Summary
The Senate Budget Committee is expected to unveil a budget resolution on Tuesday, with reconciliation instructions focused on funding Immigration and Customs Enforcement and parts of Customs and Border Protection. The measure is anticipated to include roughly $65 billion to $75 billion in funding, though it remains unclear whether it will include any pay-fors – potentially opening the door to health care provisions if the Senate Finance or HELP Committees receive the necessary instructions. Regardless, health care will likely come up during vote-a-rama, which could begin as soon as this week.
Meanwhile, HHS Secretary Kennedy returns to Capitol Hill for another round of hearings on the President’s FY 2027 budget with the Senate Finance, HELP, and Appropriations Committees, as well as the House Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee. As in the House, discussions are expected to extend well beyond the budget proposal, touching on issues such as health care affordability, vaccines, and chronic disease.
On Wednesday, the House Committee on Education and Workforce’s HELP Subcommittee will hold a hearing on Wednesday centered on pharmacy benefit managers. Last month, Rep. Rick Allen (R-GA), the subcommittee chair, introduced the PBM Kickback Prohibition Act, which would amend ERISA to prohibit PBMs from compensating brokers, consultants, advisors, or similar intermediaries in exchange for referring employer health plan or insurer business to the PBM.
On Thursday, the House Appropriations Committee will a hold a subcommittee markup of the FY 2027 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Bill.
Later this week, the House plans to vote on several bipartisan health-related bills reported out of E&C:
- Improving Care in Rural America Reauthorization Act of 2025 (H.R. 2493) reauthorizes HRSA grant programs that provide funding to health care service providers in rural areas.
- To amend the Public Health Service Act to reauthorize the telehealth network and telehealth resource centers grant programs (H.R. 3419) reauthorizes HRSA grant programs to support telehealth networks and telehealth resource centers.
- Women and Lung Cancer Research and Preventive Services Act of 2025 (H.R. 2319) requires HHS to conduct an interagency review to accelerate lung cancer research, prevention, and awareness with respect to women and underserved populations.
Regulatory Update
The Office of Management and Budget completed its review of the following:
- Immigration Status. A Department of Labor proposed rule titled, “Improving Wage Protections for H-1B and PERM Employment in the United States.”
OMB is also reviewing:
- Coverage and Payment:
- Medicaid:
- State Directed Payments. A proposed rule titled, “Medicaid Managed Care State Directed Payments and Medicaid Fee-For-Service Targeted Medicaid Practitioner Payments.” The proposed rule appears intended to advance a presidential memorandum released on June 6, which directs HHS to “eliminate waste, fraud, and abuse in Medicaid, including by ensuring Medicaid payments rates are not higher than Medicare, to the extent permitted by applicable law.” On February 27, the title of the proposed rule was revised to include Medicaid FFS targeted Medicaid practitioner payments.
- Medicaid Tax Waivers. A proposed rule titled, “Amending the Indirect Hold Harmless Threshold of Health Care-Related Taxes.”
- Work Requirements. An interim final rule titled, “Establishing State Community Engagement Requirements for Certain Individuals Under Section 1902(xx) of the Social Security Act.”
- Medicare: CY 2027 proposed policy changes and payment rates for hospital outpatient departments and physicians
- 2027 Notice of Benefit and Payment Parameters final rule.
- No Surprises Act. A final rule titled, “Independent Dispute Resolution Operations.” Thing long-awaited rule was proposed in November 2023 by the Biden Administration.
- Organ Transplant. A final rule titled, “Alternative Payment Model Updates and the Increasing Organ Transplant Access.”
- Prescription Drugs
- Price Negotiation. A proposed rule titled, “Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program.”
- Oversight and Integrity
- Accrediting Organizations. A final rule titled, “Strengthening Oversight of Accrediting Organizations (AO), Burden Reduction, and Related Provisions.”
- Nutrition
- Work Requirements. A proposed rule titled, “Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program: Modification to Work Requirements for Able-Bodied Adults.”
- Categorical Eligibility. A proposed rule titled, “Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program: Reforming Categorical Eligibility.”
- Cost Sharing. A proposed rule titled, “Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program: Changes in Federal-State Administrative Cost Sharing.”
- Other Topics:
- An interim final rule titled, “Unaccompanied Children Program Foundational Rule; Update to Include Proof of Identity and Income Verification Standards.”
- Medication-Assisted Treatment. A final rule titled, “Implementation of the SUPPORT Act: Dispensing and Administering Controlled Substances for Medication-Assisted Treatment.”
- A final rule titled, “HIPAA Privacy Rule: Changes to Support Coordinated Care and Individual Engagement and Reduce Regulatory Burdens.”
- Excepted Benefits. A proposed rule titled, “Amendments to Excepted Benefits.”
- An interim final rule titled, “Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability by Recipients of Department of Health and Human Services Financial Assistance.”