The Trump administration is facing pressure from conservative groups and congressional Republicans to restore Reagan-era abortion restrictions on federal family planning funding. These restrictions, described as a "gag rule" by Democrats, would ban Title X grant recipients from promoting abortions, or giving patients referrals for abortions. It would also require recipients have a physical and financial separation from abortion providers. Why it matters: Both sides say this is an attempt to cut away at federal funding to Planned Parenthood. The organization and its affiliates serve about 40 percent of patients who get services through Title X. These restrictions would make it harder for Planned Parenthood to participate in the program, or disqualify some clinics altogether. Looking ahead: The administration routinely takes it cues from anti-abortion groups (which say they're optimistic about this happening) so watch for HHS to issue regulations in the near future. Notably, Republicans in Congress are also calling for these changes. We've got more on what is coming up here. Vermont has become the first state to allow drug wholesalers to import some medicines from Canada. Gov. Phil Scott (R) signed legislation Wednesday allowing the imports. But the move puts the state at odds with the Trump administration. HHS Secretary Alex Azar on Monday called the idea of importing drugs from another country a "gimmick." Context: The bill was based off model legislation from the National Academy for State Health Policy (NASHP). Eight states proposed similar legislation this year, but Vermont's is the first to be signed into law. The opposition: The nation's top drug lobby, Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), was quick to criticize the proposal. "Lawmakers cannot guarantee the authenticity and safety of prescription medicines when they bypass the FDA-approval process, and the Canadian government does not inspect or take responsibility for the legitimacy of prescription medicines shipped to the U.S.," PhRMA said in a statement. The other side: NASHP argues that requiring wholesalers to import the drugs is a key distinction that provides assurances the drugs coming into the state would be safe. Read more here. Do you want copies of your medical records? That might cost you. Rep. Bill Foster (D-Ill.), though, wants to change that. He's sent a Dear Colleague letter around asking if lawmakers want to become cosponsors on a bill that would require providers to give patients free access to their medical records once a year. HIPAA, the relevant law, "requires providers to give patients access to their medical records and allows them to charge the patients a 'reasonable, cost-based fee' intended to cover the cost of copying pages, procuring USB drives, postage, etc.," Foster wrote in the letter. But he warned that, "For patients with chronic diseases or complex medical histories, fees could easily reach hundreds if not thousands of dollars to access a complete copy of their own medical records." A recent report from the Government Accountability Office noted that at least two patients interviewed have been charged more than $500 for a single medical record request -- and that one patient paid $148 for a pdf of her medical record. |
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