Healthcare Policy Pop

Dr. Robert Popovian, Chief Science Policy Officer for the Global Healthy Living Foundation, discusses the GLHF’s recent webinar on formulary exclusions; and a Forbes article outlines how two states are taking action to protect themselves against insurance policies that don’t make sense..

Global Healthy Living Foundation Webinar: Impact of Formulary Exclusions on Individual Patients

Forbes News Article: New TN & TX Price Transparency Laws Prevent Patients From Getting Ripped Off

U.S. Representative Diana Harshbarger of Tennessee, discusses the importance of the Immediate Access for the Terminally Ill Act that she and Senator Mike Lee introduced last week; and Patients Rising CEO Terry Wilcox, gives her opinion on the bill.

Immediate Access for the Terminally Ill Act

Congresswoman Diana Harshbarger News Release: Congresswoman Diana Harshbarger, Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) Re-Introduce Immediate Access for the Terminally Ill Act

Ilana Eisenstein, Chair of U.S. Litigation at DLA Piper, breaks down multiple lawsuits against the CMS drug price negotiations within the IRA; and a gene-editing treatment that could cure sickle cell disease awaits approval by the FDA.

Fierce Health News Article: The legal battle over drug price negotiations is just getting started

The Hill News Article: This gene-editing therapy could cure sickle cell disease, and it’s close to FDA approval

Naomi Lopez, Founder of Nexus Policy Consulting, reacts to the recent White House executive order on Artificial Intelligence and tells us why it might hamper innovation; and the Jax Act is a bill we’ve been following all year and a Congressman just made a statement about the legislation.

Patients Rising Podcast Episode: AI - Good or Bad for Your Health?

Jax Act News Release: Jax Act Introduced in Congress – Recognition for Women Combat Veterans

Jax Act

Darrell Issa News Release: Issa – The JAX Act Corrects the Record for Hundreds of Women Who Served in Combat

Dr. Bruce Altevogt, who served on the Board of Health Sciences Policy at the Institute of Medicine, discusses the impactfulness of CMS Listening Sessions; an article from The Wall Street Journal explains why many patients are paying more for the same drugs; and Congress is considering lifting a 13-year-old ban on physician-owned hospitals.

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Webpage: Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program Patient-Focused Listening Sessions

The Wall Street Journal News Article: Same Drug, Two Prices: Why the Higher Price Prevails

Healthcare Policy Pop Episode: Biosimilars' Slow Uptake

HealthLeaders Media News Article: Stakeholders Gird For Battle, As Congress Mulls Lifting Ban On Doc-Owned Hospitals

Dr. Robert Popovian, Senior Visiting Health Policy Fellow at Pioneer Institute, tells us how Pioneer’s new 340B website will allow everyone to evaluate how well the 340B program is working; Senator Mike Braun discusses the Promising Pathway Act; and Patients Rising Now has joined a group of other patient advocacy organizations on a letter calling for strong, meaningful and accountable PBM reform this year. 

Pioneer Institute Webinar: Pioneer Institute's 340B Website Demonstration

Pioneer Institute Webpage

Jonathan Weiss, CEO of HealthEngine, reveals the challenges that companies face when breaking into the marketplace for healthcare services; Congresswoman Nanette Barragan and Terry Wilcox, CEO of Patients Rising, authored an OpEd in the Hill on legislation that expands access to Alzheimer’s treatment.

HealthEngine Webpage: Who We Are

HealthEngine Webpage: Jonathan Weiss

The Hill OpEd: Legislation expands access to breakthrough Alzheimer’s treatments

Pam Andrews, Mother of Two Children with Niemann Pick Disease Type C1, discusses how The Promising Pathway Act could help her children with an approved treatment; and Senator Mike Braun delivered marks about The Promising Pathway Act to the Special Committee on Aging.

Promising Pathway Act

United States Senate Special Committee on Aging Webpage: Braun – Patients deserve a promising pathway at the FDA

The Firefly Fund Webpage

MacKay Jimeson, Executive Director of the Patients Rising Patient Access and Affordability Project, tells us about their newly-released working paper called ”Prescription Drug Formularies Transparency and Reform.”; Ike Brannon, Senior Fellow at the Jack Kemp Foundation, explains why the CBO is looking for more research on obesity; and the FDA is authorizing more AI-enabled medical devices.

Patient Access and Affordability Project Webpage: Equitable Access – Examining Discriminatory & Restrictive Practices in Prescription Drug Formularies

Congressional Budget Office Webpage: A Call for New Research in the Area of Obesity

CATO Institute Webpage: The Costs of the New Weight Loss Hope Could Be Very High

STAT News Article: After a lull, the pace of FDA authorization of AI-enabled medical devices is rising

Dr. Benson Hsu, Professor of Pediatrics at the University of South Dakota Sanford School of Medicine, discusses the ins and outs of the Kaiser Permanente Strike and tells us that while this strike is over there is still a lot of work to be done; and Patients Rising Now is releasing its latest report called ”Prescription Drug Formularies Transparency and Reform.”

NPR News Article: After historic strike, Kaiser Permanente workers win 21% raise over 4 years

University of South Dakota Webpage: Benson Hsu