From Washington, DC

• The Wall Street Journal reports,
  • “Republicans and Democrats are nearing a deal to extend federal health-insurance subsidies for two years, with abortion coverage remaining a potential stumbling block, GOP lawmakers said.
  • “The proposed framework includes income caps and a new requirement for enrollees to pay at least $5 monthly.
  • “Approximately 20 million Americans previously benefited from enhanced ACA subsidies, which expired at the end of last year.”

• MSN adds,
  • “Health insurance companies are being summoned to Capitol Hill for a pair of blockbuster hearings as Americans across the country deal with rising costs for their care, Fox News Digital is first to learn.
    “The House Energy & Commerce Committee, which oversees health policy, and the Ways & Means Committee, which has jurisdiction over tax policy, are both holding hearings on the rising cost of healthcare in the U.S.
  • “It’s not immediately clear which companies will be represented or if they will allow executives to appear voluntarily.”
    
• Healthcare Dive informs us,
  • “Provider and telehealth groups are urging Congress to take action on Medicare virtual care flexibilities as the sector hurtles toward another deadline when the policies could expire.
  • “The American Medical Association, one of the nation’s largest healthcare lobbying groups, on Monday pressed lawmakers to make the pandemic-era telehealth policies permanent, arguing a “repeated cycle of temporary extensions” has undermined access to care. 
  • “The flexibilities, which expanded reimbursement for telehealth in Medicare, are set to lapse on Jan. 30 — just a few months after the coverage policies were reinstated following the government shutdown this fall.”

• Modern Healthcare lets us know,
  • “The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services may require Chronic Condition Special Needs Plans insurers to be Medicaid contractors.
  • “CMS is concerned that C-SNP growth could jeopardize efforts to integrate benefits for Medicare-Medicaid dual-eligible beneficiaries.
  • “C-SNPs are the fastest-growing Medicare Advantage product.
  • “Humana, Centene and others that specialize in Medicare and Medicaid plans could benefit.”

• The American Hospital Association News notes,
  • “The Departments of Health and Human Services and Agriculture Jan. 7 released updated dietary guidelines for Americans. The new guidelines suggest prioritizing protein in each meal; full-fat dairy with no added sugars; whole fruits and vegetables; healthy fats from foods such as meats, seafood, eggs, nuts, seeds, olives and avocados; and whole grains, while reducing refined carbohydrates and limiting highly processed foods, added sugars and artificial additives, among other recommendations. The guidelines also include recommendations for infants and children, adolescents, pregnant and lactating women, older adults, individuals with chronic disease, vegetarians, and vegans.” 

• The Wall Street Journal explains how the new guidelines would impact American diets.

• The AHA News further notes,
  • “The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has implemented an online form for providers to submit complaints regarding Medicare Advantage plans. A CMS memorandum issued Dec. 22 announced implementation of the form. Subsequently, CMS has stated that all provider complaints should be submitted using the form effective Jan. 5, 2026. The form requests basic information about the complainant, beneficiary, provider, the Medicare Advantage plan and a complaint summary and provides optional fields for dates of service and the claim number.” 

• Federal News Network relates,
  • “Updated guidance on federal telework and remote work from the Office of Personnel Management now emphasizes as much in-person presence as possible for the federal workforce.
  • “OPM’s latest revisions aim to better align with the Trump administration’s return-to-office orders from January 2025. The new guidance, which OPM updated in December, now says federal employees should generally be “working full-time, in-person.” And while federal telework and remote work can be “effective” tools on a case-by-case basis, OPM said those flexibilities “should be used sparingly.”
  • “Beyond that, agencies should also have procedures for verifying that employees are working on-site, full-time, unless given an exemption, OPM said. And in the limited cases where employees are teleworking, agencies should have a process to determine whether teleworking is successful, or if it should be revoked.”
• and
  • “The federal retirement inventory has reached yet another new high. The Office of Personnel Management now has over 50,000 applications still awaiting a finalized annuity. The increase comes after more than 13,000 retirement applications entered OPM’s systems in December. It’s taking OPM about 67 days to process a retirement case from start to finish. But OPM’s numbers don’t include any retirement cases still pending with agencies. Some retirees report major delays in receiving their payments, months after separating from government.”

• Govexec points out,
  • “Many federal retirees wonder whether their Federal Employees Health Benefits coverage changes when they become eligible for Medicare at age 65. One of the most common concerns is whether FEHB reduces or limits benefits if a retiree chooses not to enroll in Medicare Part B.
  • “The short answer is no – your FEHB plan continues fully, and your coverage does not decrease. However, the way your benefits work can change depending on whether you enroll in Part B. This article explains how FEHB and Medicare coordinate, potential cost implications, and key considerations for individuals and married couples.”

From the Food and Drug Administration front,

• Biopharma Dive calls attention to “5 FDA decisions to watch in the first quarter of 2026. By the end of March, the agency could approve multiple “national priority” voucher winners, as well as a gene therapy it rejected two years ago.”

• Cardiovascular Business reports,
  • “Gore, the medical division of W.L. Gore & Associates, has received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for a new vent designed to help treat deep venous disease in the inferior vena cava (IVC), iliac and iliofemoral veins. 
  • “The Gore Viabahn Fortegra Venous Stent represents the latest addition to the company’s Viabahn family of medical devices. It includes an open-structure, self-expanding wire-wound frame made of nitinol and a polytetrafluoroethylene polymer lattice. 
  • “According to Gore, the newly approved device was built with conformability, strength and fracture resistance in mind. In addition, it can be used to treat a wide range of patients due to the availability of several sizes.” 

• MedTech Dive adds,
  • “Johnson & Johnson said Wednesday it has submitted its Ottava soft tissue robotic surgery system to the Food and Drug Administration for de novo classification in general surgery. The company has applied for marketing authorization in multiple procedures within the upper abdomen.
  • “The application is supported by data from the company’s investigational device exemption study in Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, a type of weight-loss surgery that creates a small pouch from the stomach to reroute food to the small intestine.
  • “J&J said it also received IDE approval in late 2025 to begin a U.S. clinical trial to study Ottava in inguinal hernia procedures, one of the most common surgeries in the U.S.”

From the public health and medical / Rx research front,

• The University of Minnesota’s CIDRAP reports,
  • “Officials have confirmed 20 more measles cases in Utah, raising the state total to 176, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released nationwide totals for 2025, noting 2,144 confirmed cases
  • “Of the 176 infections in Utah, 129 (73%) are in the Southwest Utah health district, which has seen high measles activity alongside neighboring Mohave County, Arizona.
  • “In other hot spot news, three North Carolina siblings who had recently visited Upstate South Carolina now have measles infections, according to an update from the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. 
  • “The family had visited Spartanburg County, South Carolina, where there is a large ongoing measles outbreak approximately 1-2 weeks before the children became sick,” North Carolina officials said.
  • “South Carolina has reported 211 cases associated with an outbreak in the Upstate region.”

• Per a National Institutes of Health news release,
  • “A research team supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has found that conditions known to cause nerve damage, or neuropathy, disrupt a crucial energy-transfer process between special support cells called satellite glial cells (SGCs) and the sensory neurons they surround. The investigators discovered that the energy producing machinery of cells, known as mitochondria, are transferred through tiny tubes that form between the SGCs and neurons. They found that this transfer became obstructed in animal models of chemotherapy and diabetes, while restoring it attenuated pain behavior and promoted nerve regeneration after nerve injury. 
  • “The results of this study highlight a new avenue for potential neuropathy treatments and provide insight into how some of the body’s most energy-hungry cells are powered.” 

• Per Cardiovascular Business,
  • “Patients with active cancer who undergo transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) are associated with short- and mid-term outcomes comparable to those without cancer, according to new findings published in the International Journal of Cardiology. Long-term mortality rates appear to be higher for cancer patients, though there is considerable variability from one type to the next.
  • “Cancer and aortic valve stenosis (AS) are among the leading causes of mortality in developed countries,” wrote first author Mark Kheifets, MD, a researcher with the cardiology division at Rabin Medical Center in Israel, and colleagues. “Advances in cancer diagnosis and treatment have significantly improved survival rates in recent years, leading to a growing number of patients diagnosed with both cancer and AS. Additionally, individuals with a history of cancer treatments, particularly those exposed to chest radiation, face an elevated risk of developing AS. Although severe AS portends a similarly poor prognosis as cancer without treatment, managing AS in patients with cancer may pose unique challenges, as these individuals are often frail, burdened with multiple comorbidities, and may experience increased thrombogenicity due to malignancy and its treatments. Furthermore, they are often prone to lower hemoglobin and platelet counts, increasing their risk of bleeding complications.”

• The Society of Actuaries released a report last month titled “Quantifying the Effects of Mental Health on U.S. Suicide and Mortality Rates.”
  • “Key findings include:
    • “Strong geographic clustering: Neighboring counties show highly correlated mortality and suicide outcomes, confirming that regional social and economic context meaningfully influences risk.
    • “Socio-economic disparities: County-level education, housing prices, and marriage rates are among the strongest predictors of suicide risk, though effects differ by age and sex. Higher education and home values are generally associated with reduced suicide risk for men but have mixed or opposite effects for women in later life.
    • “Mental health as a leading indicator: County-level mental health distress is consistently associated with higher mortality and suicide rates. The relationship is most pronounced among youth and young adults.
    • “Temporal persistence: Spatial and temporal correlations suggest stable, long-term regional patterns in both overall mortality and suicide.”

• BioPharma Dive tells us,
  • “GSK and Ionis Pharmaceuticals said their experimental hepatitis B medicine succeeded in two Phase 3 trials, offering patients what might be a “functional cure” for the disease.
  • “In releases issued Wednesday, the companies didn’t provide details on the effects seen in the B-Well 1 and B-Well 2 studies. The drug, bepirovirsen, met the primary endpoint in both trials and “demonstrated a statistically significant and clinically meaningful functional cure rate,” the companies said.”

From the U.S. healthcare business and artificial intelligence front,

• HHS’s Agency for Healthcare Quality and Research reports,
  • “In 2024, average [U.S. employer sponsored] health insurance premiums were $8,486 for single coverage, $16,931 for employee-plus-one coverage, and $24,540 for family coverage, representing increases of 3.7, 4.9 and 2.5 percent, respectively, from 2023.
  • “Average employee contributions in 2024 increased from the previous year by 9.1 percent for single coverage ($1,789) and 5.2 percent for employee-plus-one coverage ($4,707).
  • Average deductibles for single plans increased by 8.0 percent to $2,085 and average family deductibles increased by 8.8 percent to $4,063 from 2023 to 2024.
  • “The offer rate, total number of enrollees and take up rates did not change significantly overall or by firm size from 2023 to 2024.
  • “Over the period from 2008 to 2024, offer rates declined by over 10 percentage points among small firms, from 61.6 percent in 2008 to 50.5 percent in 2024.
  • “From 2008 to 2024, the overall take-up rate fell by 9.7 percentage points (from 78.7 to 69.0 percent) and take-up rates fell by similar amounts in small and large firms.”

• BioPharma Dive relates,
  • “Eli Lilly is deepening its investment in inflammatory diseases, spending $1.2 billion to buy Ventyx Biosciences for an experimental drug that has the potential to treat an array of immunological conditions. 
  • “The Indiana-based manufacturer of obesity drug Zepbound announced Wednesday it will spend $14 per share to buy Ventyx, which in October reported promising data for an oral immune disease drug code-named VTX3232.
  • “The per-share figure represents a 62% premium to Ventyx’s average trading price for the 30 days ending Jan. 5. News of the pending acquisition was first reported by the Wall Street Journal on Tuesday, sending shares close to the value Lilly ultimately paid.

• Fierce Healthcare informs us,
  • “Eli Lilly has dominated headlines in recent months, recently taking the crown as the most valuable company in the biopharma industry by market cap. And the song remains much the same in analytics firm Clarivate’s Drugs to Watch 2026 report.
  • The annual outlook, which identifies (PDF) 11 potential blockbusters and transformative medicines, highlights two cardiometabolic treatments from the Indianapolis company, which have yet to be approved but could ultimately take the place of its current cash cows Mounjaro and Zepbound.
  • “Lilly’s investigational treatments are daily GLP-1 pill orforglipron, which is slated for an FDA decision by March of this year, and triple-action, weekly injection retatrutide, which Clarivate expects will be ready for launch in 2028.
  • “Both assets are under development in obesity, diabetes and a host of other related indications.” 
    
• Adam Fein, writing in his Drug Channels blog, lets us know,
  • “For 2025, brand-name drugs’ average list prices grew by only 3.5%, but net prices declined. When manufacturers’ rebates and discounts are factored in, drugs’ average net prices—both before and after inflation—fell. Details and additional commentary below.
  • “As I have been predicting, the gross-to-net bubble is deflating due to the combined impacts of government actions and consumer behavior. 
  • “For 2024 and 2025, manufacturers reduced the wholesale acquisition cost (WAC) list prices for more than 20 brand-name drugs. For 2026, manufacturers will cut prices on at least 15 more drugs, which will reduce gross brand-name revenues by $35 to $40 billion. List prices are dropping by –25% to –85%.
  • “The data leave no doubt: the bubble is finally leaking air. We are entering the Net Pricing Drug Channel (#NPDC)—a market environment in which net prices, not list prices, drive access, economics, and strategy. 
  • “The NPDC will reward simplicity, punish rebate dependence, and force every channel participant to rethink how money actually moves. Time to get ready.”

• Per Beckers Hospital Review,
  • “PAI Pharma has acquired Nivagen Pharmaceuticals in a move it said was aimed at expanding the domestic supply of sterile injectable drugs.
  • “Nivagen operates a recently built aseptic manufacturing facility in Sacramento, Calif., that produces IV bags, vials, prefilled syringes and cartridges. The acquisition brings more than 20 ready-to-use injectable products into PAI’s pipeline, complementing its existing portfolio of 10 sterile products in development and four currently on the market, according to a Jan. 6 PAI Pharma news release.
  • “Company leaders said the acquisition extends PAI’s focus on quality and reliability into hospital-focused injectable therapies — a drug class frequently affected by shortages in the U.S. healthcare system.”
• and
  • “Rock Regional Hospital in Derby, Kan., has permanently closed after a federal judge allowed its eviction to proceed, ending a months-long legal battle over unpaid rent, according to NBC affiliate KSN.com.
  • “Rock Regional Hospital is permanently closed,” the hospital wrote in a Jan. 7 Facebook post. “There is no emergency care available at this location. If you are experiencing a medical emergency, please call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department.”

• Per MedTech Dive,
  • “STAAR Surgical shareholders have voted to reject Alcon’s revised acquisition offer after a contentious proxy battle.
  • “The maker of implantable lenses for the eye intends to terminate its merger agreement with Alcon, STAAR said Tuesday, based on the preliminary results from a special shareholder meeting. Final results from the meeting will be reported in a regulatory filing. Neither company will pay a termination fee.
  • “STAAR said it would remain a stand-alone, publicly traded company.”

• Fierce Healthcare tells us,
  • “OpenAI continues its push into healthcare with the launch of ChatGPT Health, a new feature that connects its AI chatbot with users’ medical records and wellness apps for more personalized answers to medical questions.
  • “People already are using publicly available AI chatbots to ask healthcare-related questions. More more than 800 million regular users of ChatGPT, 1 in 4 submits a prompt about healthcare every week, according to OpenAI. More than 40 million turn to ChatGPT every day with healthcare questions, according to an OpenAI report.
  • “OpenaI says ChatGPT Health builds on this so the AI chatbot’s responses are informed by users’ health information and context, the company said in an announcement. 
  • “Users can now securely connect medical records and wellness apps—like Apple Health, Function and MyFitnessPal—so ChatGPT can help them understand recent test results, prepare for appointments with their doctor, get advice on how to approach diet and workout routines, or understand the tradeoffs of different insurance options based on healthcare patterns, the company said.
  • “The new feature has additional, layered protections designed specifically for health, including purpose-built encryption and isolation to keep health conversations protected and compartmentalized, OpenAI said. Conversations in Health are not used to train OpenAI’s foundation models, the company said.
  • “The company said it was designed in close collaboration with physicians. ChatGPT Health is designed to support, not replace, medical care, and it is not intended for diagnosis or treatment, the company said.”