House Hearings

Oversight and Reform Committee: Examining the Actions of Drug Companies in Raising Prescription Drug Prices
On Jan. 29, the House Committee on Oversight and Reform held a hearing to determine business practices of pharmaceutical manufacturers as well as possible explanations for and solutions to rising drug prices. Find a link to witness testimonies, member statements and the entire hearing here.

Why this is important: Committee members emphasized major concerns that are widespread in both the House and Senate—a lack of transparency surrounding pharmaceutical drugs manufacturers, pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) and the negotiation process for these costs, the same concerns raised in the Senate Finance committee held on the same day. However, members disagreed on methods to intervene and the extent to which the federal government should play a role in this process.

Ways and Means Committee: Protecting Americans with Pre-Existing Conditions
On Jan. 29, the House Ways and Means Committee held a hearing to discuss pre-existing conditions and their impact on health care coverage. With the Texas federal court ruling that the Affordable Care Act (ACA) should be struck down, protecting individuals with pre-existing conditions is high on the docket of multiple committees. Find a link to witness testimonies and member statements here. Watch the hearing here.

Why this is important: Protections related to pre-existing conditions are the most popular part of the Affordable Care Act. Prior to the 2018 election, Republicans introduced legislation stating that it would provide individuals with protections from pre- existing conditions. However, these bills had significant shortcomings in comparison to the ACA. Republican committee members expressed support for guaranteeing coverage for people with pre-existing conditions and called on Congress to lower health care costs. Democrats on the panel pushed back on that, criticizing Republicans for a previous lack of support for pre-existing conditions protections in the ACA. One witness testified concerning the benefits of Association Health Plans, which the Administration supports and many Republicans see as part of the answer to the coverage problem. 

Budget Committee: CBO’s Budget and Economic Outlook: FY 2019-2029
On Jan. 29, the House Budget Committee held a hearing on the Congressional Budget Office’s (CBO) updated budget and economic outlook. Watch the hearing here.

Why this is important: Chairman John Yarmuth (D-KY) highlighted that the CBO projects a deficit this year that is $118 billion higher than last year’s. Average deficits over the next decade are projected to rise. The national debt is expected to reach 93 percent of GDP by 2029, before rising to an unprecedented 150 percent of GDP in 2049. CBO Director Keith Hall testified before the committee.

Senate Hearings

Finance Committee: Drug Pricing in America: A Prescription for Change, Part I
On Jan. 29, the Senate Finance committee held the first in a series of hearings for a bipartisan reform effort and increased transparency in the face of rising drug prices. Find a link to witness testimonies, member statements and the entire hearing here.

Why this is important: Witnesses suggested reforms to the Medicare Part D program, the 340B program and rebate programs as a few methods to lower prices. Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) discussed his bipartisan bill with Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), the Safe and Affordable Drugs from Canada Act of 2019 (S.64). This legislation would permit the importation of prescription drugs from approved pharmacies in Canada. There was frustration on both sides of the aisle because drug manufacturers refused to testify. 

Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee: Access to Care: Health Centers and Providers in Underserved Communities
On Jan. 29, the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee held a hearing to learn more about community health centers, the National Health Service Corps and the Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education programs, which all currently receive mandatory funding from the federal government that is set to expire at the end of this fiscal year. Find a link to witness testimonies, member statements and the entire hearing here.

Why this is important: With the federal funding to the highlighted programs expiring at the end of the fiscal year, the HELP committee’s hearing gave a platform to better  understand the importance of these programs. Chair Lamar Alexander (R-TN) introduced S. 192, the Community and Public Health Programs Extension Act, to the floor last week.

Budget Committee: CBO’s Budget and Economic Outlook: FY 2019-2029
On Jan. 29, the Senate Budget Committee held a hearing on the Congressional Budget Office’s (CBO) updated budget and economic outlook. Watch the hearing here.

Why this is important: The CBO outlook projects a deficit this year that is $118 billion higher than last year’s. Average deficits over the next decade are projected to rise. The national debt is expected to reach 93 percent of GDP by 2029, before rising to an unprecedented 150 percent of GDP in 2049. CBO Director Keith Hall testified before the committee.

Read more on healthcare policy on the McGuireWoods Consulting website.