Budget Battles
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Trump to Order ‘Buy American’ for Essential Drugs
By Michael RaineyPresident Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday that directs the federal government to purchase “essential drugs” and medical supplies from American manufacturers. White House trade adviser...
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Map of the Day: Voters Choosing Medicaid Expansion
By The Fiscal Times StaffOn Tuesday, voters in Missouri backed the expansion of Medicaid in their state, which will provide health care coverage for 217,000 low-income residents. Sarah Kliff of The New York Times says that...
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No Deal in Sight, but Faint Signs of Progress in Coronavirus Relief Talks
Negotiations on the next round of coronavirus relief continued Tuesday afternoon, and Democratic leaders emerged sounding more positive on the state of the talks. "They made some concessions, which...
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Where Is Trump’s Health Care Plan?
In an interview with “Fox News Sunday” host Chris Wallace on July 19, President Trump said that he would be “signing a health-care plan within two weeks, a full and complete health-care plan.” Two...
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US Makes $2.1 Billion Deal for Vaccine
By Michael RaineyThe federal government has agreed to pay two major pharmaceutical companies up to $2.1 billion for testing, manufacturing and the purchase of 100 million doses of an as-yet unfinished vaccine for...
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Dems Find Trump Admin ‘Squandered’ Up to $500 Million in Buying Ventilators
A report by a panel of the House Oversight Committee raises serious questions about the roughly $3 billion in taxpayer money spent by the Trump administration as it scrambled to acquire ventilators,...
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Why Coronavirus Relief Negotiations Will Be Much, Much Harder This Time
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) are set to meet with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows this evening to...
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GOP Delays Rollout of Coronavirus Stimulus Plan; Trump Dumps Push for Payroll Tax Cut
The White House and Senate Republicans failed to reach final agreement Thursday on their proposal for a coronavirus relief package, forcing them to delay a planned rollout of the legislation even...
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US Agrees to Pay $1.95 Billion for 100 Million Doses of Vaccine
By The Fiscal Times StaffThe federal government has agreed to pay Pfizer and German biotechnology firm BioNTech nearly $2 billion to produce 100 million doses of a Covid-19 vaccine currently under development, if the vaccine...
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New York Pop-Up Hospital Cost $52 Million, Treated 79 Patients: Report
A field hospital built by New York City as the coronavirus pandemic was peaking in April cost more than $52 million. Located at the U.S.T.A. Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Queens, the...
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Trump Scraps Key Part of Plan to Lower Drug Prices
By Michael RaineyThe Trump administration has abandoned a key part of its plan to lower prescription drug prices, withdrawing its proposal to eliminate the rebates drugmakers give to pharmacy middlemen. The...
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White House Might Be Open to Progressive Drug Price Proposal: Report
By The Fiscal Times StaffThree top White House advisers suggested for the first time Tuesday that they might be open to a proposal favored by liberals to cap drug price increases. STAT’s Lev Facher and Nicholas Florko report...
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How Trump Could Win on Obamacare — and Still Lose
A federal appeals court in New Orleans heard oral arguments on Tuesday in the lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act now that Congress has zeroed out the law’s penalty...
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GOP Disagreements Could Make It Harder to Tackle Surprise Medical Bills
By Michael RaineyLawmakers had hoped they could agree on a plan this summer that would curb surprise medical bills, but intense lobbying by interested groups and disagreements among Republicans are making it...
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Trump Administration Plans Kidney Care Overhaul That Could Save Billions: Reports
President Trump will reportedly order a series of initiatives means to overhaul the nation’s kidney dialysis and organ transplant systems. The moves could save the federal government billions of...