Aug. 30, 2022 – When members of the House and Senate return to Washington Sept. 6 following the Labor Day holiday, they face competing priorities and tight timeframes to take action on the federal budget and user fees, which expire on Sept. 30. Failure to pass the fiscal year 2023 (FY 2023) budget and reauthorize […]
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May 2, 2022 – Although Medicare Advantage (MA) plans often are touted for delivering more benefits at a lower cost than traditional Medicare, some critics argue that MA organizations (MAOs) deny beneficiaries coverage that they would receive under Medicare rules – including MRIs and post-acute care – in order to increase profits. As MA plan […]
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April 4, 2022 – The fiscal year (FY) 2023 budget proposed by President Joe Biden last week emphasizes fiscal restraint more than new, big spending programs, but it does ask for increased funding for pandemic preparedness, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and projects such as the Cancer Moonshot and the Advanced Research Projects Agency […]
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Feb. 15, 2022 – Dr. Robert Califf was confirmed to be the next Commissioner of Food and Drugs in a close 50-46 Senate vote today. In a sign of the times, during the 2016 vote for Califf’s first stint as FDA Commissioner, he was confirmed 89-4. “We expect Califf to be a strong leader for […]
Read more Feb. 7, 2022 – Although the nomination of Dr. Robert Califf to return as FDA Commissioner was advanced by the Senate House, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee just weeks ago and it appeared Califf was poised to be confirmed by the full Senate, new opposition to his nomination reportedly has switched at least some […]
Read more Dec. 20, 2021 — Dr. Robert Califf, President Joe Biden’s nominee for the FDA Commissioner position, spent roughly two hours answering questions volleyed his way during last week’s Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee’s hearing on his nomination. Califf’s answers, peppered with details, facts and figures, references to senators’ home-state concerns, anecdotes about […]
Read more Nov. 15, 2021 – Many in the healthcare space are breathing a sigh of relief that President Joe Biden finally announced his nominee to be the new FDA Commissioner on Nov. 12: former FDA Commissioner Robert Califf, M.D. Although Coalition for Healthcare Communication Executive Director Jon Bigelow believes Califf will win Senate confirmation for a […]
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Nov. 4, 2021 – Update on spending bill from Coalition for Healthcare Communication Executive Director Jon Bigelow: On Oct. 28, President Joe Biden announced a new “framework” for the Build Back Better Act, reducing the scope to $1.8 trillion and dropping several initiatives, conspicuously including measures to limit the cost of prescription drugs. Very quickly, […]
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Nov. 1, 2021 – As Congress and the White House parry back and forth over specific provisions in President Joe Biden’s Build Back Better Act, the proposed legislation currently includes some expansion of healthcare coverage, new infrastructure money for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), but no significant actions to tackle drug prices – yet […]
Read more Oct. 21, 2021—Nine months into President Joe Biden’s administration, he has still not nominated a candidate to take the helm at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Amid the COVID-19 pandemic and other pressing healthcare issues, the pressure is rising for a permanent FDA commissioner, but many of the frequently-named frontrunners for the position appear […]
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