult to overstate how valuable your stories, your experiences […]
No ‘Silver Bullet’ for Generic Drug Shortage, House Members Told
From the beginning of Thursday’s House hearing on ways to solve the generic drug shortage, it appeared obvious that little agreement was going to be reached on the best solutions to the problem. “After months of pleading by the Democratic members of this subcommittee, we’re finally having a legislative hearing on drug shortages in our […]
House Lawmakers Clash Over Gender-Affirming Care in Youth
Lawmakers clashed over the safety of gender-affirming care in minors on Thursday, during a hearing of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution and Limited Government. Republicans condemned the practice, which they characterized as “mutilation,” while Democrats argued such care is safe and effective, citing the support of multiple medical groups. Subcommittee Chairman Rep. Mike […]
Experts Call for PBM Transparency During Senate Hearing
Most expert witnesses at a hearing of the Senate Finance Committee on Thursday agreed that pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) — middlemen between the drug companies and insurers — drive up the prices of prescription drugs, leaving patients with higher out-of-pocket costs, and offered a range of suggestions on how to curb PBM abuses. Historically, PBMs […]
House Republican Argues Against FDA Budget Increase
During a House hearing on the FDA’s 2024 budget request, a Republican subcommittee chair said he was not too pleased with the idea of a $7.2 billion budget — an 8% increase over the 2023 enacted agency budget. The $522 million increase includes $372 million in new budget authorities coupled with $150 million for new […]
Cheaper Over-the-Counter Hearing Aids Should Be in Stores by October, FDA Says
Latest Hearing News By Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter TUESDAY, Aug. 16, 2022 (HealthDay News) Affordable over-the-counter hearing aids will bring relief to millions of Americans suffering from hearing loss by mid-October, under a landmark proposal just announced by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The final rule announced Tuesday creates a category of hearing aids […]
Senators Debate Need for More $$ for the Fight Against COVID
WASHINGTON — Thursday’s Senate hearing updating progress on the COVID pandemic was either a well-reasoned explanation for why Congress should allocate more money for fighting COVID, or a setup to orchestrate additional funding even though it’s not clear how the money will be spent, depending on who is asked. “The progress we have made so […]
Opinion | Can Primary Care Physicians Address the Behavioral Health Crisis?
In a recent Senate Finance Committee hearing, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, MD, MBA, said, “We are on the verge of beating back one public health crisis in COVID-19, only to see another grow in its place … We have the opportunity and the responsibility to make change happen now.” Murthy was referring to what […]