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Presented by Philip Morris International: Delivered daily by 10 a.m., Pulse examines the latest news in health care politics and policy. | | | | |  | | By Krista Mahr and Daniel Payne | Presented by Philip Morris International | | | | | 
House Democrats are pushing for a package of maternal health bills to be included in the omnibus. | Getty Images | THE LAME-DUCK SHUFFLE — Requests to Congress are coming in thick and fast from organizations and companies across the nation seeking to have their health priorities included in an end-of-year spending package. Lawmakers, of course, have their own thoughts. Here are some ideas circulating so far this week: The ‘Momnibus’: Some House Democrats are pushing for a package of maternal health bills — also known as the Momnibus — to be included, Daniel reports. It would provide funding to address factors driving health disparities among mothers, including tackling workforce shortages, boosting telehealth use and supporting mental health care. At an event Tuesday with advocacy groups Protect Our Care and the National Partnership for Women & Families, Reps. Lauren Underwood (D-Ill.) and Robin Kelly (D-Ill.) said they’ve been discussing the bill with congressional leadership. They emphasized their support for a year of postpartum Medicaid coverage. How the provisions would be funded is to be decided. Kelly said they’re rethinking some details after getting feedback on the policy.
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Hundreds of companies and organizations want to see telehealth access expanded. | Antonio Perez/Getty Images | Telehealth access: An alliance of hundreds of firms and industry groups is lobbying Congress to include a provision that would allow high-deductible health plans to cover telehealth visits before patients reach their deductibles, POLITICO’s Ben Leonard reports. In a Tuesday letter to House and Senate leaders , more than 350 groups under the banner of the Alliance to Fight for Health Care called on Congress to take action before the current rule expires on Dec. 31. CDC oversight: In a letter sent Tuesday to congressional leadership, the Health Innovation Alliance called on lawmakers to pass legislation to ramp up oversight of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, among other measures. The group said the agency “failed to update and modernize its response plans and systems as required by Congress in 2006, and again twice since then,” despite the “extensive amount of additional funding” it received during the Covid-19 pandemic.
| | | | A message from Philip Morris International: Everyone wants a world without cigarettes—but it will take our collective action. Philip Morris International is doing its part. Now, we need others to step up too. It’s not enough to wait for smokers to stop on their own. We have to do everything possible to help those adults who would otherwise continue smoking move away from cigarettes for good. Join us. | | | PREVENT Pandemics Act: Dozens of national and state organizations, including the Infectious Diseases Society of America, want to see key parts of the PREVENT Pandemics Act included in the package. On Tuesday, the organizations asked congressional leaders to prioritize the BIO Preparedness Workforce Pilot Program and the Tracking Pathogens Act, and provisions that would improve public health preparedness and response capabilities, accelerate research and medical product development, strengthen the medical product supply chain and address health inequities. Cancer screenings coverage: A bipartisan group of representatives wants legislation passed that would expand Medicare coverage to include new cancer screenings. A version of the bill, called the Medicare Multi-Cancer Early Detection Screening Coverage Act, is in committee in the House and the Senate and would cover multicancer early-detection screenings through Medicare. The group is asking House leaders to pass the measure in the year-end package or as a standalone bill before 2023. WELCOME TO WEDNESDAY PULSE — The founder of Upside Foods, which grows animal cells in labs for consumption, says its “no-kill” meat could get FDA approval soon . Are you in? Tell us what you think and send that news and tips to kmahr@politico.com and dpayne@politico.com . TODAY ON OUR PULSE CHECK PODCAST, Ruth Reader talks with Carmen Paun about the multitude of views that lawmakers, lobbyists and the Biden administration have on how to protect health data, particularly data not covered by the federal health privacy law, HIPAA. Plus, Alison Galvani, the director of the Yale Center for Infectious Disease Modeling and Analysis, on her research that suggests a Covid booster could prevent 22 million days of school absenteeism and more than 38,000 pediatric hospitalizations.
| | | | | | | GO INSIDE THE MILKEN INSTITUTE FUTURE OF HEALTH SUMMIT: POLITICO is featuring a special edition of our “Future Pulse” newsletter at the 2022 Milken Institute Future of Health Summit from Dec. 6 to 8. The newsletter takes readers inside one of the most influential gatherings of health industry leaders and innovators solving the biggest global health issues to ensure a healthier, more resilient future for all. SUBSCRIBE TODAY TO RECEIVE EXCLUSIVE COVERAGE . | | | | | | | | | 
The Biden administration has once again asked Congress for emergency funding to battle Covid and other infectious diseases. | Kena Betancur/Getty Images | HOPE SPRINGS ETERNAL — The Biden administration has asked Congress — again — for a tranche of emergency funding to battle Covid and other infectious diseases, POLITICO’s Caitlin Emma reports . The administration is asking for $10 billion in emergency health funding alongside a nearly $38 billion request to help Ukraine. More than $9 billion of the health money would go toward Covid vaccine access, next-generation Covid vaccines, long Covid research and more. About $750 million would be spent on efforts to control the spread of monkeypox, hepatitis C and HIV. Republicans aren’t likely to support the call, having rejected a $22 billion Covid funding request from the White House earlier this year. On Monday, Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.), the GOP’s top appropriator in the upper chamber, threw cold water on the Biden administration’s request, telling reporters that he and many of his GOP colleagues aren’t convinced the health funding is needed. WYDEN EYES COST CUTS — Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden said Tuesday he’s aiming to lower copayments, deductibles and other costs for people covered by private insurance in the new Congress, POLITICO’s Lauren Gardner reports. Wyden suggested to reporters that the Democrats’ ability on the campaign trail to promote provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act with near-immediate impact helped their cause with voters. NEW BILL AIMS TO LOWER DRUG COSTS — Sens. Tom Carper (D-Del.) and Bill Cassidy (R-La.) will introduce legislation today designed to help lower monthly prescription drug costs for participants in the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly. The PACE Part D Choice Act would allow older Americans enrolled in the program to choose their Medicare Part D plan for prescription drugs to lower overall costs and ensure they qualify for the Inflation Reduction Act’s $2,000 annual out-of-pocket cap.
| | | | A message from Philip Morris International:   | | | | | | PEDIATRIC GROUPS WANT A NEW PHE — Children’s health groups are asking the Biden administration to declare a public health emergency over surging hospitalizations from respiratory syncytial virus, the flu and the continuing mental health crisis. The Children’s Hospital Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics sent a letter to the White House and HHS on Monday, saying hospitals and health groups need the funding and flexibility from an emergency declaration to handle the rising caseloads. How would a PHE help? Pediatric providers are asking for flexibility that would allow the use of new spaces for care, expanded telehealth use and fewer restrictions on speeding patient transfers and increasing staffing.
| | | GEORGIA COURT BLOCKS ABORTION BAN — On Tuesday, a Georgia judge overturned a state law prohibiting most abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy, blocking it from being enforced, POLITICO’s Megan Messerly reports . The decision means that most cases of abortions up to 22 weeks of pregnancy will be allowed in Georgia — for the first time since July. The ruling is likely to be appealed and make its way to the Georgia Supreme Court.
| | | PANDEMIC PREP GROUP DROPS LOBBYISTS — Guarding Against Pandemics, a group funded by Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX, is no longer working with most of its lobbyists, according to lobbying disclosure filings and lobbyists, Ben reports. FTX filed for bankruptcy Friday after failing to cover deposits amid a run on the cryptocurrency exchange. Bankman-Fried, a major Democratic party donor, and his business are under investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Department of Justice. Guarding Against Pandemics has spent $670,000 on lobbying since September 2021 pushing Congress to increase funding to combat Covid-19. The group unsuccessfully pressed Congress to include $30 billion to fight Covid-19 in budget reconciliation legislation earlier this year and endorsed candidates in the midterms.
| | | | STAY AHEAD OF THE CURVE: Our Future Pulse newsletter will continue to bring you the biggest stories at the intersection of technology and healthcare, but now five times a week. Want to know what’s next in health care? Sign up for our Future Pulse newsletter. If you aren’t already subscribed, follow this link to start receiving Future Pulse . | | | | | | | | Nicole Burda has joined Oak Street Health as director of government affairs. She was most recently on the Government Affairs Health and Family Team at AARP and, before that, at the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics and the American Public Health Association. The Bipartisan Policy Center Health Program has added two directors, Shana Christrup and Oliver J. Kim. Christup will serve as BPC’s public health director and Oliver J. Kim as health policy director.
| | | The Washington Post writes that workplace absences due to sick kids rose to an all-time high in October as RSV and flu cases are on the rise. STAT investigates the "troubling" questions surrounding the approval of India’s Covid-19 vaccine. The Wall Street Journal reports on the deadly and increasingly common pairing of meth and fentanyl.
| | | | A message from Philip Morris International: Today, anti-tobacco activists, public health leaders, and policymakers have an opportunity to do something real, practical, and grounded in science to help millions of smokers stop smoking and significantly improve public health.
There’s no doubt that the best choice for anyone who smokes is to quit tobacco and nicotine completely. However, we also know that many won’t, and these adults deserve access to better alternatives to continued smoking.
For more than a decade, Philip Morris International has been working to achieve a smoke-free future. To date, we’ve invested over $9 billion in researching, developing, and commercializing smoke-free alternatives to cigarettes. Around 30% of our total net revenues now come from these products, showing that change can happen.
Everyone wants a world without cigarettes—but it will take our collective action. We must help those adults who would otherwise continue smoking move away from cigarettes for good.
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