Summary
Tomorrow night, President Trump will make his first joint Congressional address in response to a letter from Speaker Mike Johson inviting the President to share his America First vision for Congress’s legislative future. The President is also expected to announce an additional 10 percent tariff on Chinese goods and whether the Administration will move forward with the previously planned 25 percent tariffs on Canada and Mexico, or a lower percentage.
Fiscal Year 2025 Appropriations
Government funding expires on March 14, with several health care programs expiring at the end of the month. Last week, Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins (R-ME) received instructions from the Trump Administration to begin prepping a continuing resolution (CR) that would fund the government through the end of the fiscal year, September 30. Some Republican lawmakers have shown interest in codifying the “most egregious” examples of waste of government spending, as identified by Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), in the package, but Speaker Johnson indicated that such codifications would not occur until fiscal year (FY) 2026.
On the other side of the aisle, Democrats are seeking guardrails in the package to prohibit the Trump Administration and DOGE from eliminating Congressionally approved funding. Additionally, on Friday, top Democrat appropriators, Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) and Rep. Rose DeLauro (D-CT), issued a joint statement indicating that “Republican leadership is walking away from bipartisan negotiations to fund the government—and raising the risk of a shutdown in so doing.” To avoid a shutdown, Congress may pursue a clean one-month CR.
Trump Administration Nominations
On Wednesday, the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee will convene its confirmation hearing for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director nominee, Dr. Jayanta Bhattacharya, and the following day, Dr. Marty Makary, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner nominee, will have his confirmation hearing before the Committee. The Senate will also hold confirmation votes this week for Department of Education Secretary nominee, Linda McMahon, and Department of Labor Secretary nominee, Lori Chavez-DeRemer.
FDA Vaccine Advisory Committee Meeting Cancelled
Last week, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) cancelled its March 13th meeting of the Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee on influenza strains for the 2025-2026 influenza season. This follows the postponement of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) and Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee (HICPAC) March meetings.
Regulatory Update
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is reviewing the following:
- FY 2026 Medicare Payment Rules: Proposed rules updating payments for acute care hospitals and long-term care hospitals, as well as hospice providers. The proposed rules are slated for April.
- ACA Marketplace Program Integrity: A proposed rule likely focused on addressing fraud in Marketplace plans, which has been a primary concern for House Republicans and conservative think tanks, such as the Paragon Health Institute. The proposed rule will likely reverse a number of Biden-era policies related to enrollment and eligibility for premium subsidies, which were promulgated through the annual notice of benefit and payment parameters (NBPP). Peter Nelson, the new head of Center for Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight (CCIIO), identified numerous Biden-era regulations in a report he wrote during his time at the Center of the American Experiment, a conservative think tank. Given the timing of the proposed rule, it seems that the Trump Administration intends for its policies to be finalized and effective before the start of the 2026 Open Enrollment Period on November 1, 2025.