Articles by Steven T. Dennis, Laura Litvan, Zachary Tracer and Anna Edney

Senate Begins Debate, Kills McConnell Health Bill, Schedules ‘Vote-a-Rama’

Senate Republicans have embarked on an unpredictable and potentially chaotic floor debate aimed at repealing Obamacare amid significant doubts that they can muster 50 votes to pass any kind of health bill. GOP leaders will hold votes on a slew …

FDA Chief Gottlieb Eyes Overhaul of Opioid Regulation

The Food and Drug Administration, as part of a sweeping overhaul in how it regulates opioid painkillers, plans to look to some unusual allies to limit the flood of the addictive pills — health insurers and companies that manage prescription …

GOP Senate Health Bill Would Substantially Raise Deductibles, Number of Uninsureds: CBO

The Senate Republican health bill promises lower premiums for consumers. To get there, it would require patients in standard plans to spend as much as about $13,000 upfront on their own care. The deductibles would be so high, in fact, …

House Passes Obamacare Repeal, 217-213; Senate Support in Doubt

House Republicans mustered just enough votes to pass their health-care bill Thursday, salvaging what at times appeared to be a doomed mission to repeal and partially replace Obamacare under intense pressure from President Donald Trump to produce legislative accomplishments. The …

Obamacare Insurers Struggle to Set Plans Amid Threats to Program

Obamacare is stuck in limbo, and insurers and state regulators are struggling to set their plans for what’s increasingly shaping up as a chaotic year for the health-care program. After the failure of Republicans’ first attempt to repeal and replace …

Trump Aims to Raise Insurer Participation in Obamacare with New Rules

The Trump administration finalized a set of rules that it says will help bolster insurer participation in Obamacare’s markets, even as the president presses for repeal of the law itself. The rules, published Thursday [March 13] by the Department of …

Trump’s FDA Chief Cites Opioid Epidemic As Top Priority

Opioid painkillers that have led to thousands of deaths and new drug addicts should be the highest priority of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, said Scott Gottlieb, President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the agency. “The opioid epidemic in …

Republicans Now Eye Insurer Low-Income Subsidies They Sued to Halt

Republican lawmakers are seeking a way to guarantee that health insurers get $7 billion promised to them to help low-income people afford the out-of-pocket costs of Obamacare plans, in an effort to keep more companies from leaving markets created by …

White House, Republicans Weigh Benefits Changes to Health Care Bill

The White House is talking with House conservatives about last-minute changes to the embattled GOP health-care bill aimed at wooing enough holdouts to secure House passage. Lawmakers and Trump administration officials are discussing revisions to “essential benefits” requirements in Obamacare, …

White House Weighing Changes to Ryan Health Care Bill

House Speaker Paul Ryan doesn’t plan to make major changes to Republicans’ plan to replace Obamacare, according to a GOP aide, but the White House says it’s talking with members of Congress who want to amend the legislation. “We’ve always …