After Year Filled With Turmoil, Health Law Is At A Crossroads
Federal officials say it's all temporary, but others fear a death spiral.
The Wall Street Journal:
U.S. Health Law Faces Critical Year
Significant spikes in premiums, insurer dropouts and persistently low enrollment numbers are combining to make this fall’s sign-up period a crossroads for the Obama administration’s signature health law. Federal officials characterize the turbulence as temporary. At the same time, the administration is making a push in its final months to shore up the law by trying to sign up healthy people who are critical to the law’s sustainability but have so far rejected insurance. That push will take place against a backdrop of elections that will shape the law’s future. (Radnofsky and Armour, 9/7)
In other national health care news —
The Hill:
Pelosi: Dems Will Back Smaller Zika Bill
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said Wednesday that Democrats are ready to compromise on funding levels to address the Zika virus, provided Republicans drop restrictions on Planned Parenthood using the money. Pelosi said Democrats will accept the Senate's $1.1 billion compromise — in lieu of the $1.9 billion requested by President Obama and demanded by Pelosi earlier in the year — but only if health agencies are underwritten for a full 12 months. (Lillis, 9/7)
Morning Consult:
Clinton’s EpiPen Plan Gets ‘Meh’ Reviews In Congress
Lawmakers came back to Capitol Hill promising action against controversial EpiPen price hikes, but they can’t quite agree how to translate their dissatisfaction into policy. While Hillary Clinton has issued a set of proposals, Republicans dismiss them and Democrats spoke vaguely about their candidate’s ideas. (Owens, 9/7)
The Washington Post:
Cancer ‘Moonshot’ Panel Names Top 10 Ways To Speed Progress Against The Disease
The Obama administration's "cancer moonshot" took a major step forward Wednesday when a committee of top cancer researchers and patient advocates recommended an ambitious set of scientific goals designed to sharply accelerate progress against the disease. The 10 ideas, which were developed by a blue-ribbon panel, deal with an array of topics, including research, clinical trials, data mining, prevention and patient engagement. The recommendations were sent to a task force headed by Vice President Biden, who is leading the administration's moonshot campaign. (McGinley, 9/7)