Sometime this week: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and other Democratic leaders plan to hold a floor vote on their drug-price negotiation plan, titled the Elijah E. Cummings Lower Drug Costs Now Act. A specific date wasn’t announced at deadline. House Republicans oppose the bill, and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has said the legislation will not be taken up in the Senate.
Dec. 10: The House Energy & Commerce health subcommittee will hold a hearing on proposals to achieve universal health insurance coverage. The committee will consider seven bills to expand health insurance, including the Medicare for All Act of 2019 from Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) and Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.). The legislation is not expected to come up for a House floor vote this Congress.
Dec. 10: The Supreme Court hears oral arguments in a battle over Affordable Care Act payments. The stakes are high. Insurers are suing the Trump administration for nearly $12 billion in risk-corridor payments to cover losses they incurred on the insurance exchanges from 2014 to 2016. As Modern Healthcare’s Shelby Livingston reported late last month, investors are betting big that the insurers will win, so much so that they are offering cash upfront in exchange for a significant share of the legal awards.
Dec. 12: During its monthly open meeting, the Federal Communications Commission will vote on a proposal to make “988” the new nationwide suicide prevention hotline number; it’s currently 800-273-8255. The hotline handled more than 2.2 million calls last year.
