Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) on Tuesday said one controversial proposal to cut federal Medicaid funding was off the table and another would likely be excluded from the bill containing President Trump’s domestic policy priorities.
Both had been red lines for a number of moderate and vulnerable Republicans, leaving the GOP closer to an agreement on which Medicaid cuts will be included in the final product. Still, lawmakers said Tuesday no final decisions had been made on one of the most hot-button issues facing the far-reaching package.
Baxter International, a prominent healthcare and pharmaceutical manufacturer, reports that President Trump's tariffs will likely cost the company $60 million to $70 million this year. Baxter makes a number of pharmaceutical and hospital products, but may be best known for being a leading source of IV fluid bags.
Hospitals across the country are starting to reckon with the effects President Trump's tariffs are having on medical supplies like syringes and PPE, and in some cases freezing spending and making other contingencies.
Sutter Health agreed this week to pay $228.5 million to settle a lawsuit accusing the Sacramento-based hospital system of anticompetitive practices. The case, originally filed in 2012, accused Sutter of attempting to amass monopoly power in northern California through all-or-nothing contracts, requiring insurers to include all of its hospitals and physician groups in health plans.
There are 55 nonprofit hospitals in Massachusetts. Those hospitals receive tax benefits totaling more than $1.9 billion a year. In exchange for the tax breaks, the hospitals are required to provide financial assistance to patients who need it and give free care to the poor. But, some patients said they are in debt because they didn't get the help they were entitled to.
Federal officials are circulating a draft budget proposal that would make dramatic additional cuts to federal health programs and serve as a roadmap for more mass firings. Though it's preliminary, the document gives an indication of the Trump administration’s priorities as it prepares its 2026 fiscal year budget proposal to Congress. The document indicates plans to deepen job and funding reductions across much of the federal government.