Week in Brief
Veterans’ Health: House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Passes VA MISSION Act. Committee Chairman Phil Roe (R-TN) Issues Statement. Ranking Member Tim Walz (D-MN) Issues Statement. Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee Chairman Johnny Isakson (R-GA) Issues Statement. Senate Committee Ranking Member Jon Tester (D-MT) Issues Statement. White House Press Secretary Releases Statement.
WHITE HOUSE UPDATE
Veterans’ Health: White House Announces President Trump’s Decision to Donate First Quarter Salary to Department of Veterans Affairs.
Veterans’ Health: President Donald J. Trump Announces Intent to Nominate Robert Wilkie for Secretary of Veterans Affairs. Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee Chairman Johnny Isakson (R-GA) Releases Statement. Ranking Member Jon Tester (D-MT) Releases Statement. House Veterans’ Affairs Committee Chairman Phil Roe (R-TN) Releases Statement.
LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
Monday, May 14
Appropriations: Senate Appropriations Committee Announces Tentative Markup Schedule for FY2019.
ACA: House Ways and Means Committee Publishes Recap of Republican Health Care Policy Achievements.
Tuesday, May 15
340B: Senate HELP Committee Holds Full Committee Hearing Examining Oversight Reports on the 340B Drug Pricing Program. Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-TN) Delivers Remarks. Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-WA) Delivers Remarks.
Insurance Premiums: Senators Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Jeff Merkley (D-OR) Issue Joint Statement on Oregon Insurance Companies’ Proposed Premium Rates for Plan Year 2019.
Rescissions: Senate Appropriations Committee Vice Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) Delivers Floor Statement On President Trump’s Rescission Proposal.
Opioids: House Energy and Commerce Committee Publishes Video and Recap of Milken Institute Global Conference Panel Discussion on Opioid Crisis, Attended Recently by Committee Chairman Greg Walden (R-OR).
Wednesday, May 16
Opioids: House Ways and Means Committee Holds Markup of Bills to Combat the Opioid Crisis, Advances Several Pieces of Legislation.
Opioids: House Energy and Commerce Committee Holds Full Committee Markup on Opioid Legislation. Committee Chairman Kevin Brady (R-TX) Delivers Remarks. Ranking Member Richard Neal (D-MA) Delivers Remarks.
Opioids: Subcommittee on Homeland Security Holds Hearing to Review the Role of Department of Homeland Security in Stopping the Flow of Opioids and Other Dangerous Drugs.
Children’s Hospitals: House Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee Announces Plans to Review Bipartisan Legislation to Reauthorize Children’s Hospital Graduate Medical Education Program.
Opioids: House Energy and Commerce Committee Releases Third Installment in “Personal Stories from the Opioid Crisis” Video Series.
ACA Lawsuit: House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Greg Walden (R-OR), Health Subcommittee Chairman Michael C. Burgess, M.D. (R-TX), and Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Chairman Gregg Harper (R-MS) Issue Joint Statement on D.C. Court of Appeals Decision to Preserve Lower Court’s Ruling on United States House of Representatives v. Alex M. Azar II, et al.
Thursday, May 17
Alternative Treatment: House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) Announces Upcoming House Vote on Senate “Right to Try” Bill. Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Greg Walden (R-OR) Issues Statement.
Appropriations: Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Holds Hearing to Review FY2019 Budget Request for NIH.
Opioids: House Energy and Commerce Committee Advances 32 Additional Opioids Bills to the House of Representatives.
Opioids: House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Holds Full Committee Hearing to Discuss Policy Proposals for Reauthorizing Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP).
REGULATORY UPDATE
Monday, May 14
Drug Pricing: HHS Secretary Alex Azar Addresses Negotiation, Drug Rebates, and Other Topics in Remarks on Trump Administration’s Drug Pricing Blueprint.
Medical Records: GAO Publishes Report on Fees and Challenges Associated with Patients’ Access to Medical Records.
Tuesday, May 15
Medicare: CMS Unveils Updated Drug Pricing Dashboard, Allowing Users to View Current Prices and Changes Over Time.
Chronic Pain: FDA Announces Public Meeting and Opportunity for Public Comment on Patient-Focused Drug Development for Chronic Pain.
340B: GAO Publishes Report on HRSA Oversight of 340B Drug Discount Program.
Wednesday, May 16
Opioids: FDA Discovers Quality Problems for Data Used To Inform Estimates for Some Controlled Substances.
Opioids: FDA Approves First Non-Opioid Treatment For Management Of Opioid Withdrawal Symptoms In Adults. HHS Secretary Alex Azar Releases Statement.
Thursday, May 17
Medicare: CMS Sends Letter to All Medicare Part D Plan Sponsors, Condemns Pharmacy “Gag Clauses” for Suppressing Drug Pricing Information.
Medicare: CMS Denies Ohio’s Request to Become First State to Waive Individual Mandate for Health Insurance Coverage.
Drug Pricing: FDA Publishes List of Drug Makers Accused of Blocking Cheaper Generics. FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb Issues Statement.
Opioids: GAO Publishes Report Assessing Federal Agencies’ Strategic Efforts to Address Illicit Opioids.
Migraines: FDA Approves Treatment to Prevent Migraines in Adults.
UPCOMING EVENTS
House Committee on Rules
Hearing on Right to Try Act of 2017, Additional Legislation
May 21, 2018, 5:00 PM
H-313 The Capitol
Senate HELP Committee
Full Committee Hearing: The Health Care Workforce: Addressing Shortages and Improving Care
May 22, 2018, 10:00 AM
430 Dirksen Senate Office Building
House Energy & Commerce Health Subcommittee
Hearing: Reauthorization of the Children’s Hospital Graduate Medical Education Program
May 23, 2018, 1:00 PM
Rayburn House Office Building 2322
Senate HELP Committee
Full Committee Hearing: S.2852, Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness and Advancing Innovation Act of 2018
May 23, 2018, 10:00 AM
430 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Senate Finance Committee
Full Committee Hearing: Rural Health Care in America: Challenges and Opportunities
May 24, 2018, 9:00 AM
215 Dirksen Senate Office Building
National Institutes of Health
Committee Meeting: National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
May 24, 2018 8:00 AM to 2:30 PM
National Institutes of Health, Neuroscience Center
6001 Executive Boulevard
Rockville, MD 20852
Pediatric Oncology Subcommittee of the Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee
Public Meeting and Opportunity for Comment
June 20, 2018, 8 AM to 4:30 PM
FDA White Oak Campus
10903 New Hampshire Ave., Bldg. 31 Conference Center, the Great Room (Rm. 1503)
Silver Spring, MD 20993
FDA
Meeting: “Patient-Focused Drug Development for Chronic Pain.”
July 9, 2018, 10 AM to 4 PM
FDA White Oak Campus
10903 New Hampshire Ave., Bldg. 31 Conference Center, the Great Room (Rm. 1503)
Silver Spring, MD 20993
CMS
Meeting of the Medicare Evidence Development and Coverage Advisory Committee
July 25, 2018 7:30 AM to 4:30 PM
CMS Single Site Campus: Main Auditorium
7500 Security Boulevard
Baltimore, MD 21244
CMS
Advisory Panel on Hospital Outpatient Payment (the Panel): Annual Meeting
August 20, 2018 9:30 AM to 5 PM
August 21, 2018, 9:30 AM to 1 PM
CMS Single Site Campus: Main Auditorium
7500 Security Boulevard
Baltimore, MD 21244
For more information about this issue of Power Play: Washington Week in Review or more legislative and regulatory updates, contact the Powers Pyles Sutter & Verville Government Relations and Public Policy group at (202) 466-6550.