Democrats Spurred To Run By GOP Health Law Attacks Plan To Go On Offense During Midterms
Where once the health law was an elections burden for Democrats to defend, they now see it as a talking point that could help them switch red seats blue. In other news, the Washington Post Fact Checker explains why correlation does not equal causation when it comes to cost-sharing reduction subsidies.
Bloomberg:
Democrats Aim To Turn Obamacare Into Asset From Burden In 2018
Andy Kim decided to run against House Republican Tom MacArthur last year as he watched TV coverage of GOP efforts to repeal Obamacare while waiting in a hospital room for news on his unborn son. Kim was sparked by MacArthur’s amendment that would have let insurers charge more for patients with pre-existing conditions and his central role in helping the repeal pass the House. An ultrasound had just shown that Kim’s son was dramatically underweight, and he wondered "if my baby boy is going to have a problem for the rest of his life." (John, 4/6)
The Washington Post Fact Checker:
White House Report Uses Fuzzy Logic To Tout ‘Insurer Profitability’ In Obamacare
The Council of Economic Advisers was established by law in 1946 to provide presidents with objective economic advice. Naturally, as an arm of the White House, the analyses produced under each administration tend provide economic justification for a president’s policies. But they are supposed to be grounded in facts. Thus The Fact Checker was surprised to come across a three-page report issued by the CEA in March, just as lawmakers were deciding whether to add money to the omnibus spending bill to temporarily restore cost-sharing reduction (CSR) subsidies. (Kessler, 4/6)
In other national health care news —
The New York Times:
Under Trump, An Office Meant To Help Refugees Enters The Abortion Wars
Scott Lloyd’s unadorned job title betrays little hint of the power he has over the pregnant teenagers in his custody. As director of the Office of Refugee Resettlement, he oversees the assistance program for the tens of thousands of refugees who still seek shelter in the United States, even with the Trump administration’s crackdown. But as the government official who is also responsible for the care of young, undocumented immigrants who enter the United States without their parents, he spends much of his time trying to stop those who want an abortion. (Peters, 4/5)
The Washington Post:
Amid New Talk Of Criminalizing Abortion, Research Shows The Dangers Of Making It Illegal For Women
The idea of criminalizing abortions is not new, but a push has emerged recently among some antiabortion advocates for enacting strict penalties against women who have the procedure, and not just doctors and clinics that provide abortions. Research over the past decade, however, casts significant doubt on whether criminalizing abortion would reduce abortion rates. And data from countries where abortion is outlawed suggests it could have serious consequences on women’s health and safety. (Wan, 4/5)
Bloomberg:
When These New Pharma Bros Show Up, Drug Prices Tend To Go Monumentally Higher
For at least the past three years, Todd Smith and Benjamin Bove have crisscrossed the U.S., offering a sure-fire fix for struggling pharmaceutical companies. And wherever they go, the price of prescription drugs tend to skyrocket. ...The Chicago-based duo has played important roles at no fewer than four companies that have raised prices on life-saving and other drugs by as much as 4,116 percent. (Hopkins and Martin, 4/6)
Bloomberg:
JPMorgan CEO Sees Long Timeline, Big Goals For Health Venture
A three-way partnership between Amazon.com Inc., Berkshire Hathaway Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. has been the talk of the health-care industry, though the companies themselves have said precious little about it. That changed Thursday morning, when JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon laid out some of his ambitions for the venture in his annual letter to the bank’s shareholders, months after its January launch. Notably, Dimon said that the companies would be updating investors on their progress in “coming years,” suggesting a long timeline for the closely watched endeavor. (Tracer, 4/5)
California Healthline:
Patient Advocacy Groups Take In Millions From Drugmakers. Is There A Payback?
Pharmaceutical companies gave at least $116 million to patient advocacy groups in a single year, reveals a new database logging 12,000 donations from large publicly traded drugmakers to such organizations. Even as these patient groups grow in number and political influence, their funding and their relationships to drugmakers are little understood. Unlike payments to doctors and lobbying expenses, companies do not have to report payments to the groups. (Kopp, Lupkin and Lucas, 4/6)