Can’t see the audio participant? Click here to listen on Acast. You may pay attention on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Pocket Casts, or wherever you take heed to podcasts.

The lame-duck Congress is making sluggish progress on its lengthy to-do-before-the-end-of-the-year checklist. Democrats agreed to carry the covid-19 vaccine mandate for the navy as a part of the massive protection authorization invoice, however efforts to ease federal restrictions on marijuana didn’t succeed.

Meanwhile, the battle towards excessive drug costs has unfold to employers, which try quite a lot of methods to spend much less on pharmaceuticals whereas nonetheless giving employees entry to wanted medicines.

This week’s panelists are Julie Rovner of KHN, Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico, Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, and Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call.

Among the takeaways from this week’s episode:

• The race to the vacation break is on, with no settlement to date on spending as present authorities funding is ready to run out on Dec. 16. Although one other persevering with decision is anticipated, it will seemingly miss measures comparable to addressing psychological well being, so lawmakers would want to begin over subsequent 12 months. The annual protection authorization invoice can also be within the works and would finish the navy’s covid vaccine mandate.
• In the wake of the toddler components scarcity, an FDA advisory group report this week stated the company’s work on meals regulation wants a significant overhaul, particularly relating to enforcement energy and management.
• In drug pricing information, Americans can count on to see the prices of covid testing, vaccines, and coverings rise as federal subsidies run out and go away the pandemic response topic to the identical price and entry disparities frequent to the nation’s well being care system. Meanwhile, entrepreneur Mark Cuban’s low cost pharmaceuticals firm is teaming up with EmsanaRx, a nonprofit pharmacy profit supervisor — thereby chopping out for-profit PBMs in one other try to chop prices for sufferers.
• Health care suppliers are pushing Congress to cease a long-planned minimize in Medicare funds, whereas a brand new report from KFF exhibits the three largest for-profit hospital chains are seeing working margins that exceed pre-pandemic ranges. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services additionally issued new guidelines this week on “prior authorization” that suppliers say may mood the bureaucratic trouble of coping with Medicare. And personal fairness companies are stepping into the sport of operating scientific trials, whereas in insurance coverage, UnitedHealth Group is shopping for up suppliers.
• On reproductive well being, an Alabama girl is suing the county authorities that jailed her on the suspicion she had uncovered her fetus to medication. Her concern? She was not pregnant. The case raises questions on how modifications to abortion entry are taking part in out throughout the nation.

Plus, for further credit score, the panelists suggest their favourite well being coverage tales of the week they suppose you must learn, too:

Julie Rovner: The AP Stylebook’s “Abortion Topical Guide,” by The Associated Press

Anna Edney: The Washington Post’s “Drugs Killed 8 Friends, One by One, in a Tragedy Seen Across the U.S.,” by Lenny Bernstein and Jordan-Marie Smith

Joanne Kenen: Columbia Journalism Review’s “Anonymous Woman,” by Becca Andrews

Sandhya Raman: CQ Roll Call’s “At International Conference, Dobbs Dominates Debate,” by Sandhya Raman

Also talked about on this week’s podcast:

To hear all our podcasts, click here.

And subscribe to KHN’s What the Health? on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Pocket Casts, or wherever you take heed to podcasts.

KHN (Kaiser Health News) is a nationwide newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about well being points. Together with Policy Analysis and Polling, KHN is without doubt one of the three main working packages at KFF (Kaiser Family Foundation). KFF is an endowed nonprofit group offering info on well being points to the nation.

USE OUR CONTENT

This story could be republished free of charge (details).

We encourage organizations to republish our content material, freed from cost. Here’s what we ask:

You should credit score us as the unique writer, with a hyperlink to our khn.org web site. If potential, please embrace the unique creator(s) and “Kaiser Health News” within the byline. Please protect the hyperlinks within the story.

It’s necessary to notice, not all the pieces on khn.org is on the market for republishing. If a narrative is labeled “All Rights Reserved,” we can’t grant permission to republish that merchandise.

Have questions? Let us know at KHNHelp@kff.org