A bipartisan group of House lawmakers released a framework for coronavirus (COVID-19) relief legislation, and the Administration released a vaccine distribution plan.
House Members Continue Working on COVID-19 Relief Package. The bipartisan House Problem Solvers Caucus released a framework for further COVID-19 relief and economic stimulus efforts, which they hope will inspire negotiators to return to the table. The proposal, which is light on specific details, outlines between $1.5 and $2 trillion in relief funds, including $25 billion for testing and contact tracing, $30 billion for healthcare provider support including telehealth expansion, and $45 billion in forgiveness of Medicare Accelerated and Advance Payment (AAP) loans to providers. It is unlikely this proposal on its own will break the ongoing stalemate between the White House and congressional Democrats on COVID-19 relief, but it illustrates where there might be bipartisan consensus around contentious issues, like AAP relief. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) has reportedly told her caucus that they will stay in session until a deal is reached, though there have yet to be any signs of an imminent compromise.
HHS Released COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution Strategy. The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued a report to Congress and an Interim Playbook for Jurisdiction Operations, detailing the Administration’s strategy for distributing a COVID-19 vaccine once it becomes available. The plan includes an information campaign led by HHS, developing a vaccine distribution infrastructure and distributing approximately six million kits needed to administer a vaccine. States and localities must submit vaccine distribution plans to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention by October 16, 2020, in order to be ready for a vaccine as early as November, though public health experts continue to estimate that a vaccine may not be widely available until sometime next year.
President Trump Signed Executive Order on Drug Pricing. The Executive Order (EO) on Lowering Drug Prices by Putting America First would ensure that Medicare pays the same price as other countries for Part B and Part D drugs. The EO directs the Secretary of HHS to take appropriate steps to implement payment-model demonstrations pursuant to which Medicare would pay no more than the “most-favored-nation price” for certain Part B and Part D prescriptions and biological products. The “most-favored-nation price” is defined as the lowest price, adjusted for volume and differences in national gross domestic product (GDP), for a pharmaceutical product that the drug manufacturer sells in a member country of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development that has a comparable per capita GDP. Notably, the Executive Order alone does not establish the payment models; rather, it directs the Secretary to “take appropriate steps,” “to the extent consistent with law,” to develop and implement rulemaking to test the models. It is unlikely that the Administration will have time to issue rules implementing the EO ahead of the election. It also is unclear whether HHS has the authority to take some of the prescribed steps. The EO likely is intended to be a messaging tool for the President on the campaign trail. Additional analysis of the EO is available here.
CMS Withdrew MFAR Proposed Rule. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Seema Verma issued a statement on Twitter announcing the agency has withdrawn the proposed Medicaid Fiscal Accountability Rule (MFAR). This rule was initially proposed in November 2019, and immediately caused a backlash from states and hospitals that rely on federal match programs to support state Medicaid payments. As proposed, MFAR would have made significant changes to the structure and definition of Medicaid supplemental payments and was expected to cause substantial disruption in Medicaid programs across the country. Administrator Verma said the agency withdrew the proposed rule due to concerns raised by states and providers. The proposed rule received significant pushback from hospitals and other stakeholders.
Lawmakers continue negotiations on government funding with less than two weeks to go before the end of the fiscal year. The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee will hold a hearing on the government’s COVID-19 response, and the House Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the Affordable Care Act and the pandemic.
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