Summary
Big Picture. The Senate is in recess, while the House will attempt to advance several Republican priorities before recessing on Thursday ahead of the July 4th holiday. The House Rules Committee will meet today to consider amendments to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), but Rep. Anna Puaulina Luna (R-FL) instance on including the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act as an amendment may delay the process. The House will also take up the appropriations bill for Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, as well as the bipartisan Kids Online Safety Act under suspension of the rules. Regarding reconciliation 3.0, Republicans are unlikely to meet their July 4th deadline to markup a budget resolution this week as members have not come to agreement on pay-fors for the package yet. However, House Budget Chair Jodey Arrington still sees a scenario in which the markup does occur this week.
Health Policy to Watch
- Reports indicate that Rep. Kim Schrier (D-WA) and the Doc Caucus continue to work on a bipartisan Medicare physician reform bill, with a meeting last week focused on pay-fors. The legislation could be released as early as this week and the Doc Caucus had previously released a discussion draft for stakeholder feedback.
- FY 2027 Final Payment Rules Arrive at OMB. The fiscal year 2027 IPPS and LTCH PPS, IPF PPS and SNF PPS final rules have arrived at OMB for review. The final rules are typically released in late July or early August.
- CMS to recalculate Medicare Advantage (MA) Stars Ratings. In light of the Clover Insurance Company v the Department of Health and Human Services court case, which found that the agency improperly twenty measures, CMS will voluntarily recalculate the 2027 Quality Bonus Payment (QBP) ratings for certain MA contracts.
Reg Update
Recently Arrived at OMB
- Final Rule: Hospital Inpatient Prospective Payment Systems for Acute Care Hospitals; the Long-Term Care Hospital Prospective Payment System; and FY 2027 Rate
- Final Rule: FY 2027 Inpatient Psychiatric Facilities Prospective Payment System Rate and Quality Reporting Updates
- Drug Pricing. Final Rule: Global Benchmark for Efficient Drug Pricing (GLOBE) Model