The Supreme Court sided on Tuesday with HHS in a dispute over the rate under Medicare the government pays to hospitals that serve low-income patients. The 7-2 decision rejected an attempt from a group of more than 200 hospitals across 30 states to change the formula the government uses to calculate reimbursement for hospitals that serve a disproportionate share of low-income patients.
House Republicans discussed a new, controversial proposal to cut federal spending for Medicaid in a closed-door meeting late Monday night, as lawmakers even beyond the moderate bloc are warning GOP leaders they will not swallow another alternative. According to four Republicans who were present for the meeting of GOP members of Energy and Commerce — convened to finalize their panel's portion of the party's megabill — lawmakers discussed at length a new version of a plan to place so-called 'per capita caps' on Medicaid funding to certain beneficiaries in states that have expanded the program under the ACA.
A group of former BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee employees allegedly fired after declining to get the COVID-19 vaccine for religious reasons are nearing a settlement with the insurance provider, a federal status report shows. The complaint was filed by three former employees who claimed they were fired in 2021 after their respective religious accommodation requests were denied.
At HHS, 10,000 jobs are gone. Billions of dollars in research sent to scientists and universities was shut off. Public meetings to discuss flu shots and other vaccines have been canceled. Fluoride in drinking water may be the next to go, according to Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Kennedy has done a blitz of his "Make America Healthy Again" campaign at day cares, schools and health centers around the country where he has promised to work with Trump's other agency leaders to prohibit soda from the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, limit dyes in the food supply and call for fluoride to be removed from drinking water.
President Donald Trump said he would not sign legislation that calls for cuts to Social Security or federal health coverage for older and low-income Americans. Trump's comments put hard limits on congressional lawmakers as they return to Washington next week to debate the specifics of a tax-and-spending package they plan to pass in the coming months. The legislation, which will likely pass on GOP votes alone, will look to renew Trump's first-term tax cuts, but also calls for budget reductions.
Luigi Mangione pleaded not guilty Friday to a federal murder charge in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. Prosecutors formally declared their intent to seek the death penalty, and the judge warned Justice Department officials to refrain from making public comments that could spoil his right to a fair trial.