WASHINGTON WIRE
January 12, 2007
Issue 117
In this issue, you'll find:
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House Passes Stem Cell Bill
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MedPAC Considers Physician Payment Formula Reforms
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Renewed Action on Drug Importation
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Hearings
Top Story
House Passes Stem Cell Bill
Speaker Pelosi (D-CA) was able to check another item off her "first 100 hours" agenda, as the House voted 253-174 on Thursday to approve the "Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act of 2007," legislation to expand federal funding for human embryonic stem cell research. However, the margin of support fell well below the two-thirds required to override a likely Presidential veto.
Currently, federal funding for embryonic stem cell research is limited to embryonic stem cell lines created before Aug. 9, 2001. The new legislation would expand federal funding for research involving all embryos donated by in-vitro fertilization clinics, provided they are not specifically created for scientific purposes.
Supporters of the new embryonic stem cell research law state such research could lead to treatments for numerous conditions including spinal cord injuries and diabetes. However, opponents of the bill believe that using embryonic stem cells for research is essentially destroying a human life.
The Senate has yet to act on similar legislation this year. On Thursday morning the Administration announced its intent to veto the legislation, should it come to the President's desk. The President vetoed nearly identical legislation in July 2006.
Health Care News
MedPAC Considers Physician Payment Formula Reforms
The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) is set to recommend two possible reforms to the Medicare physician payment formula in a mandatory report to Congress in March. A draft report outlining the two reforms was presented at the recent MedPAC meeting.
The first "pathway" to be offered would involve completely repealing the controversial Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) formula which is currently used to calculate Medicare physician payments and replacing it with a new one, though MedPAC did not make any recommendations for a new formula. The SGR formula attempts to control Medicare spending by tying physician payments to "expenditure targets" and comparing that to the volume of services provided. The SGR formula has been responsible for a number of scheduled physician payment cuts over the last several years. It was been estimated that a full repeal of the current formula could cost up to $218 billion over 10 years.
The second "pathway" to be recommended by MedPAC would not repeal the SGR but, instead, would expand the expenditure targets and would apply them to all Medicare providers. This phased approach could bundle services encouraging providers to coordinate services to keep costs down as well as reward or penalize physicians based on quality performance.
The Commissioners did not vote on the recommendations and will likely include both options in their report to Congress.
During the January meeting, MedPAC members also approved a recommendation to give hospital outpatient and inpatient departments the full market basket update in 2008 as well as a recommendation to partially redistribute indirect medical education (IME) payments to help fund pay-for-performance initiatives.
Additionally, Commissioners recommended that in 2008 physicians receive an estimated 1.7 percent, inpatient rehabilitation facilities receive a 1 percent increase, and long-term care hospitals receive no payment increase.
Renewed Action on Drug Importation
With the new Congress and renewed control of the majority in both the House and Senate by Democrats comes a renewed interest and opportunity for champions of prescription drug importation legislation to quickly address the issue. House and Senate legislators made the most of that opportunity this week as they blasted on the pharmaceutical industry and announced plans to push for a vote this year on a bill allowing the importation of FDA-approved drugs.
Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-ME) held a press conference Wednesday to tout the reimportation bill along with several of the measure's cosponsors: Sens. Byron Dorgan (D-ND) and Reps. Jo Ann Emerson (R-MO), Rahm Emanuel (D-IL), Dan Burton (R-IN), Marion Berry (D-AR), and Rosa DeLauro (D-CT).
The “Pharmaceutical Market Access and Drug Safety Act” allows U.S.-licensed pharmacies and drug wholesalers to import FDA-approved medications from Canada, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and Japan and individual consumers to purchase prescription drugs for their own use from FDA-inspected Canadian pharmacies, amongst other provisions.
The bill, which has garnered the support of AARP and Families USA, is projected to save Americans an estimated $50 billion over the next 10 years, with $1.6 billion of that savings in the federal budget, legislators said.
It remains to be seen 'when' there will be an opportunity to address reimportation but champions expect it to be soon. In addition, it is unclear whether the bill will be pushed as a separate, 'stand-alone' bill or as part of a larger Medicare bill. Also, champions still have to deal with the sitting Republican President who could very well veto such legislation if and when it comes to his desk.
The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America maintained its concerns that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has repeatedly said that it cannot assure patients that medications imported from/through other countries are the same as products FDA already approved for American patients.
Upcoming Events
January 17, 2006
Ways and Means Committee Organization Meeting
House Ways and Means Committee
Full Committee Business Meeting
2 p.m., 1100 Longworth Bldg.
January 18, 2006
Long-Term Budget Outlook
Senate Budget Committee
Full Committee Hearing
10 a.m., 608 Dirksen Bldg.
January 19, 2006
Stem Cell Research
Senate Appropriations - Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies; Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee
Full Committee Joint Hearing
9:30 a.m., 192 Dirksen Bldg.
