Senate Republicans are scrambling to rewrite major parts of their 'big, beautiful bill' in deference to key holdouts and the chamber's parliamentarian as the clock ticks on a self-imposed deadline. GOP leaders are aiming to start voting Thursday, but senators emerged from a closed-door briefing on the status of the megabill Monday night saying that some of their biggest sticking points — ranging from key tax decisions to a deal on Medicaid — remain unresolved.
Strong payroll tax revenue gains and federal government contribution increases helped Medicare turn in strong results for 2024. The federal health insurance program is reporting $11.2 billion in "net change in assets," or operating profits, on $1.1 trillion in revenue, up from an operating loss of $12.4 billion on $1 trillion in revenue for 2023. The program ended the year covering 67.6 million people, up 1.3% from the number it was covering a year earlier.
CMS chief Dr. Mehmet Oz just indicated to a group of GOP chiefs of staff that they should stick with language closer to the House megabill's Medicaid language, especially on the politically explosive provider tax, according to two people granted anonymity to speak about a private meeting. It's a warning that the Senate should avoid deeper cuts, which House GOP leaders have privately said won't pass the House. People in the room also took that to mean the Senate should not pursue any politically explosive changes to the Federal Medical Assistance Percentage.
Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) is warning that President Trump's megabill could run off the tracks this week if Senate Republican leaders fail to address his GOP colleagues' concerns that deep cuts to Medicaid spending would devastate rural hospitals in their home states. Hawley said Republican leaders provided little detail Monday night about how they would help rural hospitals, nursing homes and community health care providers in rural areas.
Prosecutors at the Manhattan district attorney's office intentionally violated Luigi Mangione's right to a fair trial by unnecessarily releasing his handwritten journal entries to 'bias' the public, defense attorneys said in a new court filing.
A group of cybercriminals hacked into data systems at insurance company Aflac, possibly gaining access to sensitive information such as Social Security numbers and health reports, the company said. Aflac, which boasts millions of customers, 'identified suspicious activity' and 'stopped the intrusion within hours,' the company said.