This issue of McDermott’s Healthcare Regulatory Check-Up highlights regulatory activity for January 2024. We discuss several US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) agency actions, including the new Innovation in...more
Hello readers! Today’s post focuses on a topic we’ve touched on a few times in the past – Medicaid drug formularies. Back in December 2021, the state of Oregon released a draft Medicaid waiver proposal that caught the...more
The Trump administration has issued sweeping new Medicaid guidance, continuing its efforts to cap federal Medicaid funding. The new policy relies on untested legal theories to implement the fundamental “bargain” of block...more
On Thursday, Jan. 30, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released the Healthy Adult Opportunity initiative, long-awaited guidance that would enable states to convert Medicaid funding into a block grant for...more
On September 17, 2019, Tennessee released its proposal to block grant most of the funding the state’s Medicaid program (TennCare) receives from the Federal government. If approved by CMS, the amendment to the state’s...more
The final bipartisan opioid package, which passed in the Senate this week and is expected to be signed into law, includes a significant revision from the original House bill that could lead to an increase in treatment options...more
This week, Congress returns from recess to another four-week work period that will immediately become contentious. Tonight, President Trump is expected to make his Supreme Court pick this week. This could change the dynamics...more
It has been a few weeks since the publication of the Trump Administration’s Blueprint to Lower Drug Prices, and Secretary Azar’s Request for Information (RFI) on the Blueprint. We previously posted about the Blueprint’s focus...more
Welcome to the third week of this four week stretch. This week, the House will continue to vote on a number of proposals to address the opioid crisis. Last week the House passed over 30 bills on opioids, most of which were...more
On October 19, Kaiser Family Foundation and Health Management Associates hosted a joint briefing to release their 17th Annual 50-State Medicaid Budget Survey for state fiscal years (FY) 2017 and 2018. The survey highlights...more