Weekend update

David Ermer–Congress, Obesity, OPM, U.S. Healthcare–

From Washington, DC,

  • Roll Call offers a summary of this week’s activities on Capitol Hill.
  • Bloomberg Law explains that House Oversight Committee “Benefits reductions [approved last Wednesday] will next go before the House Budget Committee, which is tasked with assembling bills into a reconciliation package that will have to be approved by the House and Senate.”
  • In a Federal News Network commentary, an OPM executive from the Obama and Biden administrations criticizes the Trump Administration for allowing carrier more flexibility in managing GLP-1 drug coverage for obesity. The FEHBlog agrees with OPM’s decision because carriers hold the financial risk for their respective FEHB plans. That is quite an incentive to sensibly manage benefits.
  • In any case, this criticism is surprising because the Biden administration caused FEHB premiums to explode, in the FEHBlog’s opinion, by mandating coverage of GLP-1 drugs for obesity in January 2023 without allowing carriers to adjust premiums until the following January. While federal government procurement law permits OPM to make unilateral contract amendments, OPM is obligated to provide the contractor with a concurrent equitable price adjustment. All price adjustments in the FEHB are made through the benefit and rate negotiation process. Consequently, all benefit mandates must be run through that process.
  • HR Dive tells us,
    • “Field staff for the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division will not apply the agency’s 2024 independent contractor rule in their enforcement of the Fair Labor Standards Act, a DOL bulletin announced Thursday.
    • “Instead, the department directed staff to apply a 2008 fact sheet as well as a 2019 opinion letter to any matters in which no payments for back pay or civil monetary penalties have been made to either individuals or DOL.
    • “The agency said it is still considering rescinding the Biden administration’s rule, which faces ongoing litigation. “Until further action is taken, the 2024 Rule remains in effect for purposes of private litigation and nothing in this Field Assistance Bulletin changes the rights of employees or responsibilities of employers under the FLSA,” DOL noted.”
  • and
    • “U.S. Department of Justice attorneys asked the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to temporarily suspend the Labor Department’s appeals in two cases challenging its 2024 Fair Labor Standards Act overtime rule, according to an April 24 court filing.
    • “Texas district court judges twice blocked DOL’s final rule, which increased the minimum salary threshold for overtime pay eligibility in two steps. First, a November 2024 decision sided with plaintiffs including the state of Texas and enjoined the rule nationwide. A second judgment set aside and vacated the rule in response to a lawsuit by marketing agency Flint Avenue.
    • “The government asked that the 5th Circuit place its appeals in abeyance “pending the agency’s reconsideration of the rule.” It said counsel for the appellees in both cases did not oppose its request.”

From the public health and medical research front,

  • NPR Shots lets us know,
    • “Older Americans want to know if they are in the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease and would happily take a blood test to find out, according to a national survey.
    • “The survey of 1,700 people 45 and older, part of a report from the Alzheimer’s Association, found growing interest in testing, diagnosis and treatment for the deadly disease.” * * *
    • “The responses show that people are becoming less afraid and more proactive about an Alzheimer’s diagnosis, says Elizabeth Edgerly, a clinical psychologist who directs community programs for the Alzheimer’s Association.”

Per the U.S. healthcare business front,

  • BioPharma Dive reports,
    • “The threat of tariffs on pharmaceuticals imported to the U.S. hasn’t yet pushed drugmakers off course, with many of the largest companies indicating they expect to be able to absorb any impact in the short term.
    • “Speaking on earnings calls in recent weeks, pharma executives have, for the most part, told investors their supply chains are flexible enough to mitigate the effects of new levies — for this year, at least. With a few exceptions, the large drugmakers that have reported financials for the first quarter are maintaining their sales and profit guidance for 2025.”