Week in Brief
Veterans’ Health: VA Mission Act Passes Senate. 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. White House Releases Statement. Past VA Leaders Voice Support for VA MISSION Act. Senators Isakson and Tester Promote Bill at Press Conference.
Right to Try: House Passes Senate’s ‘Right to Try’ Bill. House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) Signs Bill in Enrollment Ceremony. Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Greg Walden (R-OR) and Health Subcommittee Chairman Michael C. Burgess (R-TX) Release Statement. White House Releases Statement.
Allocations: House Appropriators Approve 302(b) Allocations. House Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Nita Lowey (D-NY) Delivers Statement During Markup, Releases Another Following Vote. Senate Appropriators Approve 302(b) Allocations. Senate Appropriations Vice Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) Releases Statement on Both House and Senate Allocations.
LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
Monday, May 21
Opioids: House Energy and Commerce Committee Releases the Fourth Installment in “Personal Stories from the Opioid Crisis” Video Series.
Mental Health: House Energy and Commerce Committee Honors Mental Health Awareness Month.
Veterans’ Health: House Passes More than a Dozen Veterans Bills.
Tuesday, May 22
Medicare: House Ways and Means Committee Discusses Congressional and Administrative Strategies for Cutting “Red Tape” in Medicare.
Pediatric Cancer: House Passes Childhood Cancer STAR Act. Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Greg Walden (R-OR) and Health Subcommittee Chairman Michael C. Burgess (R-TX) Release Statement.
Workforce Shortages: Senate HELP Committee Holds Hearing on Addressing Shortages and Improving Care in the Health Care Workforce. Senate Health Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-TN) Delivers Statement. Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-WA) Delivers Statement.
Workforce Shortages: Senate Aging Committee Chairman Susan Collins (R-ME) and Ranking Member Bob Casey (D-PA) Introduce Legislation to Address Critical Shortage of Geriatric Health Professionals.
Wednesday, May 23
Opioids: Senate Finance Committee Introduces 22 Bills to Address Opioid Epidemic.
Opioids: Senate Aging Committee Examines Opioid Crisis’ Effect on Older Americans.
Indian Health Service: Senate Appropriations Committee Reviews FY2019 Budget Request for the Indian Health Service.
Medical Education: House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health Holds Hearing on Reauthorization of the Children’s Hospital Graduate Medical Education Program.
Opioids: House Ways and Means Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) Applauds Republican Efforts to Combat Opioid Crisis.
Thursday, May 24
Appropriations: Senate Appropriations Committee Approves Agriculture, Rural Development, Food And Drug Administration, And Related Agencies Appropriations Bill Containing $159 Million Increase in FDA Funding.
Rural Health: Senate Finance Committee Holds Full Committee Hearing on Pressures Facing Rural Health Care. Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-UT) Delivers Opening Statement. Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-OR) Delivers Opening Statement.
Opioids: Senate Judiciary Committee Marks Up Six Opioid Bills, Approves Five.
HHS Nominees: Senate Finance Committee Advances HHS Nominee John J. Bartrum.
Drug Pricing: Senate HELP Committee Announces Hearing on President Trump’s Drug Pricing Plan.
Budget: CBO Posts Analysis of President’s 2019 Budget.
REGULATORY UPDATE
Monday, May 21
Medicare: GAO Advises Medicare to Continue Prior Authorization.
Mental Health: NIH-Funded Study Finds Racial Disparity in Suicide Rates Among U.S. Youth.
Transplant Recipients: FDA Issues Draft Guidance on Developing Drugs to Treat or Prevent Cytomegalovirus in Patients Who Have Undergone Solid Organ Transplantation (SOT) or Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation (HSCT).
Liver Disease: FDA Approves New Drug for Patients with Chronic Liver Disease and Low Blood Platelets Undergoing Medical Procedures.
Kidney Disease: NIH Scientists Link Pregnancy-Related Diabetes and Chronic Kidney Disease.
Tuesday, May 22
Opioids: FDA Issues Warning Letters to Companies Selling Illegal, Unapproved Kratom Products Marketed For Opioid Cessation, Pain Treatment, Other Medical Uses.
Rescissions: GAO Reviews President Trump’s Rescissions Proposals, Deems Majority Consistent With Federal Law.
Wednesday, May 23
Mental Health: SAMHSA Announces Availability of up to $230 Million for Strategic Prevention Framework Partnerships for Success Grant Program.
Patient Safety: Representatives from CMS, CDC, FDA, Join List of National Steering Committee Members for Institute for Healthcare Improvement’s National Patient Safety Campaign.
ACA: CBO Report Projects 5 Million More Uninsured Americans in 2027 Compared to Previous Estimates.
Thursday, May 24
Mental Health: GAO Issues Report on State-Based Protection and Advocacy for Individuals with Mental Illness Programs.
Opioids: NIH Study Examines Limitations of Opioid Therapy in Addressing Chronic Pain.
Liver Cancer: NIH Study Finds Connection Between Gut Microbiome and Antitumor Immune Function in Liver.
Mental Health: NIMHD Director Dr. Eliseo J. Pérez-Stable Authors Study Revealing Racial Disparities in Risks for Depression.
Mental Health: SAMHSA Announces Availability of up to $95.9 Million for Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic Expansion Grants.
Universal Health Coverage: HHS Secretary Alex Azar Discusses Universal Health Coverage at World Health Assembly.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Senate Finance Subcommittee on Health Care
Hearing: “Examining Efforts to Prevent Opioid Overutilization and Misuse in Medicare and Medicaid”
May 29, 2018, 1:00 PM
Bensalem Township Municipal Building
2400 Byberry Road
Bensalem, PA 19020
Senate HELP Committee
Hearing: “The Cost of Prescription Drugs: Examining the President’s Blueprint ‘American Patients First’ to Lower Drug Prices”
June 12, 2018, 10:00 Am
430 Dirksen Senate Office Building
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.