Overnight Healthcare: House GOP gets a victory in ObamaCare lawsuit

A federal judge ruled Thursday that certain ObamaCare payments have been funded illegally, handing a major victory to House Republicans.

Through the ruling will have a political ripple effect, it will not yet have any practical effect, because the judge stayed the ruling and it is certain to be appealed.

{mosads}”This is an historic win for the Constitution and the American people,” Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) said in a statement. “The court ruled that the administration overreached by spending taxpayer money without approval from the people’s representatives.”

At issue are billions of dollars paid to insurance companies participating in ObamaCare so they can reduce customers’ out-of-pocket costs, such as deductibles for low-income people.

The House GOP argued that the administration was unconstitutionally spending money on these payments without Congress’s approval.

“This is not the first time that we’ve seen opponents of the Affordable Care Act go through the motions to try to win this political fight in the court system,” said White House press secretary Josh Earnest.

Earnest said Republicans are trying to “refight a political fight that they keep losing. They’ve been losing this fight for six years, and they’ll lose it again.” Read more here. http://bit.ly/1WtsYHr

 

Senate schedules Zika funding vote

They’ve got a deal, folks – A pair of senators leading negotiations on Zika funding announced Thursday they reached an agreement to move a $1.1 billion package forward next week.

Lawmakers will have three options on the floor vote: (1) the full $1.9 billion requested from President Obama, (2) a $1.1 billion compromise that is fully offset and (3), a $1.1 billion compromise without offsets.

The amendments will be part of next week’s vote on a joint spending bill for military construction and transportation.

The final proposal, from Sens. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) and Patty Murray (D-Wash.), is the results of weeks of back-and-forth between the two offices. Just two weeks ago, Murray accused Blunt and other Senate GOP leaders of walking away from the talks because of concerns from House GOP fiscal hawks.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell filed cloture on the three amendments Thursday afternoon. http://bit.ly/1rIuU21

 

House GOP’s ObamaCare plan will also tackle Medicare, Medicaid

House Republicans say their plan to replace ObamaCare will be broader than expected when it is finally released sometime in June.

“It’s turning out to be more encompassing than what we expected,” Rep. John Fleming (R-La.) said.

The plan Republicans have drafted would address ObamaCare, Medicare and Medicaid. It will almost certainly have the stamp of House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) – particularly his long-time aim of making Medicare more market-based. One lawmaker described Ryan as an “active participant” during the meeting, and another said he stressed the urgency of the GOP’s healthcare plan by referring to Donald Trump’s potential presidency.

“We want to help provide the policy issues, where if [Trump’s] elected, we can go forward,” Ryan said, according to Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-Mich.).

The House GOP’s plan will not be put into legislative text, however, leaving an opening for Democratic criticism. Read more here: http://bit.ly/1UWRCyY

 

WHO dismisses new criticism about holding the Olympics during the Zika outbreak  

The World Health Organization is maintaining that it is safe for the general public to attend the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro though it remains the center of the global Zika epidemic.

Leaders of the WHO released a statement Thursday making clear that it would only advise people to stay home if they are pregnant or trying to become pregnant. The remarks come one day after a sharply critical piece in the Harvard Public Health Review on Wednesday by a professor who said it would be irresponsible not to postpone the games. Read more here: http://bit.ly/23Lnl6J

 

WHAT WE’RE READING

The FDA is requiring stronger warnings on the side effects of antibiotic use, which experts say can cause damage to muscles or nerves. (Wall Street Journal).

Abortion rates hit a historic low between 2010 and 2014, but only in developed countries (Washington Post)

 

IN THE STATES

Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant (R) signed a bill blocking Medicaid funding from going to Planned Parenthood. (Jackson Free Press)

Michigan health officials say unvaccinated children have led to a 57 percent spike in chicken pox cases (Detroit Free Press).

ObamaCare premiums in California could rise 8 percent on average next year, breaking a two-year stretch of 4 percent increases. (Kaiser Health News)

A new study finds that state autism insurance mandates are “necessary but not sufficient.” (Kaiser Health News)

 

ICYMI FROM THE HILL:

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) warned Thursday that the chamber’s package of 18 opioid bills would not be effective without funding. http://bit.ly/1TabrUe

 

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