About healthcare policy
Sweeping nonprofit House bill passes, healthcare groups turn attention to Senate “Legislation that gives a president wide-reaching power to financially harm any nonprofit an administration deems as terrorist supporting passed out of the House of Representatives Nov. 21.
By a vote of 219 to 184, 15 Democrats joined with an overwhelming majority of Republicans allowing a president to abolish the tax-exempt status of nonprofits. Just one Republican voted against H.R. 9495, and 30 representatives did not vote…
’To those who say this bill only applies to groups who are supporting terrorism, consider how expansive that term can be,’Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Texas, said on the House floor Tuesday.”
About health insurance/insurers
RFK Jr. weighs major changes to how Medicare pays physicians The proposals (still preliminary) are to take the relative rate payment determinations away from the AMA.
Medicare’s New Pathway for Transitional Coverage for Emerging Technologies A good review of this topic.
Mercer: As costs rise, employers are pursuing benefit enhancements. Here's how “Earlier this fall, Mercer released the first look at initial results from its annual survey of employer-sponsored health plans. That showed employers are bracing for medical costs to rise by more than 5% in 2025 for the third straight year…
To address affordability more broadly, employers are taking steps to offer more plan options for workers with the goal of accommodating a broader range of financial and health needs. Mercer found that 65% of large employers provided at least three plan options to employees…
Employers are also focusing on benefits in key areas. For example, the study found that 47% of large employers cover in vitro fertilization, growing from 45% in 2023.”
About the public’s health
Influenza, COVID-19, and Respiratory Syncytial Virus Vaccination Coverage Among Adults — United States, Fall 2024 “By November 9, 2024, an estimated 34.7% and 17.9% of adults aged ≥18 years had received influenza and COVID-19 vaccines, respectively, for the 2024–25 season; 39.7% of adults aged ≥75 years and 31.6% of adults aged 60–74 years at increased risk for severe RSV disease had ever received RSV vaccine. Many unvaccinated adults reported intent to get vaccinated.”
Chloronitramide anion is a decomposition product of inorganic chloramines “Municipal drinking water in the US is often treated with chloramines to prevent the growth of harmful microorganisms, but these molecules can also react with organic and inorganic dissolved compounds to form disinfection by-products that are potentially toxic. Fairey et al. studied a previously known but uncharacterized product of mono- and dichloramine decomposition and identified it as the chloronitroamide anion... This anion was detected in 40 drinking water samples from 10 US drinking water systems using chloramines, but not from ultrapure water or drinking water treated without chlorine-based disinfectants. Although toxicity is not currently known, the prevalence of this by-product and its similarity to other toxic molecules is concerning.”
About healthcare technology
Baxter International releases first IV solutions manufactured at hurricane-hit NC facility “Baxter International this week released the first product – 1-liter IV solutions – manufactured post-hurricane at its North Cove, North Carolina facility.
The product release is ahead of the company's original expectations and made possible by the dedication and resilience of the North Cove and broader Baxter teams, working in coordination with FDA, the company said in an update posted to its website.”