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Health Care

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The Big Story

Democrats prep case for extended ACA subsidies

The extended Affordable Care Act subsidies credited with boosting health coverage in the U.S. expire at the end of this year. Democrats are preparing for a fight to keep these subsidies going amid GOP control of the House and Senate.

Led by Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) and Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), along with Rep. Lauren Underwood (D-Ill.), Democrats reintroduced legislation this week that would permanently extend the enhanced subsidies.

Democrats unsuccessfully tried to include a one-year extension into the year-end spending bill in December. The Biden administration has repeatedly called on Congress to either extend or make the subsidies permanent.

In a statement marking another record year of ACA enrollment, President Biden said, “I urge Congress to double down on the progress we have made and ensure Americans have access to quality, affordable health care by extending the ACA premium tax credit this year.”

But Republicans argue the tax credits are too costly and benefit those who don’t need them. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has said permanently extending the subsidies, which come in the form of tax credits, would cost $335 billion over the next 10 years.

The CBO also estimated last month that premiums would spike without the subsidies, and the number of uninsured Americans would increase by more than 2 million in 2026, 3.7 million in 2027 and then 3.8 million each year on average through 2034.

At the same time, the health industry is also mobilizing to protect the subsidies. Insurers and providers could lose billions of dollars if they expire.

At least one Republican, Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), has spoken in favor of extending the subsidies, telling the Alaska Beacon, “I look at this, and I would make the argument that you’ve got a lot of folks that have seen some real relief.”

Read more at TheHill.com.

Welcome to The Hill’s Health Care newsletter, we’re Nathaniel Weixel, Joseph Choi and Alejandra O’Connell-Domenech — every week we follow the latest moves on how Washington impacts your health.

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Essential Reads

How policy will be impacting the health care sector this week and beyond:

US overdose deaths far outpace other countries: Report

The United States has the highest rate of drug overdose deaths out of 30 countries, according to a report from the health nonprofit the Commonwealth Fund. Overdose deaths in the U.S. dipped slightly around 2018 after a years-long rise. But those deaths began to rise again in 2019 and shot up during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Overdose deaths …

Full Story

Lawmakers urge FTC to release newest report on pharmacy benefit managers

A bipartisan, bicameral group of lawmakers is calling on the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to vote in favor of releasing an interim staff report on pharmacy benefit managers (PBM). Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), along with Reps. Jake Auchincloss (D-Mass.) and Diana Harshbarger (R-Tenn.), wrote to the FTC in light of Tuesday’s open commission meeting to consider issuing a second interim staff …

Full Story

Kroger agrees to pay $110M to Kentucky in opioid settlement

The Kroger Co. has agreed to pay Kentucky $110 million to settle a lawsuit filed last year alleging it pumped millions of doses of opioids into the state over the course of more than a decade. Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman (R) announced the settlement Thursday, saying the money was payment for Kroger’s “role in the devastating drug crisis.” “Kroger and its more than 100 pharmacies across …

Full Story

The Hill event

Trust in Science: The High-Stakes Game For U.S. Public Health

Thursday, Jan. 16 in Washington, D.C. | In person, streaming nationally

The Hill and the Alliance for Aging Research are hosting a timely discussion on Jan. 16 to discuss the challenges public health leaders face to restore trust in medical science and U.S. health agencies. Join us as we convene leaders in government, health care, science and patient advocacy to analyze the current state of health care discourse.

Speakers include:

Dr. Larry Bucshon, former GOP congressman from Indiana; senior policy advisor, Holland & Knight
Imran Ahmed, founder & CEO, Center for Countering Digital Hate
Lynn Albizo, chief public policy officer, Immune Deficiency Foundation
Dr. Georges C. Benjamin, executive director, American Public Health Association
Dr. Paul Offit, director, Vaccine Education Center and attending physician, Division of Infectious Diseases at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia

Click here to RSVP

In Other News

Branch out with a different read:

More than 15,000 doctors urge Senate to reject RFK Jr. as Health secretary

More than 15,000 doctors across the country signed an open letter urging senators to vote against President-elect Trump’s nominee for secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS): Robert F. Kennedy Jr. In the letter, physicians say they are “appalled” by Trump’s “reckless” appointment of Kennedy, arguing he would be “dangerous” if confirmed to the top public health post. “This appointment is an affront …

Full Story

Around the Nation

Local and state headlines on health care:

New Mexico Supreme Court ruling strikes down local abortion restrictions (NBC)
NC Treasurer: Premiums to rise with State Health Plan in dire financial shape (NC Newsline)
Strike at Providence hospitals will further strain Oregon’s health care system (The Lund Report)

What We’re Reading

Health news we’ve flagged from other outlets:

Health care AI, intended to save money, turns out to require a lot of expensive humans (KFF Health News)
Bird flu will be the next pandemic unless health officials take 6 critical steps, experts say (Fortune)
“They’re not shortcuts”: How weight loss drugs became the business of shame (Salon)

What Others are Reading

Most read stories on The Hill right now:

Judge holds Giuliani in contempt for defaming Georgia election workers

A federal judge on Friday held Rudy Giuliani in civil contempt for skirting an agreement not to make new false claims about two Georgia election workers … Read more

Judge sentences Trump to unconditional discharge, no punishment in hush money conviction

President-elect Trump was spared any punishment for his hush money criminal conviction Friday when a New York judge sentenced him to an unconditional … Read more