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Week in Brief

Elections: Midterm Elections Result in a Democratic House Majority and a Republican Senate and Gubernatorial Majority.

  • Memo from Powers, Pyles Sutter & Verville PC providing an overview of the midterm election results and subsequent Congressional implications, offers a brief glimpse of what to expect in the upcoming lame duck session of the 115th Congress, and provides a preview of the 116th Congress’s health care agenda

Elections: Statements from Key Leaders.

  • Remarks from President Donald Trump
  • Statement from Energy and Commerce Ranking Member Frank Pallone  (D-NJ)
  • Statement from House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Ranking Member Elijah E. Cummings (D-MD)
  • Statement from House Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Nita Lowey (D-NY)

Medicare: CMS Announces Final 2019 Physician Fee Schedule (PFS) and Quality Payment Program (QPP) Updates.


LEGISLATIVE UPDATE

Monday, November 5

Veterans: House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Chairman Phil Roe (R-TN) and Ranking Member Tim Walz (D-MN)Announce Hearing on the First 180 Days of the Electronic Health Record Modernization Program.

Insurance: House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady (R-TX) Releases Statement on Drug Testing Requirements for Unemployment Insurance.

Thursday, November 8 

Veterans: House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Chairman Phil Roe (R-TN) Announces Oversight Hearing on Contracted Examinations.


REGULATORY UPDATE

Monday, October 29

Insurance: HHS, IRS, and the Employee Benefits Security Administration Propose New Regulations Regarding Health Reimbursement Arrangements (HRAs).

Health Care Access: CMS Releases Interactive Tool Mapping Utilization and Availability of Specific Provider Services.

Neurology: NIH Study Suggests Certain Brain Cells Can Alter the Signal Speed of Neurons.

Tuesday, October 30

Prescriptions: CMS Issues Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) on Options to Address Medicare Part B Spending on Drugs and Biologicals.

Wednesday, October 31

Insurance: CMS Announces Matching Program with the DoD to Determine TRICARE Eligibility for Privately Insured Individuals.

Medicare: CMS Encourages Beneficiaries to Review Plans and Utilize Online Comparison Tools.

Substance Abuse: FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb Issues Statement on Meeting with Top E-Cigarette Manufacturers.

Medicare: CMS Issues FY 2019 Home Health PPS Final Rule.

Neurology: NIH Study Suggests Gut Bacteria Can Affect Neuronal Circuits Associated with Movement.

Thursday, November 1

Medicare and Medicaid: CMS Proposes Revisions to Medicare Advantage (Part C) and the Prescription Drug Benefit Program (Part D) Regulations.

Medicare: CMS Finalizes Durable Medical Equipment (DME) and End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) Program Policies.

Friday, November 2

Neurology: NIH Announces Funding Awards Under the Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative.

Medicare: CMS Finalizes Medicare Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System and Ambulatory Surgical Center Payment System Changes for 2019.

Substance Abuse: FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb Releases Statement on Efforts to Decrease E-Cigarette Use by Youth.

Monday, November 5

Opioids: NIH Seeks Input on the “Health Research and Development to Stem the Opioid Crisis: A Federal Roadmap Report.”

Substance Abuse: FDA Announces Public Hearing on Eliminating Youth E-Cigarette Use.

Wednesday, November 7

Health Exchange: CMS Releases Overview of First Week of Open Enrollment.

Health Exchange: CMS Issues Proposed Rule on Premium Subsidies Offered For Exchange Plans.

Thursday, November 8

Insurance: CMS Announces Matching Program with the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to Determine Assistance Eligibility for Privately Insured Individuals.

Medicaid: CMS Issues Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on Managed Care Regulatory Framework Changes for Medicaid and CHIP.

Substance Abuse: CDC Announces Lowest Ever Rate of Cigarette Smoking Amongst Adults.

Alternative Therapies: FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb Announces New Efforts to Strengthen the Expanded Access (EA) Program, Offering a Pathway to Experimental Treatments.               


EVENTS

House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs – Subcommittee on Technology Modernization
Hearing: 180-Day Review of the Electronic Health Record Modernization Program
November 14, 2018 10:00 AM
334 Cannon House Office Building

House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs – Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs
Oversight Hearing: Exploring VA’s Oversight of Contract Disability Examinations
November 15, 2018 2:00 PM
334 Cannon House Office Building

National Institute of Health
Director’s Seminar Series: Blood-Based Biomarkers that Shape Recovery from Traumatic Brain Injuries.
November 16, 12:00-1:00 PM
Building 1, Wilson Hall

Senate HELP Committee
Full Committee Hearing: Reducing Health Care Costs: Improving Affordability through Innovation.
November 28, 2018 10:00 AM
430 Dirksen Senate Office Building

FDA
Public Hearing and Request for Comments: Eliminating Youth Electronic Cigarette and Other Tobacco Product Use: The Role for Drug Therapies.
December 5, 2018 9:00AM – 5:00 PM
White Oak Campus, 10903 New Hampshire Ave., Building 31, Great Room A
Silver Spring, MD 20993-0002

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