McDermott+

Thursday, June 17, the United States Supreme Court issued a ruling in California v. Texas, a challenge to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that has been in litigation since 2017, finding in a 7-2 majority that plaintiffs did not have standing to challenge the individual mandate. Aaron Badida, Debbie Curtis, and Rodney Whitlock discuss how this decision will shape the direction of strengthening the ACA moving forward.

With no update on the pending SCOTUS decision on the ACA, Rodney Whitlock discusses the House deeming resolution and the focus on the Senate Finance Committee hearing on Mental Health Care in America.

President Biden and former President Obama reunited over the weekend to announce that more than 31 million Americans have gained access to health care through the ACA. But, the future of the ACA hangs in the balance of the pending Supreme Court decision, expected by the end of the month. Rodney Whitlock and Aaron Badida discuss the history of the legislation and legal challenges that have followed during "the 10-year war."

Rodney Whitlock joins the podcast to discuss "Budgets and Voting." The President's budget is now facing appropriation hearings and Senator Joe Manchin's op-ed piece this weekend solidified his position on the filibuster question.

McDermottPlus VP, Mara McDermott, joins the podcast to break down the President’s HHS budget proposal. "What is coming in rulemaking? What is coming from Congress? What's it going to look like and how big will the impact be? This budget document doesn't give us much insight on how they plan to get there."

President Biden has set an aggressive vaccine goal: 70 percent adult immunization rate by Independence Day. To hit this benchmark, the White House has offered every perk to encourage Americans to roll up their sleeves. Rodney Whitlock and Aaron Badida from our health policy team discuss the vaccine rates and tackle the question health officials will have to answer, what happens when they run out of carrots and need to start using sticks?

Monday at 5:30 pm, the Senate will vote to begin the nomination of Chiquita Brooks-LaSure. We are nearing the Memorial Day recess and a pathway forward on infrastructure remains unclear. And, what can we expect in President Biden's first detailed budget? Rodney Whitlock previews the big three events on the Hill this week.

Congress held a slew of hearings this week on everything from the CDC’s budget, hospital consolidations, healthcare changes during COVID, and the COVID vaccine supply chain. Rodney Whitlock dives into what we learned from these hearings and what to expect this summer on the Hill. Plus, we welcome Susan Xu and Devin Stone, to our health policy and data strategy team.

The Senate is expected to confirm Chiquita Brooks-LaSure as the CMS head this week. What can we expect with her vote? Rodney Whitlock shares his insights. The Senate Finance Committee will hold a hearing on COVID-19 Health Care Flexibilities. "Just because these flexibilities were extended during the pandemic doesn't mean they go on forever. Eventually, the authority ends and Congress must act."

Young Americans between 12 and 15 years old, are on track to receive the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine in pharmacies and mass-vaccination sites across the country. Rodney Whitlock checks in to explain how expanding the vaccine age is part of the Biden Administration's updated vaccine goals that come with some question marks. +This episode was recorded on THU 5/13 @ 11AM+