Month: April 2025

GOP Sets Ambitious Timeline for Reconciliation Bill – Republican leadership of the House of Representatives is aiming for all committees to hold markups of their respective components of the forthcoming reconciliation package within the first two weeks after the chamber returns from recess on April 28. The joint budget resolution adopted by Congress earlier this month sets a nonbinding deadline of May 9 for committees to deliver their respective sections of the bill. Senate and House Budget Committee leadership are targeting Memorial Day for sending the bill to President Donald Trump for his signature. House leadership encouraged committees to work over the recess in order to meet this ambitious timeline. The GOP aims to use the reconciliation package to advance the President’s domestic policy agenda, including tax cuts, energy policy, and border security, while trimming the budget deficit by at least $1.5 trillion. This includes $880 billion in savings over the next decade from the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which is expected to necessitate cuts to the Medicaid program.

 

Twelve House Republicans signed on to a letter to GOP leadership stating that they will not support any final bill that includes cuts to Medicaid enrollees’ benefits. “We must reform Medicaid so that it is a strong and long-lasting program for years to come,” the lawmakers wrote in the letter, “However, we cannot and will not support a final reconciliation bill that includes any reduction in Medicaid coverage for vulnerable populations.” The letter, which was signed by Reps. David Valadao (Calif.), Don Bacon (Neb.), Jeff Van Drew (N.J.), Rob Bresnahan (Pa.), Juan Ciscomani (Ariz.), Jen Kiggans (Va.), Young Kim (Calif.), Rob Wittman (Va.), Nicole Malliotakis (N.Y.), Nick LaLota (N.Y.), Andrew Garbarino (N.Y.), and Jeff Hurd (Colo.), expresses openness to targeted reforms that “improve program integrity, reduce improper payments, and modernize delivery systems to fix flaws in the program that divert resources away from children, seniors, individuals with disabilities and pregnant women — those who the program was intended to help.”

 

Internal Document Shows Deep Budget Cuts for HHS – The Trump administration is considering deep cuts to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) according to an internal budget proposal from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). The ‘pre-decisional’ proposal would cut one-third of the department’s budget, reducing discretionary funding from $116.8 billion in fiscal year (FY) 2025 to approximately $80.4 billion. The document proposes to cut funding for both the National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention by more than 40%. Funding for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the Health Resources and Services Administration, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and the Administration for Community Living would be eliminated. The new Administration for a Healthy America, under which many of the eliminated programs would be consolidated, would receive roughly $14 billion in budget authority. The proposal is still subject to change, given that the White House has not yet sent its formal FY 2026 budget proposal to Congress. Spokespeople for OMB have also confirmed that no final funding decisions have been made.

 

Bipartisan Probe MA Compliance with MLR Requirements – Reps. Greg Murphy, MD (R-N.C.) and Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas) have sent a letter to the Government Accountability Office (GAO) requesting that the agency investigate the growth of Medicare Advantage (MA) insurers, and specifically whether the insurers meet the federal requirement to spend at least 85% of their revenue on beneficiary health care. The letter suggests that insurer acquisition of related businesses like health care providers could undermine the effectiveness of medical loss ratio (MLR) requirements, noting that payments to a related business are considered medical expenses for purposes of calculating the MLR, even though a portion of these payments may ultimately be profits for the insurer. The lawmakers request that GAO examine the ownership structures of MA insurers, trends in spending on medical services and supplemental benefits, and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ (CMS) oversight of MA reporting requirements.

 

Ways and Means RFI on OPOs – The House Ways and Means Committee issued a request for information (RFI) on the nation’s 55 organ procurement organizations (OPOs) on Wednesday. The panel seeks information from the public about whether the groups, which qualify as tax-exempt organizations, are abiding by federal laws and regulations. The RFI provides background on the laws and regulations governing OPOs as 501(c)(3) entities, and also details recent reports suggesting that certain OPOs have billed Medicare for costs that may not be appropriate or allowable under law. Responses should be submitted to [email protected] by May 16, 2025.

 

E&C Republicans Investigate 23andMe Bankruptcy – Republican leadership of the House Energy and Commerce Committee have launched an investigation into 23andMe and its handling of Americans’ sensitive data following the company’s decision to file for bankruptcy. 23andMe filed for bankruptcy last month, and announced that it intends to sell all of its assets to pay off debts. The company’s most valuable asset is considered to be its genetic database of over 15 million customers. “With the lack of a federal comprehensive data privacy and security law, we write to express our great concern about the safety of Americans’ most sensitive personal information,” the letter states. The lawmakers specifically express concerns about reports of customers experiencing issues accessing and deleting their data from their 23andMe accounts. The lawmakers request a response to questions related to the practices 23andMe will implement with regard to customers’ sensitive information by May 1.

 

Democrats Urge Part D Coverage of GLP-1’s – A group of five Democratic senators have sent a letter to HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. regarding access to GLP-1’s in the Medicare and Medicaid programs. The letter, signed by Sens. Jeff Merkley (Ore.), Amy Klobuchar (Minn.), Cory Booker (N.J.), Ben Ray Luján (N.M.), and Gary Peters (Mich.), calls on the administration to reissue a Biden-administration proposed rule that would have allowed Medicare Part D to cover the anti-obesity drugs. The Trump administration recently decided not to finalize the proposal, with CMS providing no reason for the decision. The lawmakers argue that allowing Medicare and Medicaid to cover drugs used to treat obesity “will not only benefit the health of Americans, but is also a critical long-term investment to improve the costly treatment of health complications associated with obesity.”

 

NJ Congressman in Intensive Care – Rep. Donald Norcross (D-N.J.), 66, was admitted to an intensive care unit on Tuesday and faces an extended recovery that could require physical rehabilitation, according to a press release from his office. Norcross was diagnosed with a gallbladder infection that had progressed to sepsis. Norcross has served in Congress since 2014 and currently serves on the Armed Services and Education and the Workforce committees.

 

President Signs Drug Price Executive Order – President Donald Trump signed an executive order (E.O.) on Tuesday aimed at lowering prescription drug prices. The E.O. touches upon several key policy issues, including: 340B, the Inflation Reduction Act’s “pill penalty,” and pharmacy benefit managers.  Hart Health Strategies Inc. has prepared an analysis of the E.O. below, and an official fact sheet can be found here.

 

Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs)

• Directs several offices to provide recommendations on how to promote “a more competitive, efficient, transparent, and resilient pharmaceutical value chain.”  While the E.O. does not explicitly cite PBMs, the section is titled “Reevaluating the Role of Middlemen,” which has typically been understood as the PBMs, but could include others in the drug supply chain.
• Directs the Secretary to improve “fiduciary transparency” of PBM compensation for employer health plans under ERISA.

 

Drug Administration

• Directs the Secretary to propose regulations that ensure Medicare payments for administered medications do not encourage care in hospital outpatient departments over “physician office settings.”

 

Insulin & Injectable Epinephrine

• Directs the Secretary to ensure that federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) offer insulin and injectable epinephrine at or below the 340B price to patients with a high cost-sharing requirement for either insulin or injectable epinephrine, a high unmet deductible, or no health care insurance.  Ensuring these discounts will be a condition for future grants made under Section 330(e).

 

Inflation Reduction Act (IRA)

• While Republicans have long discussed the possibility of repealing the IRA, the E.O. commits to the Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program (MDPNP) and directs the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to continue seeking guidance and comments for future rounds of drug negotiations.
• Directs several offices to provide recommendation on how to “stabilize and reduce” Medicare Part D premiums.
• Directs Congress to end the “pill penalty,” which currently allows for the MDPNP to review small molecule drugs (i.e. pills) four years earlier than it permits review of biologic products.  The E.O. instructs Congress to address this discrepancy, which is understood to exempt all drugs from MDPNP eligibility for 13 years.

 

Generics & Biosimilars

• Directs the Secretary to provide administrative and legislative recommendations that increase generic, biosimilar, and other select drug approvals.  It also directs the Secretary to make recommendations on opportunities to reclassify prescription drugs to over-the-counter medications.

 

International Importation

• Directs the Secretary to streamline State application and approval of drug wholesale importation programs.  While Florida’s program has been approved, Colorado, Maine, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Texas, and Vermont have not received program approval to date.

 

Medicare

• Instructs the Secretary to develop and implement a payment model to secure “better value” for high-cost prescription drugs that are not subject to the MDPNP.  “Better value” is not defined within the E.O.

 

Site Neutrality

• Instructs the Secretary to conduct a survey and subsequently propose adjustments that would achieve Medicare site neutrality for outpatient drugs.  Site neutrality within the E.O. aims to remove additional payments made by Medicare for drugs provided at hospital outpatient departments.  The E.O. does not comment on services nor does it mention physician offices.

 

Medicaid

• Directs several offices to provide recommendations to improve the Medicaid drug rebate program with manufacturers, identify new drug payment methods, implement value-based care for drugs, and “support” Medicaid drug spending.

 

Pharmaceutical Manufacturers

• Directs the Department of Justice, the Department of Commerce, and the Federal Trade Commission to conduct listening sessions and issue a report with recommendations to reduce “anti-competitive behavior” by pharmaceutical manufacturers.

 

Dr. Oz Sworn-in as CMS Administrator – Mehmet Oz, MD was officially sworn in as administrator of CMS on Friday. Dr. Oz, a cardiothoracic surgeon, was confirmed by the Senate along party lines earlier this month. During his remarks at the swearing in ceremony, Oz identified several areas of focus for his work going forward – noting that Medicaid often crowds out other social programs in state budgets and highlighting how much the U.S. spends on health care per person compared to other countries, the prevalence of medical errors, and the decline in the nation’s life expectancy since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Oz also aligned himself with the administration’s Make America Healthy Again vision, stating “Together, we’re going to make the care better. We’re going to make … the outcomes improve, and we’re going to make sure that America can actually be the healthiest country it could ever possibly be.”

 

DOJ Contacts Medical Journals About Competing Viewpoints – The Department of Justice  has sent letters to at least three medical journals requesting information about how the publications handle scientific debates and competing viewpoints. The letter to the editor-in-chief of CHEST from Edward R. Martin Jr., U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, states that “more and more journals and publications like CHEST Journal are conceding that they are partisans in various scientific debates.” Martin poses the following questions:

• How do you assess your responsibilities to protect the public from misinformation?
• How do you clearly articulate to the public when you have certain viewpoints that are influenced by your ongoing relations with supporters, funders, advertisers, and others?
• Do you accept articles or essays from competing viewpoints?
• How do you assess the role played by government officials and funding organizations like the National Institutes of Health in the development of submitted articles?
• How do you handle allegations that authors of works in your journals may have misled their readers?

The letter requests a response by May 2.

 

HHS Opens Tip Line on Gender Affirming Care – HHS has launched a new whistleblower tip line to report physicians offering gender-affirming care to children. The page offers multiple options for submitting complaints “related to the chemical and surgical mutilation of children.” President Donald Trump signed an executive order in January characterizing puberty blockers and hormones for people under 19 as forms of chemical and surgical mutilation. Enforcement of the order is currently on hold following a preliminary injunction by a U.S. district court judge, who ruled that the order unconstitutionally treated people differently based on their sex or transgender status in violation of the equal protection guarantee of the U.S. Constitution’s Fifth Amendment.

 

Upcoming Congressional Hearings and Markups

House Energy and Commerce Committee markup to consider: H.R. 2483, SUPPORT for Patients and Communities Reauthorization Act of 2025; H.R. 1520, Charlotte Woodward Organ Transplant Discrimination Prevention Act; H.R. 2319, Women and Lung Cancer Research and Preventive Services Act of 2025; H.R. 1669, To amend the Public Health Service Act to reauthorize the Stop, Observe, Ask, and Respond (SOAR) to Health and Wellness Training Program; H.R. 1082, Shandra Eisenga Human Cell and Tissue Product Safety Act; and H.R. 2484, Seniors’ Access to Critical Medications Act; 10:15 a.m.; April 29

 

Senate Appropriations Committee hearing “Biomedical Research: Keeping America’s Edge in Innovation;” 10:30 a.m.; April 30

 

Recently Introduced Health Legislation

H.Res.332 — Supporting the designation of the week of April 11 through April 17, 2025, as the eighth annual “Black Maternal Health Week”, founded by Black Mamas Matter Alliance, Inc. (BMMA), to bring national attention to the maternal and reproductive health crisis in the United States and the importance of reducing maternal mortality and morbidity among Black women and birthing people; Sponsor: Adams, Alma S. [Rep.-D-NC-12]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2921 —To require the Secretary of Defense to provide to firefighters of the Department of Defense medical testing and related services to detect and prevent certain cancers; Sponsor: Bacon, Don [Rep.-R-NE-2]; Committees: House – Armed Services

 

H.R.2934 —To amend the Controlled Substances Act to provide for a new rule regarding the application of the Act to marijuana, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Joyce, David P. [Rep.-R-OH-14]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Judiciary; Transportation and Infrastructure

 

H.R.2935 — To establish a Commission on the Federal Regulation of Cannabis to study a prompt and plausible pathway to the Federal regulation of cannabis, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Joyce, David P. [Rep.-R-OH-14]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Judiciary; Ways and Means; Agriculture; Financial Services

 

H.R.2936 — To amend the Public Health Service Act to allow certain public health data modernization grants to be used to track hospital bed capacity, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Joyce, John [Rep.-R-PA-13]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means

 

H.R.2937 — To require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to improve the detection, prevention, and treatment of mental health issues among public safety telecommunicators; Sponsor: Kelly, Robin L. [Rep.-D-IL-2]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2942 —To amend title 38, United States Code, to establish standard practices for a grant or pilot program administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs through the Veterans Health Administration, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Landsman, Greg [Rep.-D-OH-1]; Committees: House – Veterans’ Affairs

 

H.R.2943 — To direct the Comptroller General of the United States to conduct a study on insurance coverage of dyspraxia/developmental coordination disorder; Sponsor: Lawler, Michael [Rep.-R-NY-17]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means; Oversight and Government Reform

 

H.R.2957 —To amend the Public Health Service Act to support the development and implementation of programs using data analysis to identify and facilitate strategies to improve outcomes for children in geographic areas with a high prevalence of trauma from exposure to adverse childhood experiences, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Pressley, Ayanna [Rep.-D-MA-7]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2960 — To amend title III of the Public Health Service Act to reauthorize the program of payments to children’s hospitals that operate graduate medical education programs; Sponsor: Schrier, Kim [Rep.-D-WA-8]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2970 — To amend title 38, United States Code, to make certain improvements to the laws relating to advocacy for veterans who receive health care and other benefits furnished by the Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Yakym, Rudy [Rep.-R-IN-2]; Committees: House – Veterans’ Affairs

House Passes GOP Budget Resolution – The House of Representatives agreed to the fiscal year 2025 Concurrent Budget Resolution as amended by the Senate (H. Con. Res. 14) on Thursday by a vote of 216-214. The vote allows the budget reconciliation process to proceed. Congressional Republicans must now begin drafting a reconciliation package to advance President Donald Trump’s domestic policy agenda, including tax cuts, energy policy, and border security, while trimming the budget deficit by at least $1.5 trillion. The budget blueprint charges the House Energy and Commerce Committee with finding $880 billion in savings over the next decade, which is expected to necessitate cuts to the Medicaid program. Lawmakers have now returned to their districts for a two-week congressional recess. Both the Senate and the House are scheduled to reconvene on April 28. During the district work period, House Democrats have planned a series of national events in opposition to the GOP budget bill, including a Medicaid Matters Day of Action on April 17.

 

House Budget Committee Reestablishes Health Care Task Force – House Budget Committee Chairman Jodey Arrington (R-Texas) has reestablished the panel’s Health Care Task Force and appointed Rep. Blake Moore (R-Utah) as chair. The Task Force was previously led by former Rep. Michael Burgess, MD (R-Texas). This congress, the Task Force plans to focus on the budgetary effects of chronic disease and opportunities to Make America Healthy Again. Members of the Task Force include Reps. Mike Carey (R-Ohio), Buddy Carter (R-Ga.), Glenn Grothman (R-Wis.), Erin Houchin (R-Ind.), Jay Obernolte (R-Calif.), Chip Roy (R-Texas), and Lloyd Smucker (R-Pa.).

 

HELP Committee RFK Jr. Hearing Does Not Take Place– U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. did not appear before the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee last week to testify about the department’s proposed reorganization and reductions in force. HELP Committee Chair Bill Cassidy, MD (R-La.) and Ranking Member Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) had requested his attendance at a hearing set for April 10. Spokespersons for HHS have declined to comment on whether the Secretary has a date set to appear before the committee. During his confirmation process, Kennedy committed to coming before the HELP Committee on a quarterly basis upon request from the chair. He is not expected to appear before the committee until after the Senate returns from recess at the end of April.

 

E&C to Reschedule Consideration of Health Bills  – The House Energy and Commerce Committee convened a markup of 26 bills last week, including six bipartisan health care measures. During the markup, committee Democrats offered an amendment to take up and pass the end-of-year legislative package (including a partial Medicare physician fix and 2-year extension of telehealth flexibilities) that was removed from the December 2024 continuing resolution. The amendment failed on a party line vote. The panel did not have time to consider the following health bills due to scheduling conflicts, and plans to reschedule consideration of H.R. 2483, SUPPORT for Patients and Communities Reauthorization Act; H.R. 1520, Charlotte Woodward Organ Transplant Discrimination Prevention Act; H.R. 2319, Women and Lung Cancer Research and Preventive Services Act; H.R. 1669, To amend the Public Health Service Act to reauthorize the Stop, Observe, Ask, and Respond to Health and Wellness Training Program; H.R. 1082, Shandra Eisenga Human Cell and Tissue Product Safety Act; and H.R. 2484, Seniors’ Access to Critical Medications Act.

 

National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology Releases Final Report – The National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology released its congressionally mandated final report last week. The report’s recommendations are centered on the following pillars: prioritizing biotechnology at the national level; mobilizing the private sector to get U.S. products to scale; maximizing the benefits of biotechnology and defense; out-innovating strategic competitors; building the biotechnology workforce of the future; and mobilizing the collective strengths of allies and partners.  The 11-member bipartisan commission led by Sen. Todd Young (R-Ind.) was mandated as part of the 2022 defense authorization bill. Sen. Young said he is already working with the leadership of the Senate Armed Services Committee to include provisions from the report in the fiscal year 2026 National Defense Authorization Act.

 

Cassidy Raises Concerns About 23andMe Bankruptcy – Senate HELP Committee Chair Bill Cassidy, MD (R-La.) has sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent expressing concerns about the potential sale of 23andMe’s genetic database of over 15 million customers.  23andMe filed for bankruptcy last month, and announced that it intends to sell all of its assets to pay off debts.  Sen. Cassidy urges the administration to use its authority through the Committee on Foreign Investment to prevent foreign adversaries from buying the database.  “Safeguarding sensitive consumer data is a top goal to protect our national security,” Cassidy writes. “Chinese companies have already taken steps to collect genetic data across the world that could be used for adverse purposes. These adversaries may similarly seek to acquire 23andMe’s database and potentially use it against Americans.”

 

RAND Releases Report on Current State of Emergency Care – The RAND Corporation released a new report entitled Strategies for Sustaining Emergency Care in the United States. The report assesses the current value of emergency care, evaluates challenges to sustaining emergency care, measures trends in emergency care payment, and identifies alternate funding strategies for emergency care. The authors assert that while emergency departments offer many types of value to different stakeholders across the country, the stresses EDs have faced over the past decade (including the opioid and gun violence epidemics, COVID-19 pandemic, increases in patient acuity and complexity, and declines in payment) put the viability of emergency care at risk. The report includes the following recommendations:

• Stakeholders should advocate funding for the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act.
• Local governments and other stakeholders should pursue policies to allocate city and local funds to ED care and related activities that confer value to the broader community.
• Stakeholders should develop uninsured and underinsured patient compensation benchmarks so that EDs are compensated commensurate with the level of indigent care they provide.
• Health care organizations and legislatures should invest in expanding primary care capacity and develop and implement strategies to address ED crowding.
• Legislatures should institute state or federal laws that protect health care workers by increasing the legal consequences for violence against health care workers.
• Stakeholders should advocate Medicaid expansion in states that have not adopted it yet and should advocate Medicaid parity with Medicare.
• Legislatures should require insurance entities to collect deductibles and copays from their enrollees and should implement a legislative fix to No Surprises Act flaws so that payers must pay in full any independent dispute resolution judgments to the prevailing physicians within a preset time frame.

 

Upcoming Congressional Hearings and Markups

Senate Appropriations Committee hearing “Biomedical Research: Keeping America’s Edge in Innovation;” 10:30 a.m.; April 30

 

Recently Introduced Health Legislation

S.1305 — A bill to allow for greater collaboration between the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority and the network of Manufacturing USA institutes; Sponsor: Tillis, Thomas [Sen.-R-NC]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

H.Res.298 — Expressing support for the designation of April 7, 2025, as “World Health Day” and recognizing the importance of prioritizing public health nationally and globally; Sponsor: Thanedar, Shri [Rep.-D-MI-13]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2667 — To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow distributions from a health flexible spending arrangement or health reimbursement arrangement directly to a health savings account in connection with establishing coverage under a high deductible health plan; Sponsor: Bean, Aaron [Rep.-R-FL-4]; Committees: House – Ways and Means

 

H.R.2678 — To provide for further comprehensive research at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke on unruptured intracranial aneurysms, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Fitzpatrick, Brian K. [Rep.-R-PA-1]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2687 — To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide a refundable tax credit for non-directed living kidney donations; Sponsor: Malliotakis, Nicole [Rep.-R-NY-11]; Committees: House – Ways and Means; Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2695 — To amend the Public Health Service Act to reauthorize grants for building communities of recovery; Sponsor: Pettersen, Brittany [Rep.-D-CO-7]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

S.1320 — A bill to direct the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to take certain steps regarding research related to menopause, perimenopause, or mid-life women’s health, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Murray, Patty [Sen.-D-WA]; Committees: Senate – Veterans’ Affairs

 

S.1329 — A bill to address the behavioral health workforce shortages through support for peer support specialists, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Kaine, Tim [Sen.-D-VA]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

S.1330 — A bill to advance research to achieve medical breakthroughs in brain tumor treatment and improve awareness and adequacy of specialized cancer and brain tumor care; Sponsor: Blumenthal, Richard [Sen.-D-CT]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

S.1348 — A bill to amend the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 to prohibit an employer from recovering any health care premium paid by the employer for an employee if the employee fails to return to work due to the birth of a child, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Lee, Mike [Sen.-R-UT]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

H.Res.305 — Expressing support for the designation of the fourth Wednesday of February as “Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy Awareness Day”; Sponsor: LaHood, Darin [Rep.-R-IL-16]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2715 — To amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to extend the destruction authority of the Secretary of Health and Human Services to articles that present a significant public health concern, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Higgins, Clay [Rep.-R-LA-3]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2717 — To direct the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to take certain steps regarding research related to menopause, perimenopause, or mid-life women’s health, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Houlahan, Chrissy [Rep.-D-PA-6]; Committees: House – Armed Services; Veterans’ Affairs

 

H.R.2730 — To include pregnancy and loss of pregnancy as qualifying life events under the TRICARE program and to require a study on maternal health in the military heath system, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Mace, Nancy [Rep.-R-SC-1]; Committees: House – Armed Services

 

H.R.2732 — To amend the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 to prohibit an employer from recovering any health care premium paid by the employer for an employee if the employee fails to return to work due to the birth of a child, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Moore, Riley [Rep.-R-WV-2]; Committees: House – Education and Workforce; Oversight and Government Reform; House Administration

 

H.R.2741 — To address the behavioral health workforce shortages through support for peer support specialists, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Salinas, Andrea [Rep.-D-OR-6]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Education and Workforce

 

H.R.2744 — To amend part B of title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide for a special enrollment period under Medicare for individuals enrolled in COBRA continuation coverage, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Smucker, Lloyd [Rep.-R-PA-11]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Education and Workforce; Ways and Means

 

H.R.2745 — To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow both spouses to make catch-up contributions to the same health savings account; Sponsor: Steube, W. Gregory [Rep.-R-FL-17]; Committees: House – Ways and Means

 

S.1361 — A bill to require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to give priority in the consideration of suicide prevention grants to entities located in States that have not received such a grant, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Cramer, Kevin [Sen.-R-ND]; Committees: Senate – Veterans’ Affairs

 

S.1380 —A bill to amend the Public Health Service Act to authorize a loan repayment program to encourage specialty medicine physicians to serve in rural communities experiencing a shortage of specialty medicine physicians, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Rosen, Jacky [Sen.-D-NV]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

S.1384 — A bill to require States to report information on Medicaid payments to abortion providers; Sponsor: Banks, Jim [Sen.-R-IN]; Committees: Senate – Finance

 

S.1387 — A bill to authorize the National Biotechnology Initiative, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Young, Todd [Sen.-R-IN]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

S.1390 — A bill to amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to revise certain physician self-referral exemptions relating to physician-owned hospitals; Sponsor: Lankford, James [Sen.-R-OK]; Committees: Senate – Finance

 

S.1399 — A bill to amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to ensure appropriate payment of certain algorithm-based healthcare services under the Medicare program; Sponsor: Rounds, Mike [Sen.-R-SD]; Committees: Senate – Finance

 

H.R.2753 — To amend the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to provide for a point of order against reconciliation measures that cut benefits for Medicaid or the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Boyle, Brendan F. [Rep.-D-PA-2]; Committees: House – Rules; Budget

 

H.R.2756 — To authorize the National Biotechnology Initiative, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Bice, Stephanie I. [Rep.-R-OK-5]; Committees: House – Science, Space, and Technology; Foreign Affairs; Agriculture; Energy and Commerce; Education and Workforce

 

H.R.2757 —To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to improve coverage of audiology services under the Medicare program, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Bilirakis, Gus M. [Rep.-R-FL-12]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means

 

H.R.2767 —To advance research to achieve medical breakthroughs in brain tumor treatment and improve awareness and adequacy of specialized cancer and brain tumor care; Sponsor: Fitzpatrick, Brian K. [Rep.-R-PA-1]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2779 — Abortion Funding Awareness Act – To require States to report information on Medicaid payments to abortion providers; Sponsor: Houchin, Erin [Rep.-R-IN-9]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2793 — To allow individuals to choose to opt out of the Medicare part A benefit; Sponsor: Palmer, Gary J. [Rep.-R-AL-6]; Committees: House – Ways and Means

 

S.Res.171 — A resolution supporting the goals and ideals of “National Youth HIV/AIDS Awareness Day”; Sponsor: Blumenthal, Richard [Sen.-D-CT]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

S.Res.172 — A resolution supporting the designation of the week of April 11 through April 17, 2025, as the eighth annual “Black Maternal Health Week”, founded by Black Mamas Matter Alliance, Inc., to bring national attention to the maternal and reproductive health crisis in the United States and the importance of reducing maternal mortality and morbidity among Black women and birthing people; Sponsor: Booker, Cory A. [Sen.-D-NJ]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

S.Res.173 — A resolution supporting the goals and ideals of World Malaria Day; Sponsor: Wicker, Roger F. [Sen.-R-MS]; Committees: Senate – Foreign Relations

 

S.Res.181 — A resolution designating the week of April 14 through April 20, 2025, as “National Osteopathic Medicine Week”; Sponsor: Wicker, Roger F. [Sen.-R-MS]; Committees: Senate – Judiciary

 

S.Res.182 — A resolution supporting the goals and ideals of National Public Health Week; Sponsor: Lujan, Ben Ray [Sen.-D-NM]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

S.1406 — A bill to amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to improve the payment method for oxygen and oxygen related equipment, supplies, and services, to increase beneficiary access to oxygen and oxygen related equipment, supplies, and services, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Cassidy, Bill [Sen.-R-LA]; Committees: Senate – Finance

 

S.1407 — A bill to ban the use of Federal funds for the purchase of drugs manufactured in the People’s Republic of China, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Cotton, Tom [Sen.-R-AR]; Committees: Senate – Finance

 

S.1409 — A bill to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to collect and disseminate information on concussion and traumatic brain injury among public safety officers; Sponsor: Cornyn, John [Sen.-R-TX]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

S.1410 —A bill to provide for health coverage with no cost-sharing for additional breast screenings for certain individuals at greater risk for breast cancer; Sponsor: Klobuchar, Amy [Sen.-D-MN]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

S.1414 — A bill to amend the Public Health Service Act to provide that clinical studies required for licensure of biological products as biosimilar shall not be required to include the assessment of immunogenicity, pharmacodynamics, or comparative clinical efficacy; Sponsor: Paul, Rand [Sen.-R-KY]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

S.1435 — A bill to prohibit the use of taxpayer dollars to support animal experimentation in the laboratories of adversarial nations; Sponsor: Ernst, Joni [Sen.-R-IA]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

S.1440 — A bill to amend title II of the Public Health Service Act to include as an additional right or privilege of commissioned officers of the Public Health Service (and their beneficiaries) certain leave provided under title 10, United States Code to commissioned officers of the Army (or their beneficiaries); Sponsor: Duckworth, Tammy [Sen.-D-IL]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

S.1448 — A bill to address mental health issues for youth, particularly youth of color, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Hirono, Mazie K. [Sen.-D-HI]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

S.1460 — A bill to amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to extend incentive payments for participation in eligible alternative payment models under the Medicare program; Sponsor: Barrasso, John [Sen.-R-WY]; Committees: Senate – Finance

 

S.1469 —A bill to amend the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 to include food allergy information in existing training modules for local food service personnel; Sponsor: Durbin, Richard J. [Sen.-D-IL]; Committees: Senate – Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry

 

S.1482 — A bill to amend the Public Health Service Act to support and stabilize the existing nursing workforce, establish programs to increase the number of nurses, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Blunt Rochester, Lisa [Sen.-D-DE]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

S.1489 — A bill to amend the Public Health Service Act to provide for public health research and investment into understanding and eliminating structural racism and police violence; Sponsor: Warren, Elizabeth [Sen.-D-MA]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

H.Res.324 — Raising awareness of esophageal cancer by expressing support for the designation of April 2025 as “Esophageal Cancer Awareness Month”; Sponsor: Connolly, Gerald E. [Rep.-D-VA-11]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.Res.331 — Supporting the goals and ideals of “National Youth HIV/AIDS Awareness Day”; Sponsor: Pocan, Mark [Rep.-D-WI-2]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2810 — To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to treat amounts paid for private umbilical cord blood, or umbilical cord tissue, banking services as medical care expenses; Sponsor: Arrington, Jodey C. [Rep.-R-TX-19]; Committees: House – Ways and Means

 

H.R.2821 —To require the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Commissioner of Food and Drugs, to publish a final rule relating to nonclinical testing methods; Sponsor: Carter, Earl L. “Buddy” [Rep.-R-GA-1]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2830 — To require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to collect and disseminate information on concussion and traumatic brain injury among public safety officers; Sponsor: Crenshaw, Dan [Rep.-R-TX-2]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2846 — To amend title II of the Public Health Service Act to include as an additional right or privilege of commissioned officers of the Public Health Service (and their beneficiaries) certain leave provided under title 10, United States Code to commissioned officers of the Army (or their beneficiaries); Sponsor: Houlahan, Chrissy [Rep.-D-PA-6]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2855 — To limit the impoundment, transfer, or reprogramming of Federal funds made available for the National Institutes of Health, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Kennedy, Timothy M. [Rep.-D-NY-26]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2868 — To amend the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 to add highly pathogenic avian influenza as a high priority research and extension area; Sponsor: McBride, Sarah [Rep.-D-DE-At Large]; Committees: House – Agriculture

 

H.R.2874 — To provide for regulations on protecting statutory conscience rights in health care; Sponsor: Moolenaar, John R. [Rep.-R-MI-2]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2875 — To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow refunds of Federal motor fuel excise taxes on fuels used in mobile mammography vehicles; Sponsor: Moore, Tim [Rep.-R-NC-14]; Committees: House – Ways and Means

 

H.R.2884 — To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide for public health research and investment into understanding and eliminating structural racism and police violence; Sponsor: Pressley, Ayanna [Rep.-D-MA-7]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2892 — To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to develop and nationally disseminate accurate, relevant, and accessible resources to promote understanding about sensitivities regarding adoption in the health care industry, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Smucker, Lloyd [Rep.-R-PA-11]; Committees: House – Education and Workforce

 

H.R.2902 —To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to improve the payment method for oxygen and oxygen related equipment, supplies, and services, to increase beneficiary access to oxygen and oxygen related equipment, supplies, and services, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Valadao, David G. [Rep.-R-CA-22]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means

Senate Adopts Budget Blueprint – The Senate passed a budget resolution early Saturday morning, a critical step in the reconciliation process that Republicans hope to use to advance President Donald Trump’s legislative agenda. The measure was adopted in a 51-48 vote following a lengthy series of votes on amendments known as a vote-a-rama. Sens. Rand Paul (Ky.) and Susan Collins (Maine) were the only Republicans to vote against the resolution. For the reconciliation process to proceed, a unified budget resolution must first be adopted by the House of Representatives. The House approved its own budget resolution in February that called for $880 billion in savings over the next decade to come from the Energy and Commerce Committee – likely necessitating deep cuts to the Medicaid program. The possibility of such cuts has received bipartisan pushback in the Senate. During the Senate vote-a-rama, the chamber adopted an amendment from Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) to strengthen and improve Medicaid for the most vulnerable populations and extend the life of the Federal Hospital Insurance Trust Fund. The amendment was agreed to along party lines, with Democrats arguing that the failure to define “most vulnerable populations” continues to leave the door open for cuts to the Medicaid program. House Republican leadership told their members that they will proceed with a vote on the Senate budget blueprint this week, despite apparent opposition from some fiscal conservatives. The Senate plan contains lower spending cut targets and would allow for more tax cuts that are not fully paid for in comparison to the House’s original framework. Republicans can only lose three members on a party-line vote if all members of the chamber are present and voting.

 

Dr. Oz Confirmed as CMS Administrator – The Senate confirmed Mehmet Oz, MD as administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on Thursday in a 53-45 party line vote. As CMS administrator, Dr. Oz – a cardiothoracic surgeon – will be responsible for the agency in charge of the insurance coverage of more than 160 million people. During his Senate confirmation process, Oz stated that his focus as administrator will be on empowering beneficiaries with better tools and more transparency to manage their health and navigate the health care system; incentivizing health care providers to optimize care with real time information; and modernizing tools to reduce fraud, waste, and abuse.

 

Senate Panel Advances Six Bills to Lower Prescription Drug Prices – The Senate Judiciary Committee advanced six bipartisan pieces of legislation on Thursday that aim to reduce prescription drug costs and increase access to generic medications. Each of the bills – which were previously approved by the committee during the 118^th Congress– was advanced by voice vote.  The Prescription Pricing for the People Act (S. 527) requires the Federal Trade Commission to examine the effects of consolidation in the pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) industry, as well as other potentially abusive behavior by PBMs, on pricing. The Drug Competition Enhancement Act (S. 1040) would prohibit branded drug manufacturers from deliberately preventing potential competitors from entering the marketplace using product hopping. The Affordable Prescriptions for Patients Act (S. 1041) would prevent bad actors in the pharmaceutical industry from using “patent thickets” to stop potential competitors from entering the marketplace. The Interagency Patent Coordination and Improvement Act (S. 1097) would establish a task force between the United States Patent and Trademark Office and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to improve communication and coordination in implementing each agency’s activities related to pharmaceutical patents. The Stop STALLING Act (S. 1095) would deter branded pharmaceutical companies from filing sham “citizen petitions” with the FDA to interfere with the approval of generic and biosimilar medicines. Finally, the Preserve Access to Affordable Generics and Biosimilars Act (S. 1096) would limit “pay-for-delay” deals that prevent or delay the introduction of generic drugs. The Affordable Prescriptions for Patients Act was the only bill of the six to pass the full Senate last Congress.

 

HELP Requests RFK Testimony on HHS Restructuring – Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee Chairman Bill Cassidy, MD (R-La.) and Ranking Member Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) have called on U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to testify before the panel on Thursday. The lawmakers wish to discuss the department’s proposed reorganization and recent reductions in force. It remains unclear whether the Secretary will accept the panel’s invitation to testify. “The news coverage on the HHS reorg is being set by anonymous sources and opponents are setting the perceptions,” Sen. Cassidy said in a statement. “This will be a good opportunity for him to set the record straight and speak to the goals, structure and benefits of the proposed reorganization.” During his confirmation process, Kennedy committed to coming before the HELP Committee on a quarterly basis upon request from the chair.

 

E&C Democrats Press for Answers on HHS Job Cuts – Democrats on the House Energy and Commerce Committee have sent a letter to HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on his decision to eliminate 25% of the department’s workforce. The lawmakers ask for a response to the following requests by April 15:

• Provide a detailed list of the roles being eliminated across HHS;
• Describe in detail the process by which it was determined what roles would be eliminated;
• Specify what is meant by the elimination of 3,500 roles at the Food and Drug Administration not affecting reviewers or impacting reviewers;
• Specify which five regional offices will be closed and the process for determining why regional offices should be closed and which ones should be closed; and
• Specify which operating divisions will be eliminated or consolidated, and which new or existing operating division(s) will be responsible for carrying out the eliminated or consolidated operation division’s work.

The letter was signed by Ranking Member Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-N.J.), Health Subcommittee Ranking Member Diana DeGette (D-Colo.), and Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Ranking Member Yvette D. Clarke (D-N.Y.). Staff from HHS are scheduled to brief the House Energy and Commerce Committee on the HHS restructuring this week.

 

Senate Democrats Urge HHS to Address MA Spending – A group of Senate Democrats led by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) have sent a letter to the Trump administration highlighting the need to reign in waste, fraud, and abuse in the Medicare Advantage (MA) program. The letter points out that the MA program has continuously cost more than traditional Medicare without improving health outcomes, arguing that MA program spending endangers the solvency of the Medicare trust funds. The lawmakers urge the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to:

• Eliminate waste and abuse from overpayments by improving risk adjustment calculations in the proposed 2026 MA Rate Notice and strictly enforcing the overpayment regulations for MA Organizations outlined in the 2025 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule rule.
• Strengthen enforcement against MA insurers that illegally deny care.
• Address additional barriers to care.
• Enact reforms to reduce disparities in care.

 

Booker Sets Record for Longest Speech on Senate Floor – Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) held the Senate floor for 25 hours and five consecutive minutes last week in protest of the Trump administration and congressional Republicans. The speech broke the previous Senate floor speech record set by the late South Carolina Sen. Strom Thurmond in 1957, lasting 24 hours and 18 minutes. Booker yielded to Democratic senators throughout the day for questions to give himself short breaks from speaking. During the speech, he argued for the need to defend against actions from the administration that would cut Medicaid, defund medical research, and increase health care costs for Americans.

 

Court Issues Permanent Injunction in NIH Indirect Cost Cuts Litigation – On April 4, 2025, the federal government requested that the court convert its March 5 preliminary injunction (barring the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) indirect cost cuts) into a permanent injunction. In their motion for conversion, the NIH noted that it hoped to expedite its ability to appeal to the First Circuit Court of Appeals on the case’s merits once a final judgment was entered. The court agreed and issued a permanent injunction the same day. The ruling vacates the NIH’s February 2025 guidance (Notice Number NOT-OD-25-068), which sought to cap indirect cost reimbursement at 15%, and permanently bars the agency from implementing the cap nationwide unless the federal government is able to successfully appeal. Judge Angel Kelley of the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts concluded that the plaintiffs—22 state attorneys general and several major research institutions—had demonstrated actual success on the merits of their claims. Reiterating the points in the preliminary injunction, the court held that the NIH’s policy violated federal law, was arbitrary and capricious, improperly retroactive, and was issued without required notice-and-comment procedures.

 

FTC’s PBM Lawsuit to Continue – The Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) case against the nation’s largest pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) will continue to move forward with the involvement of FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson. The status of the lawsuit against CVS Health Corp., Cigna Group, and UnitedHealth Group Inc., alleging that the PBMs used illegal rebate programs to keep less expensive insulin products off of drug formularies, was called into question following the Trump administration’s dismissal of the two Democratic commissioners overseeing the case last month. Ferguson, who had previously recused himself from the case, changed his decision last week to ensure that the lawsuit can continue.

 

Upcoming Congressional Hearings and Markups

House Appropriations Committee hearing “Assessing the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief;” 8:00 a.m.; April 8

 

House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Health hearing “Lowering Costs for Patients: The Health of the Biosimilar Market;” 10:00 a.m.; April 8

 

House Energy and Commerce Committee markup at 10:00 a.m. on April 8 to consider:

• H.R. 2483, SUPPORT for Patients and Communities Reauthorization Act of 2025
• H.R. 1520, Charlotte Woodward Organ Transplant Discrimination Prevention Act
• H.R. 2319, Women and Lung Cancer Research and Preventive Services Act of 2025
• H.R. 1669, To amend the Public Health Service Act to reauthorize the Stop, Observe, Ask, and Respond (SOAR) to Health and Wellness Training Program.
• H.R. 1082, Shandra Eisenga Human Cell and Tissue Product Safety Act
• H.R. 2484, Seniors’ Access to Critical Medications Act

 

Senate Judiciary Committee hearing “The Freedom of Information Act: Perspectives from Public Requesters;” 10:15 a.m.; April 8

 

House Armed Services Subcommittee on Cyber, Information Technologies, and Innovation hearing “Final Report on the National Security Commission for Emerging Biotechnology;” 4:00 p.m.; April 8

 

Senate HELP Committee executive session to consider S. 932, Give Kids a Chance Act of 2025; 10:00 a.m.; April 9

 

House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing “Restoring Trust in FDA: Rooting Out Illicit Products;” 10:00 a.m.; April 9

 

House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education public witness day; 10:30 a.m.; April 9

 

POSSIBLE: Senate HELP Committee hearing “An Update on the Restructuring of the Department of Health and Human Services” with HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.; 10:00 a.m.; April 10

 

Recently Introduced Health Legislation

H.Res.276 — Raising awareness of the racial disparities in the impact of colorectal cancer on the Hispanic community; Sponsor: Hernández, Pablo [Resident Commissioner-D-PR-At Large]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.Res.277 — Supporting the designation of May 2025 as “National Myositis Awareness Month”; Sponsor: McCormick, Richard [Rep.-R-GA-7]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2483 — Sponsor: Guthrie, Brett [Rep.-R-KY-2]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Education and Workforce; Judiciary; Financial Services

 

H.R.2484 — Sponsor: Harshbarger, Diana [Rep.-R-TN-1]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means

 

H.R.2487 — To improve access to evidence-based, lifesaving health care for transgender people, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Balint, Becca [Rep.-D-VT-At Large]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2491 — To require the Administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and the Commissioner of Social Security to review and simplify the processes, procedures, forms, and communications for family caregivers to assist individuals in establishing eligibility for, enrolling in, and maintaining and utilizing coverage and benefits under the Medicare, Medicaid, CHIP, and Social Security programs respectively, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Cammack, Kat [Rep.-R-FL-3]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means

 

H.R.2493 — To reauthorize certain programs regarding rural health care; Sponsor: Carter, Earl L. “Buddy” [Rep.-R-GA-1]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2495 — To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide coverage of medical nutrition therapy services for individuals with eating disorders under the Medicare program; Sponsor: Chu, Judy [Rep.-D-CA-28]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means

 

H.R.2497 — To amend the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to conduct a public health education, awareness, and outreach campaign to enhance access to abortion and related health services; Sponsor: Crockett, Jasmine [Rep.-D-TX-30]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2509 — To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide incentives for behavioral health integration; Sponsor: Malliotakis, Nicole [Rep.-R-NY-11]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means

 

H.R.2527 — To amend the Public Health Service Act to improve children’s vision and eye health through grants to States, territories, and Tribal organizations, and the provision of technical assistance to support those efforts; Sponsor: Veasey, Marc A. [Rep.-D-TX-33]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2528 — To amend the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 to clarify the treatment of certain association health plans as employers, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Walberg, Tim [Rep.-R-MI-5]; Committees: House – Education and Workforce

 

H.R.2529 — To amend title XXVII of the Public Health Service Act to require group health plans and health insurance issuers offering group or individual health insurance coverage to permit enrollees to obtain a 365-day supply of contraceptives; Sponsor: Underwood, Lauren [Rep.-D-IL-14]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means; Education and Workforce

 

H.R.2531 — To direct the Secretary of Labor to issue an occupational safety and health standard that requires covered employers within the health care and social service industries to develop and implement a comprehensive workplace violence prevention plan, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Courtney, Joe [Rep.-D-CT-2]; Committees: House – Education and Workforce; Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means

 

H.R.2532 — To prohibit certain removals of employees of the Department of Health and Human Services and sub-agencies and operating divisions thereof, and for other purposes; Sponsor: McClellan, Jennifer L. [Rep.-D-VA-4]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Education and Workforce; Ways and Means; Natural Resources

 

H.R.2533 — To amend title XI of the Social Security Act to require the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation to test a model to improve access to specialty health services for certain Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries; Sponsor: Arrington, Jodey C. [Rep.-R-TX-19]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means

 

H.R.2538 — To amend title XI of the Social Security Act to require the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation to test a comprehensive alternative response for emergencies model under the Medicare program; Sponsor: Carey, Mike [Rep.-R-OH-15]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means

 

H.R.2541 — To require the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to revise its regulations to protect patients from unintended exposure to radiation during nuclear medicine procedures, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Davis, Donald G. [Rep.-D-NC-1]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2542 — To amend titles XVIII and XIX of the Social Security Act to provide that priority research drugs shall not be treated as line extensions of existing drugs for purposes of calculating manufacturer rebates under the Medicare and Medicaid programs, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Davis, Donald G. [Rep.-D-NC-1]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means

 

H.R.2553 — To limit cost-sharing for prescription drugs, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Horsford, Steven [Rep.-D-NV-4]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Education and Workforce; Ways and Means

 

H.R.2554 — To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to apply prescription drug inflation rebates to drugs furnished in the commercial market and to change the base year for rebate calculations; Sponsor: Horsford, Steven [Rep.-D-NV-4]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means

 

H.R.2557 — To amend title 10, United States Code, to provide fertility treatment under the TRICARE Program; Sponsor: Jacobs, Sara [Rep.-D-CA-51]; Committees: House – Armed Services

 

H.R.2560 — To amend the Public Health Service Act to reauthorize lifespan respite care programs, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Langworthy, Nicholas A. [Rep.-R-NY-23]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2571 — To amend the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 to exclude from the definition of health insurance coverage certain medical stop-loss insurance obtained by certain plan sponsors of group health plans, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Onder, Robert [Rep.-R-MO-3]; Committees: House – Education and Workforce

 

H.R.2576 — To amend title 38, United States Code, to expand health care and benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs for military sexual trauma, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Pingree, Chellie [Rep.-D-ME-1]; Committees: House – Veterans’ Affairs

 

H.R.2586 — To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to allow States to make medical assistance available to inmates during the 30-day period preceding their release; Sponsor: Tonko, Paul [Rep.-D-NY-20]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2587 — To establish a Youth Mental Health Research Initiative in the National Institutes of Health for purposes of encouraging collaborative research to improve youth mental health; Sponsor: Watson Coleman, Bonnie [Rep.-D-NJ-12]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

S.1248 — A bill to amend title XI of the Social Security Act to require the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation to test a model to improve access to specialty health services for certain Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries; Sponsor: Mullin, Markwayne [Sen.-R-OK]; Committees: Senate – Finance

 

S.1256 — A bill to authorize the Pines Foundation to establish the Fire Island AIDS Memorial, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Gillibrand, Kirsten E. [Sen.-D-NY]; Committees: Senate – Energy and Natural Resources

 

S.1258 — A bill to prohibit the sale of food that is, or contains, unsafe poppy seeds; Sponsor: Cotton, Tom [Sen.-R-AR]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

S.1261 — A bill to amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to expand access to telehealth services, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Schatz, Brian [Sen.-D-HI]; Committees: Senate – Finance

 

S.1264 — A bill to amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to establish a demonstration program to promote collaborative treatment of mental and physical health comorbidities under the Medicare program; Sponsor: Bennet, Michael F. [Sen.-D-CO]; Committees: Senate – Finance

 

S.1266 — A bill to establish a Youth Mental Health Research Initiative in the National Institutes of Health for purposes of encouraging collaborative research to improve youth mental health; Sponsor: Klobuchar, Amy [Sen.-D-MN]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

S.1269 — A bill to promote United States leadership in technical standards by directing the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the Department of State to take certain actions to encourage and enable United States participation in developing standards and specifications for artificial intelligence and other critical and emerging technologies, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Blackburn, Marsha [Sen.-R-TN]; Committees: Senate – Commerce, Science, and Transportation

 

S.1290 — A bill to expand the functions of the National Institute of Standards and Technology to include workforce frameworks for critical and emerging technologies, to require the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology to develop an artificial intelligence workforce framework, and periodically review and update the NICE Workforce Framework for Cybersecurity, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Peters, Gary C. [Sen.-D-MI]; Committees: Senate – Commerce, Science, and Transportation

 

S.1302 — A bill to provide for increased transparency in generic drug applications; Sponsor: Hassan, Margaret Wood [Sen.-D-NH]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

H.R.2589 — To amend the Public Health Service Act to ensure the consensual donation and respectful disposition of human bodies and human body parts donated or transferred for education, research, or the advancement of medical, dental, or mortuary science and not for use in human transplantation, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Bilirakis, Gus M. [Rep.-R-FL-12]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2590 — To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to establish a demonstration program to promote collaborative treatment of mental and physical health comorbidities under the Medicare program; Sponsor: Boyle, Brendan F. [Rep.-D-PA-2]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means

 

H.R. 2610— To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to address significant under projection of MA local area growth due to wage index reclassification; Sponsor: Tenney, Claudia [Rep.-R-NY-24]; Committees: House – Ways and Means; Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2615 — To prohibit the sale of food that is, or contains, unsafe poppy seeds; Sponsor: Womack, Steve [Rep.-R-AR-3]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2623 — To amend title 38, United States Code, to require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to designate medical facilities of the Department of Veterans Affairs as innovative therapies centers of excellence, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Correa, J. Luis [Rep.-D-CA-46]; Committees: House – Veterans’ Affairs

 

H.R.2630 — To amend the Advancing Research to Prevent Suicide Act to expand the areas of focus regarding childhood suicide, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Gillen, Laura [Rep.-D-NY-4]; Committees: House – Science, Space, and Technology

 

H.R.2636 — To provide for appropriate cost-sharing for individuals 26 years of age or younger for insulin products covered under private health plans; Sponsor: Landsman, Greg [Rep.-D-OH-1]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means; Education and Workforce

 

H.R.2639 — To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to make permanent certain telehealth flexibilities under the Medicare program for telehealth services furnished by Indian health programs; Sponsor: Leger Fernandez, Teresa [Rep.-D-NM-3]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means

 

H.R.2640 — To amend title 38, United States Code, to ensure that certain health care contractors of the Department of Veterans Affairs are subject to Federal tort claims laws, to improve the accountability of physicians of the Department, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Luttrell, Morgan [Rep.-R-TX-8]; Committees: House – Veterans’ Affairs

 

HHS to Undergo Restructuring, Cutting 10,000 Employees – The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced a plan for major restructuring last week that will result in $1.8 billion in savings and 10,000 job cuts across the department. The restructuring is in keeping with President Donald Trump’s executive order Implementing the President’s ‘Department of Government Efficiency’ Workforce Optimization Initiative. The plan will consolidate the 28 current HHS divisions into 15 new divisions, including a new Administration for a Healthy America (AHA), which will combine the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, the Health Resources and Services Administration, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. The Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response will transfer to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The  Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation will be merged with the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality to create the new Office of Strategy. HHS regional offices will be reduced from 10 to 5. Workforce reductions will include the elimination of:

• 3,500 full time employees from the Food and Drug Administration, which HHS has said will not impact drug, medical device, or food reviewers or inspectors;
• 2,400 employees from the CDC;
• 1,200 employees from the National Institutes of Health; and
• 300 employees from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, mostly from the Office of Minority Health and the Office of Program Operations and Local Engagement according to the latest reports.

When combined with other efforts to reduce the size of the federal government made by the Trump administration earlier this year – including early retirement incentives and the “Fork in the Road” buyouts – the HHS workforce will be reduced from 82,000 to 62,000 full-time employees, a level the department has not seen since 2002. The reorganization is expected to take effect at the end of May. An administration fact sheet on the restructuring can be found here.

 

Senate Confirms, Advances Health Nominees – The Senate confirmed several of President Trump’s health nominees upon returning from its week-long recess last week. Jay Bhattacharya, MD was confirmed as director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and Marty Makary, MD was confirmed as commissioner of Food and Drugs. Dr.  Bhattacharya was confirmed in a party line vote of 53-47, while Dr. Makary was confirmed in a 56-44 vote with the support of Democrats Maggie Hassan (N.H.), Jeanne Shaheen (N.H.), and Dick Durbin (Ill.). The chamber also confirmed Michael Kratsios to serve as director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy in a 74-25 vote. The Senate Finance Committee advanced the nomination of Mehmet Oz, MD to serve as administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services on Tuesday. His nomination was advanced in a 14-13 party line vote and the Senate is expected to take up the nomination soon.

 

White House Taps Acting CDC Director to Lead Agency – The White House has nominated Susan Monarez, PhD to serve as the next director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Monarez is currently acting director at the agency, a position she has held since January 23. Prior to joining CDC, she worked as the deputy director of the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health, the biomedical innovation agency created during the Biden administration. Monarez has also held positions at the Health Resources and Services Administration, the Homeland Security Advanced Research Projects Agency, and the Biomedical Advanced Research Projects Authority during her career. The Trump administration recently withdrew the nomination of former congressman Dave Weldon, MD to lead the CDC when it became clear that Weldon did not have the votes to be confirmed by the Senate. Several Republican senators had raised concerns about Weldon’s views on vaccine safety and effectiveness. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. defended Monarez’s nomination, stating in a social media post “I handpicked Susan for this job because she is a longtime champion of MAHA [Make America Healthy Again] values, and a caring, compassionate and brilliant microbiologist and a tech wizard who will reorient CDC towards public health and gold-standard science.” Other health nominations recently announced by the administration include Thomas March Bell, general counsel for House Republicans, to serve as HHS Inspector General; Brian Christine, MD, a urologist, to serve as HHS Assistant Secretary for Health; and Alex Adams, director of the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare, to serve as HHS Assistant Secretary for Family Support.

 

Fox News Contributor Selected to Lead Office of National Drug Control Policy – President Trump announced on Friday that Sara Carter, a journalist and Fox News contributor, will be nominated to lead the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP). If confirmed by the Senate, Carter will be the first woman to lead ONDCP, the office responsible for coordinating public health and law enforcement efforts to address opioid and substance use issues. Carter has never served in government but has written about and discussed illegal immigration and drug trafficking issues extensively.

 

U.S. Expected to Reach Debt Limit in August or September – The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that the nation will reach the debt limit in August or September 2025, a date known as the “X date” when the U.S. would default on its national debt. The 2023 suspension of the debt limit expired on January 1, but the Treasury Department is using so-called extraordinary measures to temporarily keep the government from defaulting on its debt. Congressional Republicans are expected to include a debt limit increase in a forthcoming budget reconciliation package. In response to CBO’s latest projection, House Budget Committee Chairman Jodey Arrington (R-Texas) highlighted that the House budget resolution raised the debt limit while “responsibly pairing it with meaningful fiscal reforms that will rein-in spending, reignite economic growth, and reduce our debt to GDP.” He urged the Senate to “move with urgency” to pass a budget resolution that aligns with the House version so that Congress can move forward with the reconciliation process. Reportedly, Senate Republicans hope to act on a budget resolution this week.

 

CBER Director Peter Marks to Resign – Peter Marks, MD, director of the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research (CBER) at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), announced his resignation last week. Marks cited U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s “misinformation and lies” about the safety of vaccines as the reason for his departure. Marks was reportedly offered the choice of resigning or being fired by Kennedy. “It has become clear that truth and transparency are not desired by the Secretary, but rather he wishes subservient confirmation of his misinformation and lies,” Marks wrote in his letter of resignation. Marks first joined the FDA in 2012 and has served as head of CBER since 2016. He was a key figure in the establishment of Operation Warp Speed to develop a COVID-19 vaccine.

 

Upcoming Congressional Hearings and Markups

Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee legislative hearing to review S. 222, the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act, and Improving Children’s Health;” 10:00 a.m.; April 1

 

House Veterans’ Affairs Committee hearing “Harnessing Biomedical Innovation: Modernizing VA Healthcare for the Future;” 10:15 a.m.; April 1

 

House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health hearing “Examining the FDA’s Regulation of Over-the-Counter Monograph Drugs;” 10:15 a.m.; April 1

 

House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations hearing “Aging Technology, Emerging Threats: Examining Cybersecurity Vulnerabilities in Legacy Medical Devices;” 10:30 a.m.; April 1

 

House Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations hearing “Answering the Call: Examining VA’s Mental Health Policies;” 2:00 p.m.; April 2

 

House Education and Workforce Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions hearing “A Healthy Workforce: Expanding Access and Affordability in Employer-Sponsored Health Care;” 2:00 p.m.; April 2

 

Senate Judiciary Committee markup to consider S. 527, Prescription Pricing for the People Act; S. 1040, A bill to amend the Federal Trade Commission Act to prohibit product hopping; S. 1041, A bill to amend title 35, United States Code, to address the infringement of patents that claim biological products; S. 1097, Interagency Patent Coordination and Improvement Act; S. 1095, Stop STALLING Act; and S. 1096, Preserve Access to Affordable Generics and Biosimilars; 10:15 a.m. April 3

 

Recently Introduced Health Legislation

H.R.2268 — To amend title 38, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to recognize nurse registries for purposes of the Veterans Community Care Program, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Mast, Brian J. [Rep.-R-FL-21]; Committees: House – Veterans’ Affairs

 

H.R.2264 — To amend title 38, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to automatically pay dependency and indemnity compensation to a survivor of a veteran with a service-connected mental disorder who dies by suicide; Sponsor: Lawler, Michael [Rep.-R-NY-17]; Committees: House – Veterans’ Affairs

 

H.R.2263 — Telehealth Coverage Act – To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to make permanent certain telehealth flexibilities under the Medicare program, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Khanna, Ro [Rep.-D-CA-17]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means

 

H.R.2251 — To amend title 18, United States Code, to prohibit discrimination by abortion against an unborn child on the basis of Down syndrome; Sponsor: Estes, Ron [Rep.-R-KS-4]; Committees: House – Judiciary

 

H.R.2245 — To amend title 38, United States Code, to increase the amount paid by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to veterans for improvements and structural alterations furnished as part of home health services; Sponsor: Bacon, Don [Rep.-R-NE-2]; Committees: House – Veterans’ Affairs

 

H.R.2244 — To amend title 38, United States Code, to establish presumptions of service connection for diseases associated with firefighting; Sponsor: Bacon, Don [Rep.-R-NE-2]; Committees: House – Veterans’ Affairs

 

H.Res.239 — Raising awareness of the racial disparities in the impact of colorectal cancer on the Black community; Sponsor: Watson Coleman, Bonnie [Rep.-D-NJ-12]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.Res.238 — Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that every person has the basic right to emergency health care, including abortion care; Sponsor: Sykes, Emilia Strong [Rep.-D-OH-13]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.Res.236 — Expressing support for the goals of a “NICU Baby’s Bill of Rights”; Sponsor: Houchin, Erin [Rep.-R-IN-9]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.Res.235 — Recognizing the importance of sleep health and expressing support for the designation of the week of March 9 through March 15, 2025, as “Sleep Awareness Week”; Sponsor: Dean, Madeleine [Rep.-D-PA-4]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

S.1095 — A bill to enable the Federal Trade Commission to deter filing of sham citizen petitions to cover an attempt to interfere with approval of a competing generic drug or biosimilar, to foster competition, and facilitate the efficient review of petitions filed in good faith to raise legitimate public health concerns, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Klobuchar, Amy [Sen.-D-MN]; Committees: Senate – Judiciary

 

S.1096 — A bill to prohibit brand name drug companies from compensating generic drug companies to delay the entry of a generic drug into the market, and to prohibit biological product manufacturers from compensating biosimilar and interchangeable companies to delay the entry of biosimilar biological products and interchangeable biological products; Sponsor: Klobuchar, Amy [Sen.-D-MN]; Committees: Senate – Judiciary

 

S.1097 — A bill to amend title 35, United States Code, to establish an interagency task force between the United States Patent and Trademark Office and the Food and Drug Administration for purposes of sharing information and providing technical assistance with respect to patents, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Durbin, Richard J. [Sen.-D-IL]; Committees: Senate – Judiciary

 

S.1098 — A bill to amend the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to enhance the Comprehensive Opioid Abuse Grant Program, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Cantwell, Maria [Sen.-D-WA]; Committees: Senate – Judiciary

 

H.Res.245 — Recognizing the significance of Sjögren’s disease as a serious and systemic autoimmune disease and expressing support for the designation of April 2025 as “Sjögren’s Awareness Month”; Sponsor: Morelle, Joseph D. [Rep.-D-NY-25]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2283 — To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out a pilot program to provide grants to outpatient mental health facilities for the provision of culturally competent, evidence-based mental health care for veterans, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Bost, Mike [Rep.-R-IL-12]; Committees: House – Veterans’ Affairs

 

H.R.2309 — To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to require certain additional provider screening under the Medicaid program; Sponsor: Peters, Scott H. [Rep.-D-CA-50]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

S.Res.138 — A resolution supporting the goals and ideals of “Deep Vein Thrombosis and Pulmonary Embolism Awareness Month”; Sponsor: Grassley, Chuck [Sen.-R-IA]; Submitted in the Senate, considered, and agreed to without amendment and with a preamble by Unanimous Consent.

 

S.1104 — A bill to amend section 495 of the Public Health Service Act to require inspections of foreign laboratories conducting biomedical and behavioral research to ensure compliance with applicable animal welfare requirements, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Schmitt, Eric [Sen.-R-MO]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

S.1105 — A bill to amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to improve risk adjustment under Medicare Advantage; Sponsor: Cassidy, Bill [Sen.-R-LA]; Committees: Senate – Finance

 

S.1129 — Dietary Guidelines Reform Act of 2025 – A bill to amend the National Nutrition Monitoring and Related Research Act of 1990 to improve the dietary guidelines, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Marshall, Roger [Sen.-R-KS]; Committees: Senate – Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry

 

H.Res.253 — Expressing support for the designation of May 15, 2025, as “Prader-Willi Syndrome Awareness Day” to raise awareness of and promote research on the disorder; Sponsor: Tonko, Paul [Rep.-D-NY-20]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2314 — To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to require hospitals with approved medical residency training programs to submit to the Secretary of Health and Human Services certain information regarding osteopathic and allopathic candidates for such programs; Sponsor: Harshbarger, Diana [Rep.-R-TN-1]; Committees: House – Ways and Means

 

H.R.2319 — To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to conduct a review to evaluate the status of research on lung cancer in women and underserved populations, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Boyle, Brendan F. [Rep.-D-PA-2]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2320 — To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to establish a refundable credit for expenses incurred for mobility devices; Sponsor: Cohen, Steve [Rep.-D-TN-9]; Committees: House – Ways and Means

 

H.R.2326 — To amend the National Nutrition Monitoring and Related Research Act of 1990 to improve the dietary guidelines, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Jackson, Ronny [Rep.-R-TX-13]; Committees: House – Agriculture

 

H.R.2339 — To require the Office of Children’s Health Protection to be maintained within the Environmental Protection Agency, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Nadler, Jerrold [Rep.-D-NY-12]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2340 — To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide for the automatic qualification of certain Medicaid beneficiaries for premium and cost-sharing subsidies under part D of the Medicare program, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Pappas, Chris [Rep.-D-NH-1]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means

 

H.R.2343 — To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide for coverage and payment of Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Deficiency Disorder treatment under part B of such title, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Salazar, Maria Elvira [Rep.-R-FL-27]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means

 

S.Res.143 — A resolution supporting the designation of May 29, 2025, as “Mental Health Awareness in Agriculture Day” to raise awareness around mental health in the agricultural industry and workforce and to continue to reduce stigma associated with mental illness; Sponsor: Fischer, Deb [Sen.-R-NE]; Committees: Senate – Judiciary

 

S.1132 — A bill to amend the Older Americans Act of 1965 to include peer supports as a supportive service within the National Family Caregiver Support Program, to require States to consider the unique needs of caregivers whose families have been impacted by substance use disorder, including opioid use disorder, in providing services under such program, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Budd, Ted [Sen.-R-NC]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

S.1134 — A bill to amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the Office of Patient Advocacy of the Department of Veterans Affairs; Sponsor: Cramer, Kevin [Sen.-R-ND]; Committees: Senate – Veterans’ Affairs

 

S.1139 — A bill to amend the Commander John Scott Hannon Veterans Mental Health Care Improvement Act of 2019 to modify and reauthorize the Staff Sergeant Parker Gordon Fox Suicide Prevention Grant Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Moran, Jerry [Sen.-R-KS]; Committees: Senate – Veterans’ Affairs

 

S.1140 — A bill to amend title XI of the Social Security Act to lower barriers to increase patient access to health care; Sponsor: Cassidy, Bill [Sen.-R-LA]; Committees: Senate – Finance

 

S.1144 — A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to treat certain amounts paid for physical activity, fitness, and exercise as amounts paid for medical care; Sponsor: Thune, John [Sen.-R-SD]; Committees: Senate – Finance

 

S.1147 — A bill to establish clear and consistent biological definitions of male and female; Sponsor: Marshall, Roger [Sen.-R-KS]; Committees: Senate – Judiciary

 

S.1157 — A bill to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to conduct a review to evaluate the status of research on lung cancer in women and underserved populations, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Smith, Tina [Sen.-D-MN]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

H.Res.256 — Supporting the designation of March 2025 as Endometriosis Awareness Month; Sponsor: Scott, David [Rep.-D-GA-13]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2363 — To prohibit the authorization of certain individuals to access certain systems containing individually identifiable health information; Sponsor: DeGette, Diana [Rep.-D-CO-1]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2369 — Personal Health Investment Today (PHIT) Act – To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to treat certain amounts paid for physical activity, fitness, and exercise as amounts paid for medical care; Sponsor: Kelly, Mike [Rep.-R-PA-16]; Committees: House – Ways and Means

 

H.R.2372 — Disclosure; and Encouragement of Verification, Innovation, Cleaning, and Efficiency (DEVICE) Act – To amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to enhance medical device communications and ensure device cleanliness; Sponsor: Lieu, Ted [Rep.-D-CA-36]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2378 — To establish clear and consistent biological definitions of male and female; Sponsor: Miller, Mary E. [Rep.-R-IL-15]; Committees: House – Judiciary

 

H.R.2381 — To amend the Public Health Service Act to reauthorize and improve the National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program for fiscal years 2026 through 2030, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Morelle, Joseph D. [Rep.-D-NY-25]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2382 — To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide that governmental pension plans may include certain firefighters, emergency medical technicians, and paramedics, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Murphy, Gregory F. [Rep.-R-NC-3]; Committees: House – Education and Workforce; Ways and Means

 

H.R.2383 — To amend the Public Health Service Act to authorize the use of Preventive Health and Health Services Block Grants to purchase life-saving opioid antagonists for schools and to provide related training and education to students and teachers, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Neguse, Joe [Rep.-D-CO-2]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2385 — To establish the National Artificial Intelligence Research Resource, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Obernolte, Jay [Rep.-R-CA-23]; Committees: House – Science, Space, and Technology

 

H.R.2387 — To prohibit Federal funds from being used for sex-trait altering treatments for minors, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Onder, Robert [Rep.-R-MO-3]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Judiciary; Education and Workforce; Ways and Means

 

S.1164 — A bill to allow additional individuals to enroll in standalone dental plans offered through Federal Exchanges; Sponsor: Hassan, Margaret Wood [Sen.-D-NH]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

S.1168 — A bill to amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide coverage of portable ultrasound transportation and set up services under the Medicare program; Sponsor: Cornyn, John [Sen.-R-TX]; Committees: Senate – Finance

 

S.1173 — A bill to amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to clarify and preserve the breadth of the protections under the Medicare Secondary Payer Act; Sponsor: Cassidy, Bill [Sen.-R-LA]; Committees: Senate – Finance

 

S.1186 — A bill to amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to apply prescription drug inflation rebates to drugs furnished in the commercial market and to change the base year for rebate calculations; Sponsor: Cortez Masto, Catherine [Sen.-D-NV]; Committees: Senate – Finance

 

H.R.2404 — To provide for a study on the effects of remote monitoring on individuals who are prescribed opioids; Sponsor: Balderson, Troy [Rep.-R-OH-12]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2414 — To amend the Public Health Service Act to reauthorize a military and civilian partnership for trauma readiness grant program; Sponsor: Castor, Kathy [Rep.-D-FL-14]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2419 — To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow all individuals to contribute to health savings accounts, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Davidson, Warren [Rep.-R-OH-8]; Committees: House – Ways and Means; Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2426 — To require a study on the quality of care difference between mental health and addiction therapy care provided by health care providers of the Department of Veterans Affairs compared to non-Department providers, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Fallon, Pat [Rep.-R-TX-4]; Committees: House – Veterans’ Affairs

 

H.R.2433 — To ensure that prior authorization medical decisions under Medicare are determined by physicians; Sponsor: Green, Mark E. [Rep.-R-TN-7]; Committees: House – Ways and Means; Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2436 — To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to treat distributions from health savings accounts for funeral expenses of the account beneficiary as qualified distributions; Sponsor: Hern, Kevin [Rep.-R-OK-1]; Committees: House – Ways and Means

 

H.R.2437 — To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to require hospitals to provide information on available hospice programs to certain individuals upon discharge under the Medicare program; Sponsor: Houchin, Erin [Rep.-R-IN-9]; Committees: House – Ways and Means

 

H.R.2445 — To prohibit implementation of the rule entitled “Medicaid Program; Streamlining the Medicaid, Children’s Health Insurance Program, and Basic Health Program Application, Eligibility Determination, Enrollment, and Renewal Processes”, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Kennedy, Mike [Rep.-R-UT-3]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2450 — To amend the Public Health Service Act, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, and the Internal Revenue Code of 1984 to increase oversight of pharmacy benefit management services, and for other purposes; Sponsor: McDonald Rivet, Kristen [Rep.-D-MI-8]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Education and Workforce; Ways and Means

 

H.R.2469 — To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to evaluate the benefits of abortion doula care and coverage; Sponsor: Strickland, Marilyn [Rep.-D-WA-10]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2471 — To update the National Action Plan for Adverse Drug Event Prevention to consider advances in pharmacogenomic research and testing, to improve electronic health records for pharmacogenomic information, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Swalwell, Eric [Rep.-D-CA-14]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.2477 — To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide coverage of portable ultrasound transportation and set up services under the Medicare program; Sponsor: Van Duyne, Beth [Rep.-R-TX-24]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means