News from Washington Schumer Making Last-Ditch Bid to Pass Reconciliation Bill This Summer Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-NY) is making a last-ditch effort to pass a budget reconciliation bill during the July and early August work period. Schumer and centrist Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) have made progress on proposals to lower the cost of prescription […]
News from Washington Democrats Forge Ahead on Drug Pricing, Eyeing Wider Deal with Manchin Democratic leaders have finalized a revised proposal to lower prescription drug prices for seniors, part of a broader scramble to satisfy Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) and resurrect a long-stalled economic package that they hope to advance as soon as this summer. […]
News from Washington Bipartisan Pair of Senators Unveils Bill to Lower Insulin Costs Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Susan Collins (R-ME) unveiled legislation aimed at lowering the cost of insulin, seeking a bipartisan breakthrough on one of the highest-profile examples of high drug prices challenging patients. The legislation would cap patients’ out of pocket costs for […]
News from Washington Democrats Face Congressional Rout Amid Historically Terrible Headwinds Democrats knew the first midterm election of President Biden’s tenure in office would be a challenge. But the cascade of catastrophe has even the most optimistic Democratic Party strategists and pollsters staring into an unprecedented abyss. Their standing, about five months before voters head […]
Government statistics for inflation have confirmed what consumers already know – the cost of everything is going up, by a lot! Americans have felt the pinch at the gas pump, the grocery store, and other aspects of our daily lives. Fortunately, Health Savings Accounts offer some relief from higher inflation, and recent changes announced by […]
News from Washington Inflation Rises 8.6%, the Fastest Pace in Over 40 Years A key gauge of inflation accelerated by 8.6% from a year earlier in May, the government said June 10, a big leap from the previous month as costs for food and gasoline continued to surge. Higher prices showed few signs of relief […]
News from Washington Will Proposed Legislation Bring HOPE to Those Who Can’t Open HSAs Today? A number of legislative proposals have been drafted to address specific populations excluded from opening and funding Health Savings Accounts. Those proposals target specific groups. HOPE Accounts provide many (but not all) of these same tax and time benefits to […]
News from Washington Democrats Set to Blow Through Key Date for Moving Biden’s Agenda Democrats are set to blow through the soft Memorial Day deadline for reaching a deal with Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) on a slimmed-down budget reconciliation bill to raise taxes, fight climate change and lower the cost of prescription drugs. Instead, Democrats are […]
News from Washington Prices Paid to Hospitals by Private Insurers Were 224% of What Medicare Would Pay in 2020 Prices paid to hospitals during 2020 by employers and private insurers for both inpatient and outpatient services averaged 224% of what Medicare would have paid, with substantial variation in prices among states, according to a new […]
News from Washington Biden Marks 1 Million US COVID Deaths with Demand for Congressional Spending President Biden marked 1 million US deaths from COVID-19 by insisting that Congress approve billions of dollars in new spending to boost America’s pandemic response. In March, the White House asked Congress to approve $22.5 billion to pay for COVID […]