Overnight Energy: Dem accuses Pruitt of delaying records requests | GOP senators want Trump to submit pollution treaty | VW parent to recall 774K cars in Europe

View in your browser     DEM ACCUSES PRUITT OF OBSTRUCTING FOIA: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt has instituted policies that are delaying or obstructing the release of documents under public records requests, a top congressional Democrat says. Two Pruitt aides who recently spoke with staff on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee detailed a set of policies Pruitt has instituted to prioritize Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests from the Obama administration and have political appointees review certain documents before they are released. Rep. Elijah Cummings (Md.), that panel's top Democrat, said in a Monday letter to Pruitt that the prioritization policy violates the EPA's own regulations and both policies show attempts to avoid transparency, especially as the administrator weathers numerous scandals and more than a dozen federal investigations. "Combined with your refusal to produce documents requested by Congress, your actions in delaying records under FOIA raise concerns about a fundamental lack of transparency at EPA," Cummings wrote. "Your actions injecting politics into the FOIA process mark a stark departure from previous practice," he continued. "Your actions are particularly troubling in light of multiple reports that you have retaliated against EPA staff who disclose waste, fraud, and abuse." EPA spokeswoman Kelsi Daniels said the agency would respond to Cummings through the proper channels, and defended EPA's handling of FOIA requests. "Since the beginning of this administration, EPA has seen a dramatic increase in FOIA requests as compared to the last administration, including a nearly 200% increase in the administrator's office alone, and the agency is working to release them in a timely manner," she said. "When Administrator Pruitt arrived at EPA he inherited a backlog of FOIA requests, some dating back to 2008, and over the last year and a half, EPA has worked tirelessly to clear this backlog." Why it matters: The letter comes as Pruitt's scandals keep piling up, and news outlets, watchdog groups and the public are clamoring for more information about them. To Cummings, Pruitt's FOIA policies look like ways to avoid public scrutiny of his actions and transparency into his handling of the EPA. We have more on the dispute here.   Happy Monday! Welcome to Overnight Energy, The Hill's roundup of the latest energy and environment news. Please send tips and comments to Timothy Cama, tcama@thehill.com, and Miranda Green, mgreen@thehill.com. Follow us on Twitter: @Timothy_Cama, @mirandacgreen, @thehill.   GOP SENATORS WANT VOTE ON GREENHOUSE GAS AGREEMENT: A group of Republicans senators is pushing President Trump to let them approve a treaty amendment meant to cut emissions of certain greenhouse gases. The Obama administration helped negotiate the Kigali amendment in 2016, meant to phase out hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) around the world. HFCs are used mainly in refrigeration and air conditioning and are thousands of times more potent than carbon dioxide in warming the atmosphere. But Trump still hasn't decided whether he supports it, in which case he would have to send it to the Senate for ratification. The 13 Republicans, led by Sens. John Kennedy (La.) and Susan Collins (Maine), said the amendment would help domestic companies by leveling the playing field worldwide and giving them long-term certainty on what chemicals to use going forward. "By sending this amendment to the Senate, you will help secure America's place as the global leader in several manufacturing industries, and in turn give American workers and advantage against their competitors in the international marketplace," the senators wrote. Read more here.   VW PARENT ORDERED TO RECALL 774K CARS IN EUROPE OVER CHEATING SCANDAL: Volkswagen's struggling parent company received a fresh blow on Monday as the German government demanded it recall hundreds of thousands of cars equipped with the same emissions cheating software that landed it in hot water in the U.S. Daimler the parent company of Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz was ordered to recall the vehicles with the company's manager Rupert Stadler being investigated for fraud. The company will have to recall 744,000 vehicles across Europe as a result of the decision. The Mercedes C-Class, Vito and GLC diesel models are the vehicles mainly affected by the recall, according to the German transportation ministry. The announcement Monday followed news that authorities raided Stadler's home earlier in the day and were in negotiations with him. Germany's Transport Minister Andreas Scheuer said in a statement Monday after a meeting with Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche that the company was expected to work "with cooperative transparency" and "at maximum speed" with authorities, the Associated Press reported. The decision comes nearly three years after the automaker admitted to installing software in its cars to cheat established auto emissions standards in the U.S. We've got more on Volkswagen's new troubles here.   ON TAP TUESDAY: The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee will bring in all five Federal Energy Regulatory Commission members for an oversight hearing. Even though FERC has long rejected a Trump administration proposal to boost coal and nuclear power plants, expect senators to bring up the topic again, in the context of what the Department of Energy is now doing on the topic. The Senate Appropriations Committee's Interior and EPA subcommittee will mark up its fiscal 2019 spending bill for those agencies.   OUTSIDE THE BELTWAY: San Antonio, Texas, residents will now be subject to stricter limits on watering their lawns, the San Antonio Express-News reports. Officials in Miami-Dade County, Fla., want to expand a highway by building over wetlands, the Miami Herald reports. A spill at a Kinder Morgan oil pipeline pump station in British Columbia was more than 40 times bigger than the province previously said, CBC News reports.   FROM THE HILL'S OPINION SECTION: David Spence, professor of law, politics & regulation at the University of Texas at Austin, argues that with every fracking boom comes a bust.   IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Check out stories from Monday and the weekend ... -Volkswagen parent ordered to recall 774K cars in Europe over emissions cheating -GOP senators push Trump to submit pollution treaty amendment for Senate approval -Green group hits administration over staff cuts that hamper wildlife refuge visitor center -Pruitt delaying document releases, top Dem says -Pope warns oil executives: Climate change may 'destroy civilization'         Did a friend forward you this email? Sign up for Energy Newsletters     Forward Energy Newsletters       Privacy Policy  |  Manage Subscriptions  |  Unsubscribe  |  Email to a friend  |  Sign Up for Other Newsletters   The Hill 1625 K Street, NW 9th Floor, Washington DC 20006 ©2016 Capitol Hill Publishing Corp., a subsidiary of News Communications, Inc.

Breaking News: Trump blasts 'haters & losers' hours before North Korea summit

View in your browser     Trump blasts 'haters & losers' hours before North Korea summit President Trump on Monday ripped the "haters & losers" who have expressed skepticism about his summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, just hours before he was set to meet Kim in Singapore. "The fact that I am having a meeting is a major loss for the U.S., say the haters & losers. We have our hostages, testing, research and all missle [sic] launches have stoped [sic], and these pundits, who have called me wrong from the beginning, have nothing else they can say! We will be fine!" Trump tweeted. Read the full story here         Did a friend forward you this email? Sign up for Breaking News     Forward Breaking News     You Might Like       Privacy Policy  |  Manage Subscriptions  |  Unsubscribe  |  Email to a friend  |  Sign Up for Other Newsletters   The Hill 1625 K Street, NW 9th Floor, Washington DC 20006 ©2016 Capitol Hill Publishing Corp., a subsidiary of News Communications, Inc.

Overnight Health Care — Sponsored by PCMA — Azar to testify on Trump drug pricing plan | Officials meet drug companies in push for voluntary price cuts | GOP attacks single-payer in California

Sponsored by Pharmaceutical Care Management Association | View in Browser     Welcome to Overnight Health Care, sponsored by the Pharmaceutical Care Management Association.   Washington, D.C. will be consumed with Capitals fever tomorrow as the team takes their victory parade through the city. Get ready for it. It's the first championship in the team's history, so people have been waiting a long time. Some insurers might call this a pre-existing condition. Also tomorrow on Capitol Hill...   Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar appears before Congress Tuesday for the first time on the administration's proposed plan to lower drug prices. What to watch for: Democrats haven't been happy with the proposal. Expect questions about President Trump's campaign promise to allow the government to negotiate drug prices directly with drug companies, which was not included in the proposal. Expect Democrats to also ask why the plan doesn't do anything to reduce the profits of drug companies and CEO pay. The administration rolled out its blueprint to lower drug prices early last month. Here's a recap of what it would do, though the plan is still a little light on details: Require drug companies to disclose their prices in television ads. Crack down on delay tactics drug companies use to prevent cheaper generic drugs from reaching the market. Pressure other countries to raise their prices for prescription drugs. The administration argues high drug prices in the U.S. are subsidizing innovation that benefits other countries. "Work" to give Medicare Part D plan sponsors more negotiation power with drug makers. Prohibit "gag clauses" in Part D contracts that prevent pharmacists from informing patients when they could save money by paying for their prescriptions with cash instead of insurance. Don't forget: Azar will also be asked about the administration's decision not to defend ObamaCare in court, with the Department of Justice last week filing a brief arguing that the law's pre-existing conditions protections are now unconstitutional. He could also be asked about Medicaid work requirements, proposed changes to the Title X Family Planning Program and the opioid crisis.         SPONSORED CONTENT   Pharmaceutical Care Management Association Pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) are hired by employers, unions, and government programs to negotiate aggressive discounts from drug companies and drugstores. Learn how PBMs are part of the solution to reducing Rx costs at DrugBenefitSolutions.com.       Trump officials meeting with drug companies to seek voluntary price cuts One way for the administration to tout some immediate benefits of President Trump's drug pricing plan? Get companies to announce they are cutting prices on their own.  Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) officials have been meeting with pharmaceutical companies to seek voluntary cuts in drug prices, according to sources familiar with the meetings. The advantage: Voluntary moves would happen much faster than waiting for any regulatory actions to take effect. The catch: It's not clear yet whether any drug companies have actually agreed to cut their prices voluntarily. And any voluntary actions could be more minor than the more sweeping changes that government could impose.  Keep watching: Trump said at the end of May that "in two weeks" drug companies would "announce voluntary massive drops in prices." Officials have not provided any more details on what he meant with those remarks. The two-week mark is coming up this week. Read more here.    GOP on the attack on single payer in California The GOP thinks it has an effective rebuttal to Democratic attacks on repealing ObamaCare or rising premiums: support for single payer. At least 5 of 7 Democrats in battleground House races in California support single payer, which Republicans are looking to use against them. Key quote from GOP: "The anger of the Democratic base against the president is pushing the party aggressively leftward," said Michael Steel, a Republican strategist and former aide to Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio). "That's going to leave them with a lot of candidates who aren't a good fit for their districts." Dems' defense: "The status quo in our health-care system is broken and people know," said Katie Porter, a Democrat who supports single payer running against Rep. Mimi Walters (R-Calif.). "Washington does not need more can't-do Democrats." We have more on the fight here.     CMS released guidance for states early Monday, focused on how they could leverage Medicaid to combat the opioid epidemic. Specifically, it focuses on two items: Information related to covering services for infants born exposed to opioids How to enhance federal funding for telemedicine and programs that keep tabs on patients' prescriptions. Key quote: "The number of American infants born dependent on opioids each day is heartbreaking," Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Alex Azar said in a press release. "Today's announcement reflects the Trump Administration and HHS's commitment to helping states use Medicaid to support treatment for this condition and other challenges produced by our country's crisis of opioid addiction." Read more here.   Also on the opioid front: The House begins voting on a slate of opioid bills this week. On Tuesday, the Senate Finance Committee will vote on the Helping to End Addiction and Lessen (HEAL) Substance Use Disorders Act.   The suicides of Anthony Bourdain and Kate Spade have highlighted a growing health issue in the U.S. "These prominent deaths remind us that [suicide] is the 10th leading cause of death in America," said Dr. Jerry Reed, a national suicide prevention expert and executive committee member of the National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention. In reality, he said "this happens every day to people all across the country. It's a reminder we have a long way to go." The troubling numbers: Suicide rates have increased in 49 states since 1999, with half of those seeing an increase of 30 percent, according to a report released last week by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 45,000 people died from suicide in 2016, but suicide prevention experts argue it still doesn't get as much attention as other public health issues, like the opioid epidemic. The CDC also noted that more than half of the people who died from suicide during its study period did not have any known mental health issues (though some people could have been undiagnosed.) Relationship problems, a traumatic event, physical health problems and substance use disorders are all factors that can contribute to suicide among those with and without known mental health conditions, the CDC said. Read more here.         SPONSORED CONTENT   Pharmaceutical Care Management Association The Congressional Budget Office’s $43 billion score of point-of-sale rebates in Medicare Part D is the latest in a series of official estimates showing this mandate would increase costs for the government and taxpayers. This score strikes another blow to the drugmakers’ multi-million dollar campaign to shift blame for their own prices onto the health plans and pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) that negotiate discounts and rebates to reduce costs.       In brief: Physician groups, including the American Academy of Family Physicians, the American Academy of Pediatrics and others, want the DOJ to reconsider its decision not to defend ObamaCare's pre-existing condition protection. Their statement.   What we're reading Fed up with rising costs, big US firms dig into health care (Reuters) ObamaCare used to be political poison for Democrats. Not anymore. (Los Angeles Times) CRISPR-edited cells might cause cancer, finds two studies (STAT)   State by state California's Xavier Becerra vows to defend Affordable Care Act (Kaiser Health News) Ohio cancels $1.1 billion Medicaid cut to hospitals (cleveland.com) Nursing homes sue to halt Montana Medicaid cuts (Associated Press)   From The Hill's opinion page: Physician-assisted suicide is not the answer for doctors or patients         Did a friend forward you this email? Sign up for Healthcare Newsletters     Forward Healthcare Newsletters       Privacy Policy  |  Manage Subscriptions  |  Unsubscribe  |  Email to a friend  |  Sign Up for Other Newsletters   The Hill 1625 K Street, NW 9th Floor, Washington DC 20006 ©2016 Capitol Hill Publishing Corp., a subsidiary of News Communications, Inc.