Insights: Healthcare

The Center for Disease Control’s (CDC) activity around vaccine policy has begun to accelerate in recent days. Earlier this week, Acting CDC Director O’Neill formally adopted the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices’ (ACIP) recommendations regarding utilization of the COVID-19 and MMRV vaccines in certain populations. Separately, ACIP...

The Senate yesterday passed the annual defense authorization bill, known as the NDAA, and included a new version of the Biosecure Act, a bill that bans federal funding to certain Chinese biotech companies. The House did not include similar language in its NDAA, but last year approved its own version of the bill. The Senate has previously tried...

Medtech/Tariffs

The Commerce Department launched a Sec. 232 tariff investigation into personal protective equipment (PPE), medical consumables and medical equipment, including devices. The Commerce Department will collect comments on the probe until 10/17 and are seeking input on the demand for such items now and in the future, the extent to which domestic...

Medicare Advantage

The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas has ruled in favor of Humana in its lawsuit challenging CMS's MA Risk Adjustment Data Validation (RADV) rule (which checks the accuracy of the diagnosis codes submitted by MA plans to recoup overpayments).

Drug Pricing (Most Favored Nation, Tariffs)

During a White House event this week, Pfizer announced it would provide Most Favored Nation (MFN) pricing (matching the lowest prices in other developed countries) for its drugs in the Medicaid program (scope of products unspecified), apply MFN pricing on a go-forward basis on all “new innovative medicines” Pfizer brings to market (payer focus...

Healthcare, Macro

Fiscal Year 2026 Funding/Government Shutdown, ACA

Yesterday’s meeting between President Trump and Congressional leaders yielded no progress towards resolution of FY26 government funding. In fact, both sides emerged from the meeting echoing their partisan messages with no indication they intend to soften their current positions (i.e., Democrats demanding that an extension of enhanced ACA...