Category Archives: Health Care

Biden Administration, Civil Rights, Health Care, News & Photo Features

Federal, State Efforts to Protect Access to Medication Abortion

New Yorkers protest for reproductive freedom. The Biden administration announced new actions to protect access to medication abortion. New York Governor Kathy Hochul is one of the governors announcing their state will stockpile medication.  © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

Efforts are underway at the federal and state level to protect women’s reproductive rights. This is a fact sheet from the White House on Biden-Harris Administration’s efforts to protect access to medication abortion:

Addressing the Interagency Task Force on Reproductive Healthcare Access, Vice President Kamala Harris said, “We are having an experience where the women of America in particular have been in a state of fear about what this means for them, what this means for the people they love. 
 
“We are looking at a situation in our country where healthcare providers — most of whom have had a calling to do the good and important work of taking care of other people — are in fear of losing their licenses and, worse, even being prosecuted and criminalized for the work that they do that is about providing healthcare for people in our country.

“I have met, for example, with a woman by the name of Amanda, who talked with me — I met with she and her husband — about how when she was pregnant, she then had suffered a miscarriage and three times went to seek medical care and was denied because of the healthcare provider’s fear that they would be prosecuted or in some way penalized for helping her through her miscarriage, and only helped her when she got to the point where she had sepsis — a life-threatening situation. 
 
“I have met with and talked with doctors who are in fear of losing their license, of being prosecuted, and of this situation actually having an impact on the relationships of trust that they have with their patients. 
 
“This indeed is a healthcare crisis in America.  And we have to acknowledge and understand it to be just that. 
 
“And then, five days ago, a district court in the state of Texas ruled to block access to abortion medication in every state in the country — in effect, if this ruling stands, creating what could very righteously be considered a nationwide ban, at least as it relates to what we believe to be half of the women who when seeking abortion care, receive it through abortion medication.
 
“So we have, in effect, a situation where politicians and politics have driven lawyers to go to a court of law where a judge who is not a medical professional is making a decision to undo the ruling 20 — over 20 years ago of the FDA that declared a specific medication safe and effective for the American people.
 
“So, one must appreciate that when we think about the integrity of our healthcare delivery systems and attacking the very credibility of the FDA on this one matter for the sake of politics and a political agenda, the wide-sweeping ramifications this can have. 
 
“And I’d ask every person who is aware of this to understand the implications of this ruling by just opening your medicine cabinet, because it is very likely that you rely on some type of medication prescribed by a doctor, approved by the FDA, to alleviate your health concerns and to improve your condition in life.
 
“So, the ramifications of this decision five days ago are wide-sweeping and, for that reason, require, we do believe, a very serious response.

“And again, I will state that our administration and our President, Joe Biden, has been very clear that we will stand to protect the integrity of the healthcare system in America and we will stand to protect those who have a right to be able to make decisions about their own body and their own life.”

Fact Sheet: Protecting Access to Medication Abortion

Protecting access to reproductive health care has been a priority since the beginning of the Biden-Harris Administration, made even more urgent by the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. The President and Vice President are focused on ensuring access to mifepristone, which the FDA first approved as safe and effective to end early pregnancy more than twenty years ago and which accounts for more than half of abortions in the United States.  

Despite this decades-long safety record, a single court in Texas has taken the dangerous step of attempting to override FDA’s approval of medication abortion—which is used not only for abortion but also for helping women manage miscarriages. If this decision stands, it will put women’s health at risk and undermine FDA’s ability to ensure patients have access to safe and effective medications when they need them.

This lawsuit is part of broader efforts to ban abortion nationwide and to prevent women from making their own decisions about their own bodies without government interference.

The Administration is fighting this ruling in the courts, and stands by FDA’s scientific and evidence-based judgment that mifepristone is safe and effective. Shortly after the ruling last Friday, the Justice Department filed a notice of appeal to the Fifth Circuit and sought a stay of the injunction pending appeal. A wide range of stakeholders, including FDA scholars, leading medical organizations, and pharmaceutical companies, have expressed their support for maintaining access to this FDA-approved medication.

In addition to defending in court FDA’s ability to approve safe and effective medications, the Biden-Harris Administration has taken the following steps to protect access to medication abortion:

  • Elevating Medication Abortion in the Administration’s Response to the Dobbs Decision. On the day of the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in June 2022, the President identified preserving access to medication abortion as one of two key priorities to guide the Administration’s immediate response to the ruling. President Biden directed the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to ensure that mifepristone is as widely accessible as possible in light of the FDA’s determination that the drug is safe and effective. He also emphasized the need to protect access to medication abortion in the face of attacks and to stand with medical experts who have stressed that restrictions on medication abortion are not based in science. On the same day, the Attorney General made clear that states may not ban mifepristone, a drug used in medication abortion, based on disagreement with the FDA’s expert judgment about its safety and efficacy.
  • Issuing an Executive Order to Protect Access to Abortion, including Medication Abortion. In an Executive Order on Protecting Access to Reproductive Healthcare Services issued in July 2022, President Biden reiterated the importance of medication abortion and directed the Secretary of HHS to identify potential actions to protect and expand access to abortion care, including medication abortion. In response, HHS developed an action plan to protect and strengthen access to reproductive care and has made significant progress in executing this plan and protecting access to care nationwide.
  • Addressing Barriers to Accessing Care. In his second Executive Order on Securing Access to Reproductive and Other Healthcare Services issued in August 2022, President Biden addressed the challenges that women have faced in accessing prescription medication at pharmacies in the wake of Dobbs, including medication abortion, which is also used to manage miscarriages. These included reports of women of reproductive age being denied prescription medication at pharmacies—including medication that is used to treat stomach ulcers, lupus, arthritis, and cancer—due to concerns that these medications, some of which can be used in medication abortion, could be used to terminate a pregnancy. To help ensure access to medication, HHS issued guidance to roughly 60,000 U.S. retail pharmacies to emphasize their obligations under federal civil rights laws to ensure access to comprehensive reproductive health care services.
  • Directing Further Efforts to Ensure Safe Access to Medication Abortion. On what would have been the 50th anniversary of Roe v. Wade in January 2023, President Biden issued a Presidential Memorandum on Further Efforts to Protect Access to Reproductive Healthcare Services to further protect access to medication abortion. The Presidential Memorandum directed the Attorney General, the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, and the Secretary of HHS to consider new actions to protect the safety and security of patients, providers, and pharmacies who wish to legally access or provide mifepristone.

This Presidential Memorandum was issued in the face of attacks by state officials to prevent women from accessing mifepristone and discourage pharmacies from becoming certified to dispense the medication. These attacks, and the Presidential Memorandum, followed independent, evidence-based action taken by FDA to allow mifepristone to continue to be prescribed by telehealth and sent by mail as well as to enable interested pharmacies to become certified.

  • Engaging Medical Experts and Reproductive Rights Leaders to Underscore the Need for Medication Abortion. In February 2023, Vice President Harris convened a roundtable of leading medical experts and reproductive rights advocates to discuss how a court decision to invalidate the approval of mifepristone would affect patients and providers. Participants represented Physicians for Reproductive Health, American Medical Women’s Association, the Society of Family Planning, the American Academy of Family Physicians, Planned Parenthood of Metropolitan DC, the National Women’s Law Center, NARAL Pro-Choice America, the Center for Reproductive Rights, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the ACLU, and Sister Song.

Meanwhile, several states including New York and Massachusetts are stockpiling abortion medication.

Governor Kathy Hochul delivered remarks at the Planned Parenthood of Greater New York’s virtual press conference on medication abortion rulings where she announced that the State will stockpile the abortion medication Misoprostol as part of ongoing efforts to protect access to abortion. At the Governor’s direction, the New York State Department of Health will immediately begin purchasing Misoprostol in order to stockpile 150,000 doses, a five-year supply, in order to meet anticipated needs.  

“When it comes to reproductive freedom in this country, we are right now facing historic, horrific setbacks,” Hochul said. “Just one year ago, women in this country had a constitutionally protected right to an abortion. And then in June with the Dobbs decision, we are forced to confront a painful reality that the fundamental rights that my grandmother’s generation had to fight for were stripped away with one decision. Now, the MAGA anti-abortion extremists, legislators, and judges alike are hell-bent on continuing down this path. They’re coming after all forms of reproductive health care. And they took their latest step just on Friday, with the ruling that’ll further limit access to Mifepristone and for millions of women across this country.  

“One judge in Amarillo, Texas thinks he knows better than thousands of doctors and scientists and experts. And not to mention the countless women who’ve used this medication safely for decades. This isn’t just an attack on abortion, it’s an attack on democracy. Courts have never before revoked a science backed decision made by the FDA. 

“And if this decision stands, it could have unprecedented consequences that reach far beyond abortion, threatening the FDA’s critical role in our country’s public health system. So, this moment calls for bold leadership at every level of government, and I’m glad the Biden Administration came out so strong against this ruling and we’ve been standing shoulder to shoulder with them. And at the State level here in New York, we’re not going to let one extremist judge turn back the clock on more than 20 years of safe, reproductive care. 

“New York has always been at the forefront of this fight. In the wake of the Dobbs Decision, we allocated $35 million to reproductive health care providers. We mandated all insurance companies doing business in New York cover abortion, and I signed a package of legislation protecting providers and our patients. And last year, the attacks were on abortion procedures. This year, medication abortion. What’s next? Contraception? Birth control? Well, I’m here to say, ‘Not New York. Not now, not ever’.”  

“So, last year we called an extraordinary legislative session. We took one step closer to passing New York’s Equal Rights Amendment. The ERA, as written, will enshrine abortion and contraception rights and protect all forms of reproductive healthcare in our state constitution. The ERA and these fundamental rights will be on the ballot next year. Once again, states have become the battleground on these fights and the latest steps to tear down these rights have only strengthened our resolve, so I’m proud to announce that New York State will create a stockpile of Misoprostol, another form of medication abortion.  

“Extremist judges have made it clear that they won’t stop at any one particular drug or service, so we are going to ensure that New Yorkers will continue to have access to medication abortion no matter what. 

“We’re also announcing that if this decision stands by this judge, we’ll dedicate up to $20 million more for reproductive health care providers beyond our current $35 million to support methods of access to other forms of care, including procedures. And we’re in conversations with the legislature right now about requiring private insurance to cover medication abortion as well when it’s prescribed off-label. 

“All this is in addition to actions we laid out in my proposed 2024 budget, which increases the Medicaid reimbursement rights for reproductive health services, provides more funding for providers, and allows pharmacists to prescribe birth control, as well as implementing data privacy protections and expanding abortion access on SUNY and CUNY campuses. 

“We’ll always protect access to reproductive health care and all individual rights here in New York – it’s part of our legacy. And in fact, abortion was legal here in New York three years before Roe v. Wade was even decided. So, as long as I’m governor, New Yorkers will have access to the care they need when they need it. And we’ll continue to open our arms to all people seeking freedoms and autonomy. And it’s important that we’re still fighting this fight yet again. But here we are with all of you, our partners, suiting up for battle, in partnership. Let’s continue and let’s win this fight.”

Economy, Health Care, Obamacare

Congressional Republicans Push to Repeal the Affordable Care Act and Slashing Medicaid – Here’s How You Would Be Impacted if They Succeed

The White House is piercing the secrecy, backroom plans of Congressional Republicans to yet again, repeal the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) and slash Medicaid, under the guise of “balancing the budget”. Instead, the Republicans’ agenda would add $3 trillion to the national debt while leaving hundreds of millions living with the anxiety and insecurity of being without access to health care or destroyed by medical debt © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

The White House is piercing the secrecy, backroom plans of Congressional Republicans to yet again, repeal the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) and slash Medicaid, under the guise of “balancing the budget”. Instead, the Republicans’ agenda would add $3 trillion to the national debt while leaving hundreds of millions living with the anxiety and insecurity of being without access to health care or destroyed by medical debt. The Republicans’ policy goes against the grain of Americans who overwhelmingly support Obamacare, which has delivered record numbers of Americans who have health insurance. Repealing the ACA would thrust millions into the life-and-death insecurity of not having health insurance at all or finding health insurance unaffordable, the 100 million people who have “pre-existing conditions” (now likely 200 million because of COVID), also being uninsurable by the for-profit insurance industry. Likewise, slashing Medicaid would not only leave millions, including millions of children, without health care, but result in more hospitals shutting down. This fact sheet from the White House is issued in advance of President Joe Biden’s remarks from Virginia Beach:–Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

Speaker McCarthy and congressional Republicans have committed to balance the budget while adding $3 trillion or more to the deficit through tax cuts skewed to the wealthy and large corporations. As a matter of simple math, that requires trillions in program cuts. Congressional Republicans have yet to disclose to the American people where these cuts will come from. But past Republican legislation, budgets, and litigation, along with recent statements, proposals, and budget plans, provide clear evidence that health care will be on the chopping block for severe cuts.
 
Virtually every Republican budget or fiscal plan over the last decade has included repeal of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and deep cuts to Medicaid. That would mean: higher health care costs for tens of millions of Americans; ending critical protections for people with pre-existing conditions; millions of people losing health coverage and care; and threats to health care for seniors and people with disabilities, including growing home care waiting lists and worse nursing home care.
 
The American people deserve to see congressional Republicans’ full and detailed budget plan, including what it cuts from the ACA and Medicaid, Social Security and Medicare, and other critical programs, and should have the chance to compare it with the President’s budget plan, which he will release March 9.
 
If Republicans are successful in repealing the Affordable Care Act and making deep cuts to Medicaid:
 
Millions of Americans Will Have Higher Health Care Costs

  • More than 100 million people with pre-existing health conditions could lose critical protections. Before the ACA, more than 100 million Americans with pre-existing health conditions could have been denied coverage or charged more if they tried to buy individual market health insurance. Republican repeal proposals either eliminate these protections outright or find other ways to gut them.
     
  • Up to 24 million people could lose protection against catastrophic medical bills. Before the ACA, insurance plans were not required to limit enrollees’ total costs, and almost one in five people with employer coverage had no limit on out-of-pocket costs, meaning they were exposed to tens of thousands of dollars in medical bills if they became seriously ill.
     
  • Tens of millions of people could be at risk of lifetime benefit caps. Prior to the ACA, 105 million Americans, mostly people with employer coverage, had a lifetime limit on their health insurance benefits, and every year up to 20,000 people hit that cap and saw their benefits exhausted just when they needed them most.
     
  • Millions of people could lose free preventive care. The ACA requires private health insurers to cover preventive services, like cancer screenings, cholesterol tests, annual check-ups, and contraceptive services, at no cost. Before these requirements were in place, millions of Americans with health insurance faced cost sharing – sometimes high costs – for these services, which is part of why the ACA resulted in increased use of critical preventive care.
     
  • Over $1,000 average increase in medical debt for millions covered through Medicaid expansion. Repealing the ACA, in particular the expansion of Medicaid to low-income adults, would reverse major gains in financial security. Within the first two years of the ACA’s expansion of Medicaid, medical debt sent to collection agencies dropped by $3.4 billion, and there were 50,000 fewer medical bankruptcies. Among people gaining coverage through expansion, medical debt fell by an average of over $1,000. Expansion states also saw significant drops in evictions compared to non-expansion states.
     
  • Tens of millions of people could see their prescription drug coverage scaled back. Prescription drug coverage is an optional benefit under Medicaid. If states faced large cuts to their federal Medicaid funding, millions of Medicaid enrollees could see their coverage scaled back or have a harder time getting their prescriptions because of extra red tape.

 Millions of Americans Will Lose Their Health Insurance

  • 40 million people’s health insurance coverage would be at risk. Over 16 million people have signed up for ACA marketplace coverage for 2023, over 22 million people are enrolled in Medicaid expansion coverage available due to the ACA, and another 1 million people have coverage through the ACA’s Basic Health Program. The total number of people with some form of ACA coverage has risen significantly since 2017, when the Congressional Budget Office estimated the House-passed repeal bill would grow the ranks of the uninsured by 23 million.
     
  • An additional 69 million people with Medicaid could lose critical services, or could even lose coverage altogether. Slashing federal funding for Medicaid would force states to make Medicaid eligibility changes that would make it harder to qualify for and enroll in Medicaid coverage. States would also likely consider capping or limiting enrollment, cut critical services, and cut payments rates, making it harder for people with Medicaid to access care.
     
  • Thousands more preventable deaths each year. The ACA Medicaid expansion is preventing thousands of premature deaths among older adults each year, research finds, likely because it improves access to care, including medications to control chronic conditions and preventive care such as cancer screenings. ACA marketplace coverage also prevents premature deaths.

 Worse Care for Seniors and People With Disabilities

  • Over 7 million seniors and people with disabilities could receive worse home care, with ballooning wait lists for those still in need. The number of people on home care wait lists has dropped by 20 percent since 2018. This progress would likely be reversed under a block grant or per-capita cap because there would be fewer dollars available for home care services, an optional benefit in Medicaid. Faced with large federal funding cuts, states would almost certainly ration care. That would likely mean wait lists for home care in the 13 states and DC that don’t currently have them, and skyrocketing wait lists in 37 states that do.
     
  • Hundreds of thousands of nursing home residents would be at risk of lower quality of care. Over 60 percent of nursing home residents are covered by Medicaid. With large cuts in federal funding, states would be forced to cut nursing home rates to manage their costs, as many states have done during recessions. Research shows that when nursing homes are paid less, residents get worse care.

Millions of People Will Lose Access to Opioid Treatment and Mental Health Care

  • Millions of people could lose access to substance use treatment or mental health care. Across the country, the ACA, especially its expansion of Medicaid, has dramatically expanded access to opioid treatment and other substance use disorder care, including increases in medication assisted treatment prescriptions for opioid and other substance use treatment and improved access to mental health care.
     
  • 34 million children at risk of losing guaranteed access to mental health care. Past Republican plans proposed ending Medicaid’s guarantee of comprehensive health coverage for children. This would jeopardize children’s access to mental health care at a critical point in efforts to address the burgeoning youth mental health crisis. It would also cause children to go without other services, like annual check-ups and speech and physical therapy. And Republican proposals could endanger schools’ ability to bill Medicaid for mental health care, speech therapy, or physical therapy for students.

 Rural Hospitals Would Be Forced to Close

  • More of the over 500 rural hospitals at risk of closure could close. The ACA, especially its expansion of Medicaid, helped cut hospital uncompensated care by about $12 billion, helping hospitals, especially rural hospitals, stay afloat. Between 2010 and 2021, nearly three-fourths of rural hospital closures were in states that have not adopted Medicaid expansion, with research finding that expansion disproportionately improved rural hospital margins and helped avert rural hospital closures. If the ACA is repealed, and millions lose coverage, closures among at-risk hospitals could increase significantly.

Separate from all these quantifiable harms, Republican ACA and Medicaid plans propose abrupt, unprecedented upheaval, with consequences for the entire health care system. In 2017, patient groups, physicians, hospitals, insurers, insurance regulators, health care experts, and governors from both parties all expressed alarm that ACA repeals could have far-reaching consequences for the stability of health insurance markets and availability of affordable coverage and care.

House Republicans commit to radical ultra MAGA budget that takes health care from millions and increases costs:

Confirming President Biden’s warning that House Republicans are threatening to cause an unforced economic catastrophe unless they can make disastrous cuts that increase millions of American’s health care costs, the top House Republican on the Budget Committee now says outright that they are using a ultra MAGA plan to do just that.

House Budget Chairman Jodey Arrington says Republicans are modeling their budget off of a hard right proposal from former Trump OMB Director Russell Vought – a plan that calls for draconian cuts to the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid. This would deprive countless Americans of their health coverage, make the costs of health care skyrocket cross the board, cause a spike in the price of prescription drugs, and devastate rural hospitals.  

What sacrifices does Vought’s budget ask of rich special interests? None. And House Republicans simultaneously back enormous tax giveaways to the wealthy that economists warn would aggravate inflation.  

President Biden and the American people want to go in the opposite direction, building on the historic deficit reduction he has led by having the rich and big corporations pay their fair share and reduce the deficit by a further $2 trillion.

“In their own words, Congressional Republicans keep proving President’s Biden’s warnings to the middle class right,” said White House spokesperson Andrew Bates. “The House Republican leading their budget process now admits that the foundation of their approach will be a radical, ultra MAGA plan that takes health coverage away from millions of middle class families, causes health care and prescription drug costs to skyrocket, and devastates rural hospitals. And they’re threatening to intentionally plunge our economy into chaos and kill millions of jobs and businesses if they don’t get their way. Meanwhile, Republicans are pushing exorbitant tax welfare for rich special interests that would increase the deficit and worsen inflation. This is the definition of trying to force our economy to work from the top-down, when they should be joining with President Biden to keep rebuilding the American middle class.”  

Biden Administration, Economic Policies, Economy, Health Care

FACT SHEET: New Data Show 8.2 Million Fewer Americans Struggling with Medical Debt Under Biden Administration

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released a new report that shows that the number of Americans with medical debt on their credit reports fell by 8.2 million from the first quarter of 2020 to the first quarter of 2022 © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

The Administration’s work to strengthen the Affordable Care Act along with new consumer protections lead to continued progress reducing the burden of medical debt.. This fact sheet is provided by the White House:

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released a new report that shows that the number of Americans with medical debt on their credit reports fell by 8.2 million from the first quarter of 2020 to the first quarter of 2022. Today’s report is consistent with a recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that found that the number of Americans who are part of families having trouble paying their medical bills declined by 5.5 million between 2020 and 2021. One driver of these declines is the significant increase in the number of insured Americans over this period, a result of the President’s strategy of protecting and strengthening the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and lowering health care costs. The decline also reflects continued actions by the CFPB to highlight problems with inaccurate reporting of debt in collections and put the industry on notice to correct their behavior.

The new data also underscore the importance of the Biden-Harris Administration’s government-wide initiative to reduce the burden of medical debt. Following the Vice President’s April 2022 announcement, medical debt was directly relieved for many low-income Americans. And, informed by research showing that medical debt is not a reliable predictor of financial health, federal agencies are working to eliminate the use of medical debt to assess creditworthiness for participation in government lending programs. Specifically:  

  • The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) implemented a streamlined process to make it easier and faster for lower-income veterans to get their VA medical debt forgiven. The new process – establishing simple criteria to qualify for debt relief and launching a new online debt relief portal – has already provided relief to over 10,000 veterans and saved them more than $10 million in copay debt.
  • Communities across the country – from Cook County, Illinois, to Toledo, Ohio, to New Orleans, Louisiana, to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania – are using or have passed legislation to use about $16 million American Rescue Plan (ARP) funding to purchase medical debt from hospitals and other sources and forgive it, wiping out nearly $1.5 billion in medical debt, a ratio of nearly 100-to-1. Other localities and states have proposed to make similar purchases using ARP funding.
  • The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) validated and approved the use of VantageScore 4.0, along with FICO 10T, for the underwriting of mortgages by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The addition of VantageScore 4.0, which excludes medical debt entirely, marks the first time that a credit score that excludes medical debt has been approved for mortgage underwriting of Enterprise loans.
  • The Small Business Administration (SBA) will take a number of steps to reduce the role of medical debt in the underwriting of loans for its 7(a) guaranteed loan program, including revising its lender Standard Operating Procedures to discourage consideration of medical debt and making technology investments in Lender Match to help borrowers find lenders that exclude medical debt in their credit decisions.

These reductions in medical debt will provide real benefits to many Americans. Reducing medical debt directly impacts household finances by improving credit scores and access to credit. And research shows that households that have their medical debt relieved see improvements in access to medical care, and in physical and mental health outcomes. Since medical debt is disproportionally held among low-income communities, reductions in the burden of medical debt helps advance financial and health equity.
 
The CFPB report also shows that medical debt still accounts for more than 50% of debt in collections tradelines, exceeding the number of debt in collections tradelines from all other sources combined, including credit cards, personal loans, utilities, and phone bills. Getting sick or taking care of loved ones should not mean financial hardship for American families. That is why the Administration has—and will continue—to take action to ease the burden of medical debt and protect consumers from predatory collection practices.
 
Supporting Veterans in Financial Hardship
 
In Spring 2022, VA committed to make it easier and faster for lower-income veterans to get their VA medical debt forgiven. Previously, veterans in financial hardship who needed medical debt relief for VA copayments had to fill out a complex, paper form and navigate complicated eligibility requirements. The application process was confusing, and time-consuming, and as a result, veterans may have been deterred from applying for much needed relief.
 
Since the spring 2022 announcement:

  • VA streamlined the application process, including establishing a simple, standardized criteria to qualify for debt relief and launching a new online debt relief portal to make it easier and faster to apply.
  • Since introducing the new criteria, VA has approved over 93% of debt relief requests, and 42% of relief requests are now submitted via the online portal.  
  • To date, the new streamlined system has provided relief to over 10,000 veterans and saved them more than $10 million combined in unpayable copay debt.

Helping Communities Wipe Out Medical Debt
 
To help relieve the burden of medical debt on their residents as part of the recovery from the COVD-19 pandemic, communities across the country are using American Rescue Plan (ARP) funding to support efforts to buy and forgive medical debt. These communities work with partners to purchase medical debt portfolios from hospitals, health systems, and debt collection agencies and forgive the debt. Because medical debts are often available for purchase at pennies on the dollar, these efforts can translate into massive reductions in medical debt.
 
In the programs implemented to date, individuals qualify if they are residents of the given locality and have incomes below a certain threshold or have medical debt in excess of 5% of their annual household income. Individuals whose debt is cancelled are notified by mail and do not need to apply. Communities that have used ARP funds to forgive medical debt include:

  • Cook County, Illinois. In July 2022, Cook County announced the use of $12 million in ARP funds to purchase and forgive up to $1 billion in medical debt. The program has already wiped out the medical debts of 45,000 people worth $26 million.
  • Toledo and Lucas County, Ohio. In November 2022, the Toledo City Council and Lucas County approved a cumulative $1.6 million in ARP funds to buy out medical debt of certain residents. In total, the localities expected that this purchase will wipe out approximately $240 million in debt.
  • New Orleans, Louisiana. In December 2022, the New Orleans City Council included in its annual budget a $1.3 million line item leveraging ARP funds to relieve up to an estimated $130 million in medical debt.
  • Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In January 2023, the Pittsburgh City Council approved a plan to use $1 million in ARP funds to eliminate up to an estimated $115 million medical debts for about 24,000 residents.

Taken together, these investments of about $16 million in ARP funding are expected to relieve up to nearly $1.5 billion in medical debt, a ratio of nearly 100-to-1, helping to mend household finances, improve mental health, and remove a barrier to accessing health care. Additional states and cities across the country are also considering using ARP funds to eliminate medical debt including most recently the state of Connecticut, where the governor proposed using $20 million in ARP funds to wipe out debts of about  $2 billion.   
 
Removing Medical Debt from Government Underwriting
 
Research shows that medical debt is not a reliable predictor of overall financial health – predominately reflecting inequities in health insurance coverage and the bad luck of a hospitalization or other medical event. A CFPB report found that including medical debt in credit scores understates consumers’ creditworthiness by 10 points, and including already paid medical debt understates consumers’ creditworthiness by as much as 22 points. This means that the use of medical debt in underwriting can cut off American’s access to credit without improving the accuracy and predictiveness of lending programs.
 
Informed by this research, the Biden-Harris Administration instructed all agencies to eliminate medical debt as a factor in underwriting of credit programs, whenever possible and consistent with law. Since then:

  • In October 2022, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) validated and approved the use of VantageScore 4.0 and FICO 10T for the underwriting of mortgages by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. VantageScore 4.0 excludes medical debt entirely, and marks the first time that a credit score that excludes medical debt has been approved for mortgage underwriting of Enterprise loans.  Moreover, the national credit reporting agencies announced several changes affecting the reporting of medical debt in collections – including that paid medical collection debt would no longer be included on consumer credit reports, an extension of timing for reporting of unpaid medical collection debt from six to twelve months, and a minimum $500 threshold for medical collection debt reporting – meaning that the role of medical debt in FICO 10T will also be reduced. The Enterprises’ automated underwriting systems do not consider medical debt in collections.
  • The Small Business Administration (SBA) will be taking a number of steps to reduce the role of medical debt in the underwriting of loans in the 7a guaranteed loan program.  These steps include revising its Standard Operating Procedures to discourage lenders from considering medical debt and making technology investments in Lender Match to help borrowers find lenders that exclude medical debt from their credit decisions and empower such lenders to underwrite those loans via automated data compilation.
  • In February 2022, VA published a final rule under which it virtually ceased reporting medical debt, and other unfavorable debt, to the credit bureaus. This rule ensures that debt reported better reflects creditworthiness, while saving veterans from further financial struggles simply because they had to take on medical debt. VA is committed to mitigating the burden of medical debt in its Home Loan guarantee program and in the coming months will work with lenders and servicers to discuss how to best maximize the flexibility of their underwriting guidelines related to medical debt collections while monitoring investor reactions and access to capital for VA guaranteed loans

New Data on Medical Debt in Collections
 
The report from the CFPB documents trends in medical debt in collections that are listed on credit reports, with the data extending through the first quarter of 2022. Key findings include:

  • Between the first quarter of 2020 and the first quarter of 2022, the number of Americans with medical debt on their credit report fell by 8.2 million, a 17.9% reduction.
  • Medical debt in collections accounts for 57% of collections tradelines, exceeding the total number of collections tradelines from all other sources combined, including credit cards, personal loans, utilities, and phone bills.

One driver of this decline in medical debt is the expansion of health insurance coverage during the Biden-Harris Administration. In the first quarter of 2022, the uninsured rate hit an all-time low of 8.0%, with 4.2 million people gaining coverage between 2020 and the first half of 2022. This milestone does not yet not capture the impact of the most recent increase in Marketplace enrollment, with a record 16.3 million Americans signing up on HealthCare.gov and the state-based Marketplaces during the 2023 Open Enrollment Period. This includes 3.6 million people who are new to the Marketplaces for 2023. Since President Biden took office, the number of people who have signed up for an affordable health care plan through HealthCare.gov has increased by nearly 50%. The Biden-Harris Administration continues to work to create a more fair and transparent health care system for consumers, including by protecting millions of consumers from surprise medical bills through its implementation of the No Surprises Act—preventing about 1 million surprise bills per month—and by advancing hospital price transparency so patients know the upfront price of hospital services.
 
The declines in medical debt also reflect continued actions by the CFPB to highlight problems with inaccurate reporting of debt in collections and put the industry on notice to correct their behavior.
 
The declines in medical debt on credit reports do not yet capture any effects of the Spring 2022 announcement where the three largest credit reporting agencies—Equifax, Experian, and Transunion—stated that they will no longer include certain forms of medical debt on credit reports, including all debts under $500, starting in 2023. While not shown in these data, CFPB estimates these changes will likely result in further reductions in medical debt appearing on credit reports.  
 
The decline in medical debt in collection represents one part of a broader decrease in the financial burden from medical bills during the Biden-Harris Administration. The CFPB report focuses on medical debt reported to credit bureaus, and does not capture medical debt that is placed on credit cards (including hospital credit cards) or paid for with personal loans or hospital payment plans.  However, a CDC report released last month showed that between 2020 and 2021, the number of people in families having problems paying medical bills declined by 5.5 million people, indicating that American families are indeed experiencing across-the-board relief.
 
These findings represent real progress in providing breathing room for American families. At the same time, too many Americans still face crushing burdens from medical debt. The Biden-Harris Administration will continue to fight to ensure that Americans who are sick or are caring for sick loved ones are not hit with a double whammy of illness and medical debt. This includes continuing to help Americans sign up for health insurance; calling on Congress to make permanent the lower premiums for people buying ACA coverage and to close the Medicaid coverage gap; and continuing to reduce the burden of medical debt via sweeping actions by government agencies.

Biden Administration, Health Care

Biden Administration Takes New Actions to Support, Advance Women’s Economic Security

Women’s March 2020, New York City The Biden Administration is marking the 30th anniversary of the Family and Medical Leave Act by announcing new actions to support and advance women’s economic security. Women’s economic security also means reproductive health rights. © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

The Biden-Harris Administration is marking the upcoming 30th anniversary of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) by announcing new actions to support and advance women’s economic security. For thirty years, the FMLA has helped Americans take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave from work when they are seriously ill or to care for a new child or a sick family member without the risk of losing their jobs. Today, President Biden is demonstrating his commitment to ensuring access to family and medical leave, by encouraging heads of Federal agencies to provide access to leave for Federal employees when they need it, including during their first year of service.

Across the country, millions of workers still face impossible choices between keeping a paycheck and caring for their family or themselves. This is especially true for women, who shoulder disproportionate caregiving responsibilities, with real consequences for their ability to participate in the labor force and support their families over the course of their lives. That’s why the Biden-Harris Administration will continue to champion and take action on national paid family and medical leave, affordable child care, and home and community-based care so that all Americans can both care for and financially support their families.

Improving Access to Leave. Today, President Biden is issuing a Presidential Memorandum to support Federal employees’ access to leave when they need to care for themselves or a loved one. The memorandum calls on heads of Federal agencies to support access to leave without pay for Federal employees, including during their first year of service, to ensure employees are able to bond with a new child, care for a family member with a serious health condition, address their own serious health condition, help manage family affairs when a family member is called to active duty, or grieve after the death of a family member. The Office of Personnel Management is further directed to provide recommendations regarding “safe leave,” to support Federal employees’ access to paid leave and leave without pay for purposes related to seeking safety and recovering from domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking. These may include obtaining medical treatment, seeking assistance from organizations that provide services to survivors, seeking relocation, and taking related legal action.  

This Presidential Memorandum builds on other Administration efforts to improve access to and awareness of family and medical leave, including to:

  • Ensure military personnel have access to 12 weeks of paid parental leave. The Department of Defense issued a memorandum expanding the Military Parental Leave Program. Active-duty service members are now eligible for 12 weeks of parental leave following the birth, adoption, or placement of a child for long-term foster care. The expanded leave erases the previous distinction between primary and secondary caregivers, enabling both parents to take time to care for their children while balancing the needs of their unit, and it is in addition to medical convalescent leave, which continues to be available for birth parents recovering from pregnancy. Additionally, service members may request to take the 12 weeks of parental leave in multiple increments of at least one week, which allows for flexibility to meet both family and mission needs.
     
  • Support paid leave efforts in states. The Administration remains committed to working with states on opportunities to expand access to paid family and medical leave. Yesterday, the White House convened state legislators who are working to advance bills this session that would create statewide paid family and medical leave programs. These new efforts build on the 11 states and the District of Columbia that have passed paid family and medical leave laws. The Department of Labor will also release a new website with information on state paid leave laws.
     
  • Help employees impacted by cancer know their rights under the FMLA. As the Administration marks one year since the launch of President Biden’s Cancer Moonshot, the Department of Labor issued new resources in December to help employees know their rights when diagnosed with cancer or taking on a caregiver role. These new tools included a resource page on “Workplace Protections for Individuals Impacted by Cancer,” a practical guide on “How to Talk to Your Employer about Taking Time Off,” and an easy-to-post flyer to help health care providers support FMLA leave.

Investing in Economic Security. The actions announced today build on critical steps the Biden-Harris Administration has taken recently to support economic security for women and families, including:

  • Protecting the health and economic security of pregnant workers. President Biden signed into law the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act as part of the bipartisan end-of-year omnibus law, which will provide basic, long-overdue protections to ensure that millions of pregnant and postpartum workers have the right to reasonable accommodations in the workplace for pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions. Under the new law, employers must make reasonable accommodations for pregnant workers and job applicants, which may include light duty, breaks, or a stool to sit on, without discriminating or retaliating against them.
     
  • Extending protections for nursing workers. The President also signed into law the Providing Urgent Maternal Protections (PUMP) for Nursing Mothers Act, which extends break time and private space protections for nursing parents to nearly 9 million workers, including teachers, nurses, and farmworkers. These protections will empower parents to continue expressing milk at work, so they do not have to choose between their job or their infant’s health. Today, the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division released an updated Fact Sheet detailing employee rights and employer responsibilities under the new law and will continue outreach and public education efforts to help pregnant and nursing workers, and their employers, know their rights.
  • Increasing investments in early childhood education and child care. As part of the end-of-year omnibus, the Administration secured a 30 percent increase in funding for the Child Care and Development Block Grant, which could help up to 130,000 more families afford child care and access better child care options. The new law also made significant investments in programs such as Head Start and the Preschool Development Grant – Birth through Five that help young children and their families access quality, affordable early care and education. Greater availability and affordability of high-quality early care and education will help women with young children to enter and stay in the workforce.
     
  • Supporting women’s right to be safe in the workplace and free from sexual harassment and assault. In December, the President signed the Speak Out Act, which will enable survivors to speak out about workplace assault and harassment by prohibiting the enforcement of pre-dispute nondisclosure and non-disparagement clauses regarding allegations of sexual harassment or assault. Earlier last year, the President also signed into law the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021, which amended the Federal Arbitration Act and allows employees who sign pre-dispute mandatory arbitration agreements with their employers to pursue claims of sexual harassment or assault in court.

Meanwhile,on what would have been the 50th anniversary of the Supreme Court’s decision in Roe v. Wade, President Biden issued a Presidential Memorandum on Further Efforts to Protect Access to Reproductive Healthcare Services. Vice President Harris announced the Presidential Memorandum in Florida later today, where she will speak about the next steps in the fight for reproductive rights and reinforce the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to protecting access to abortion, including medication abortion.

Since the day of the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, President Biden has emphasized the need to protect access to mifepristone, a drug used in medication abortion that has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for over 20 years and accounts for the majority of all abortions in the United States.

Earlier this month, the FDA took evidence-based action to support safe access to mifepristone by allowing the continued use of telehealth to prescribe the medication and creating a new option for certified pharmacies to dispense it to patients.

Some state officials have taken steps to try to prevent women from legally accessing medication abortion and to discourage pharmacies from becoming certified by the FDA.
Today, President Biden will sign a Presidential Memorandum to further protect access to medication abortion.

In the face of barriers to medication abortion and concerns about the safety of patients, healthcare providers, and pharmacists, today’s Presidential Memorandum announces actions to:

  • Protect Legal Access to Medication Abortion. The Presidential Memorandum directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), in consultation with the Attorney General and the Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS), to consider new guidance to support patients, providers, and pharmacies who wish to legally access, prescribe, or provide mifepristone—no matter where they live.
     
  • Safeguard Patient Safety and Security. To ensure that patients understand their right to access reproductive healthcare despite roadblocks, the Presidential Memorandum directs the Secretary of HHS, in consultation with the Attorney General and the Secretary of DHS, to consider new actions to ensure that patients can access legal reproductive care, including medication abortion from a pharmacy, free from threats or violence. The President has long made clear that people should have access to reproductive care free from harassment, threats, or violence. Pharmacies should be treated no differently.

The Attorney General and the Secretaries of HHS and DHS also provided recommendations to the White House Interagency Task Force on Reproductive Healthcare Access, which was established by President Biden in Executive Order 14076, on additional ways to address barriers faced by patients, providers, and pharmacies in safely and legally accessing or providing medication abortion, consistent with evidence-based requirements set by the FDA.

Biden Administration, Health Care, Obamacare

Record 16.3 Million Signed Up for Obamacare

Affordable Care Act – Obamacare – gives access to affordable health insurance for individuals. The Biden Administration reported a record 16.3 million people signed up for Obamacare in the last open enrollment period, a nearly 50 percent increase in HealthCare.gov signups since President Biden took office; 3.6 million people signed up for health care coverage through the marketplaces for the first time. (c) Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

Nearly 50% increase in HealthCare.gov signups since President Biden took office, and 3.6 million people signed up for health care coverage on the Marketplaces for the first time this year

The White House provided this detail about a record 16.3 million people signing up for Obamacare in the just-concluded open enrollment season,  a nearly 50% increase in HealthCare.gov signups since President Biden took office, and 3.6 million people signed up for health care coverage on the Marketplaces for the first time this year

The Biden-Harris Administration announced that a record-breaking 16.3 million people have selected an Affordable Care Act (ACA) Marketplace health plan nationwide during the 2023 Marketplace Open Enrollment Period (OEP) that ran from November 1, 2022-January 15, 2023 for most Marketplaces. President Biden promised to strengthen and build on the Affordable Care Act, and this year, the 10th year of ACA Open Enrollment, more Americans signed up for high-quality, affordable health insurance through the ACA Marketplaces than ever before. Since President Biden took office, the number of people who have signed up for an affordable health care plan through HealthCare.gov has increased by nearly 50%. Because of the President’s plan, millions of working families saved an average of $800 on their health insurance premiums last year.
 
Total plan selections include 3.6 million people (22% of total) who are new to the Marketplaces for 2023, and 12.7 million people (78% of total) who had active 2022 coverage and made a plan selection for 2023 coverage or were automatically re-enrolled. Over 1.8 million more people have signed up for health insurance, or a 13% increase, from this time last year. The 3.6 million plan selections from people who are new to the Marketplaces represent a 21% increase in new-to-Marketplace plan selections over last year.
 
“Unprecedented investments lead to unprecedented results,” said HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra. “Thanks to President Biden’s leadership, more than 16 million Americans have health insurance through the Affordable Care Act Marketplaces – an all-time high. The Biden-Harris Administration has made lowering health care costs and expanding access to health insurance a top priority – and these record-breaking numbers show we are delivering results for the American people. We will keep doing everything we can to ensure more people have the peace of mind that comes with high-quality, affordable health care.”
 
“President Biden promised to build on the success of the Affordable Care Act and make it easier for people to enroll and find affordable, quality coverage – and that promise has been kept,” said CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure. “On the tenth anniversary of the ACA Marketplaces, the numbers speak for themselves: more people signed up for plans this year than ever before, and the uninsured rate is at an all-time low.”
 
The Biden-Harris Administration has made expanding access to health insurance and lowering health care costs for America’s families a top priority, and under their leadership, the national uninsured rate reached an all-time low earlier this year, and the 2023 Marketplace Open Enrollment Period saw the highest number of  plan selections of any year since the launch of the ACA Marketplaces ten years ago.
 
This year, individuals benefited from a highly competitive Marketplace. Ninety-two percent of HealthCare.gov enrollees had access to options from three or more insurance companies when they shopped for plans. Also, new standardized plan options were available in 2023 through HealthCare.gov, which helped consumers compare and select plans. Thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act, more people this year continued to qualify for help purchasing quality health coverage with expanded financial assistance, resulting in four out of five people returning to HealthCare.gov being able to find a plan for $10 or less after tax credits.
 
Today’s snapshot represents activity through January 15, 2023 for the 33 Marketplaces using HealthCare.gov and through January 14 or 15, 2023 for the 18 State-based Marketplaces (SBMs) in 17 states and the District of Columbia that are using their own eligibility and enrollment platforms.
 
Marketplace Enrollment Snapshot Overview:
 

Marketplace and Consumer TypeCumulative 2023 OEP Plan Selections

Total: All Marketplaces
16,306,448
New Consumers3,603,067
Returning Consumers[1]12,703,381
Total HealthCare.gov Marketplaces12,203,622
New Consumers3,000,155
Returning Consumers9,203,467
Total SBMs[2]4,102,826
New Consumers602,912
Returning Consumers3,499,914

1 The returning consumers metric in this report includes both consumers who have returned to their respective Marketplace through the reporting date and selected a plan for 2023 coverage and consumers who have been automatically re-enrolled in their 2022 plan or a suggested alternate plan.
2 In addition to reported plan selections, New York and Minnesota have a Basic Health Program (BHP), which provides coverage to consumers with incomes below 200 percent of the FPL who are not eligible for Medicaid or CHIP and otherwise would be eligible for a QHP.  From November 1 – January 14, 2023, New York had a total of 1,114,406 individuals enroll in a BHP. Minnesota’s BHP data was not available at the time of this report. 

While the 2023 Open Enrollment Period has closed for the 33 Marketplaces using HealthCare.gov, State-Based Marketplace deadlines vary and enrollment continues in several states. State-specific deadlines and other information are available in the State-based Marketplace Open Enrollment Fact Sheet.

Individuals who meet certain conditions may be eligible for a Special Enrollment Period (SEP) and can determine if they qualify by visiting HealthCare.gov, or CuidadoDeSalud.gov, or by calling 1-800-318-2596.

Biden Administration, Coronavirus Pandemic, Health Care, News & Photo Features

FACT SHEET: Biden Administration Announces COVID-19 Winter Preparedness Plan

Administration focused efforts on making vaccinations, testin, and treatments even more widely available and accessible as COVID-19 cases increase
 

The Biden Administration’s plan to stay ahead of an increase in COVID-19 cases this winter includes working with states, medical providers, businesses, and other groups to expand awareness about updated COVID-19 vaccines, highly effective treatments, and resources to stand up additional vaccination sites and other delivery options to make it easier and more convenient to get vaccinations and treatments. © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features

The Biden Administration announced a plan to stay ahead of an increase in COVID-19 cases this winter. While COVID-19 is not the disruptive force it once was, the virus continues to evolve, and cases are on the rise again as families are spending more time indoors and gathering for the holidays. Throughout the COVID-19 response, this Administration has been prepared for whatever the virus throws our way – and this moment is no different.
 
The Administration’s COVID-19 Winter Preparedness Plan includes:
 
Expanding easy access to free COVID-19 testing options in the winter. COVID-19 testing is an important tool to help mitigate and slow the spread of the virus. The Administration is encouraging Americans to use at-home COVID-19 tests when they have symptoms of COVID-19, before and after traveling for the holidays, or visiting indoors with immunocompromised or vulnerable individuals. The Administration has made free COVID-19 testing widely available and easily accessible. This includes providing over 15,000 free community testing sites nationwide, covering over-the-counter tests under Medicare, and requiring all health insurance plans to cover eight free at-home tests per month per individual, which can be easily accessed at local pharmacies and online. Ahead of continued increases in cases, the Administration is taking new action to ensure that all Americans have easy and free access to COVID-19 tests in the winter months.
 

  • Making free at-home, rapid COVID-19 tests available through COVIDTests.gov. The Administration is announcing that COVIDTests.gov is open for a limited round of ordering this winter. Starting today, all U.S. households can order a total of four at-home COVID-19 tests that will be mailed directly to them for free. In the absence of Congress providing additional funding for the nation’s COVID-19 response, the Administration has acted with its limited existing funding to add more at-home COVID-19 tests to the nation’s stockpile and support this round of ordering ahead of continued increases in COVID-19 cases. Orders for this round of testing will begin to ship starting the week of December 19th and continue in the weeks ahead. The Administration will also make tests available to individuals who are blind or have low-vision through this program. People who have difficulty accessing the internet or need additional support placing an order can call 1-800-232-0233 (TTY 1-888-720-7489) to get help in English, Spanish, and more than 150 other languages – 8:00 a.m. to midnight E.T., seven days a week. For more information, people can visit www.COVIDTests.gov.  
     
  • Distributing more free tests to Americans at trusted locations. In addition to continuing to support access to free COVID-19 tests in schools, community health centers, rural health clinics, long-term care facilities, and other convenient locations, the Administration is announcing additional distribution programs to reach people with free, at-home tests. This includes distributing free at-home tests at more than 6,500 Department of Housing and Urban Development-assisted rental housing properties serving seniors; and expanding a program to distribute free at-home tests to as many as 500 major food banks for them to distribute to people in their communities.

 
Making vaccinations and treatments readily available to all Americans as cases rise. As we have throughout the pandemic, the federal government continues to leverage all capabilities to support state, local, territorial, and Tribal communities to prepare for, prevent, and respond to increased incidence of COVID-19. That includes working with states, medical providers, businesses, and other groups to expand awareness about updated COVID-19 vaccines, highly effective treatments, and resources to stand up additional vaccination sites and other delivery options to make it easier and more convenient to get vaccinations and treatments. 

  • Offering resources and assistance to increase vaccinations and respond to a possible surge. Today, U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra is sending a letter to all governors outlining key actions that he would like state leaders to take as they prepare for increased cases and hospitalizations this winter, and reminding them of federal supports that are available for their COVID-19 responses. This includes setting up additional mobile and pop-up vaccination sites, surge testing sites, as well as Test to Treat sites where Americans can not only get tested for free, but also can get prescribed and dispensed safe, effective COVID-19 treatments right on site if they test positive and treatment is appropriate for them.
     
  • Collaborating with communities to open pop-up and/or mobile vaccination sites. Communities across the nation are answering the call to expand vaccine access through the increased presence of mobile and pop-up vaccination clinics. This includes efforts in Los Angeles County to open up to 800 pop-up clinics per week; expanded use of mobile vaccination, testing, and treatment units, as well as outbound vaccine and treatment calls to people age 65 and older, at-home administration of vaccines and free home delivery of treatments in New York City; and an increase in Chicago’s at-home vaccine administration program, which provides vaccines for up to 10 people per visit in their place of residence. The Administration has been engaging jurisdictions on the availability of federal resources to continue and increase these efforts, including through use of flexible single-dose vials, and will continue to engage state, local, Tribal, and territorial leaders in the weeks ahead.
     
  • Getting additional resources to community health centers and aging and disability networks to support COVID-19 vaccination efforts. The Administration for Community Living is awarding $125 million to support community-based organizations in the aging and disability networks to hold accessible vaccine clinics and provide in-home vaccinations, transportation, and other supportive services to increase COVID-19 vaccinations for older adults and people with disabilities.

 
Preparing personnel and resources. Together with states, we will monitor the impacts of variants, cases, and hospitalizations on our communities and – should it become necessary – escalate our support to states and communities. The Administration stands ready with federal capabilities to support urgent needs as they present, including through clinical staffing, personal protective equipment and supplies, and technical assistance. 
 
Readying clinical personnel for deployment as needed to support jurisdictions. The Administration continues to make federal teams and medical personnel available to alleviate strains on hospitals and health care systems through the Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS’) Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR), the U.S. Public Health Services Corps, and the Department of Defense. Federal agencies can also help offer support for states to take actions, such as providing more flexibility to hospitals balancing patients and staffing, exercising telemedicine options, pursuing staffing options such as contracts, and employing the National Guard to help alleviate strains on health and medical facilities.  
 

  • Pre-positioning critical supplies from the Strategic National Stockpile. Tanks to the President’s leadership, the U.S. government has hundreds of millions of N-95 masks, billions of gloves, tens of millions of gowns, and over 100,000 ventilators stored in the Strategic National Stockpile—all ready to ship out if and when states need them. The Administration has pre-positioned these supplies in strategic locations across the country so that we can send them to states that need them immediately.
     
  • Closely monitoring emerging variants and assessing their potential impacts on testing, treatments and vaccines. This winter, federal agencies will continue to monitor Omicron subvariants and the spread of any other emerging variants of the virus in the United States. This includes genomic surveillance of specimens from representative populations to detect new variants and to monitor trends in currently circulating variants. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) tracks and reports on genomic sequencing results from a variety of sources, including public health and commercial laboratories.  CDC also recently expanded variant reporting from additional sources, including wastewater and through international air travel. The Traveler-Based Genomic Surveillance Program currently collects samples from international air travelers arriving from more than 25 countries at several major U.S. airports. This data, which provides an early warning system for detection of variants and trends over time, is publicly shared on the CDC COVID-19 Data Tracker.


Focusing on protecting the highest-risk Americans. As we have done since the beginning of the Administration, we remain focused on meeting the needs and protecting Americans at highest risk of severe illness from COVID-19. This includes residents of nursing homes and other congregate care facilities, where we know vaccination rates remain too low. This also includes older Americans, individuals who are immunocompromised, disabled individuals, and others who face a higher risk of severe illness and death from COVID-19.   

  • Releasing a winter playbook for nursing homes and long-term care facilities. The Administration will release a winter playbook for administrators of nursing homes and long-term care facilities that summarizes the actions these facilities should take to reduce serious illness, prevent hospitalizations and deaths, and minimize disruptions in their communities. Nursing homes often serve residents at great risk of severe illness and death from COVID-19, and congregate care settings have an increased risk of spread of respiratory infections. All facilities should take concrete actions to ensure that every resident is educated on and offered an updated COVID-19 shot; that every resident who tests positive for COVID-19 is evaluated and offered treatment; and that every facility is taking steps to improve its indoor air quality.
     
  • Expanding the pool of providers that may administer COVID-19 vaccinations. In addition to working with their partners, staff at nursing homes will now be able to administer COVID-19 vaccines to all residents. HHS will work with states to launch teams and use partner with their Quality Improvement Organizations (QIOs), home health agencies, and Emergency Medical Technicians to deliver vaccines to residents of long-term care facilities. On December 1, 2022, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) also added COVID-19 vaccination rates of health care staff and the residents at these facilities to the “Measures under Consideration” list, the list of measures it will potentially consider for certain Medicare quality payment programs, reinforcing its commitment to increased vaccination and improving outcomes for patients.
     
  • Reaching out to governors on nursing home vaccinations. In Secretary Becerra’s letter to governors reminding them of available federal COVID-19 supports, he also highlighted how their states are performing as compared to their peers on vaccinating residents of long-term care facilities, and asked governors for their assistance and partnership in increasing COVID-19 vaccination rates for long-term care residents and staff. CMS leadership will also be reaching out to the jurisdictions with the lowest vaccination rates at these long-term care facilities to remind them of what additional steps they can take to increase vaccination rates among seniors and long-term care facility residents.
     
  • Encouraging hospitals to offer COVID-19 vaccinations to patients before discharge. HHS leadership, including Secretary Becerra, has called upon hospitals through direct outreach to vaccinate their unvaccinated patients or make sure they are up-to-date on COVID-19 vaccinations before they are discharged, especially if they are heading to a nursing home.
     
  • Expanding access to high-quality masks in communities. In January 2022, HHS made up to 400 million N-95 respirators from the Strategic National Stockpile available through tens of thousands of locations including pharmacies and grocery stores, so Americans could have convenient, free access to high-quality masks. About 270 million masks were sent out as part of this initiative, with many still available in stores nationwide. To expand access to these high-quality masks, HHS will offer guidance to participating pharmacies and grocery stores on how they can to work with local health clinics, aging and disability networks, community-based organizations, and health departments to distribute these masks more widely, so that any spare inventory can be utilized through distribution to even more locations.
     
  • Ensuring that every individual has a plan for COVID-19 this winter. With updated COVID-19 vaccines, at-home tests, and effective oral antiviral treatments widely available, the Administration encourages every individual American to have a plan for how to prevent and respond to COVID-19 this winter. CDC has launched a COVID-19 Personal Action Plan, an easy-to-use guide for individuals, caregivers, and clinicians that helps guide individuals through making a plan for where to access free tests, the location of their closest Test to Treat site, and what to ask their provider on treatments if they test positive. The Personal Action Plan helps lay these steps out in an easy-to-use template so that all Americans – especially those at highest risk for severe illness – can decrease the risk of COVID-19 and, if they become infected, have a plan to quickly seek out treatment and avoid its worst outcomes.
Biden Administration, Health Care, President Joe Biden

FACT SHEET: By The Numbers: Millions of Americans Would Lose Health Care Coverage, Benefits, and Protections Under Congressional Republicans’ Plans

This fact sheet on the impact on health care coverage, benefits and protections under the Congressional Republicans’ plans was provided by the White House:

While President Biden has secured a cap on insulin costs at $35/month, a cap on out-of-pocket prescription drug costs to $2000, enabled Medicare for the first time to negotiate drug prices, and lowered the cost of health care premiums, Congressional Republicans have promised to strip Medicare of the right to negotiate drug prices and remove the $2,000 cap on out-of-pocket pharmacy expenses and would  put Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security on the chopping block every five years. © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

President Biden’s top priority is to lower costs for the American people. He was proud to sign the Inflation Reduction Act into law, taking on Big Pharma to allow Medicare to negotiate prescription drug costs for the first time, capping seniors’ drug costs at the pharmacy and the cost of insulin, and lowering health insurance premiums for people who get coverage through the Affordable Care Act. President Biden and Congressional Democrats are committed to protecting and strengthening Social Security and Medicare.
 
Congressional Republicans have a very different vision. They have promised to strip Medicare of the right to negotiate drug prices and remove the $2,000 cap on out-of-pocket pharmacy expenses. Florida’s Republican Senator and Chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee Rick Scott has championed a plan to put Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security on the chopping block every five years. Further, Congressional Republicans have repeatedly pledged to hold the American economy hostage by refusing to raise the debt limit unless they can cut Social Security and Medicare benefits that tens of millions of Americans have already paid into. 
 
Here’s what Congressional Republicans’ plan would mean:

Part I: Putting Bedrock Programs like Social Security and Medicare on the Chopping Block and Threatening the Global Economy Unless Those Programs Are Cut

All Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security beneficiaries would see their benefits threatened under Sen. Rick Scott’s plan to put those programs on the chopping block every five years. Sen. Ron Johnson’s vision of putting them up for a vote every year would make that even worse. 
 
Congressional Republican leaders have also repeatedly said they will use the debt limit as leverage to cut these bedrock programs. Congressional Republicans have supported Medicare and Social Security cuts including:

  • Gradually increasing the Medicare eligibility age to 67 and the Social Security eligibility age to 70. (Republican Study Committee FY 2023 Budget)
     
  • Transforming Medicare benefits into a voucher where seniors would get a fixed amount of money to purchase a private health plan (Better Way Plan) or offering beneficiaries the option to transition to a premium support system (Republican Study Committee FY 2023 Budget) – which could lead to hundreds or thousands of dollars in additional out of pocket costs for seniors throughout the country.


Part II: Repealing the Prescription Drug and Health Care Provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act
 

President Biden has worked for decades to let Medicare negotiate drug prices, and that is finally happening thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act.  This will save billions of dollars for both Medicare beneficiaries, who will see reduced premiums and out-of-pocket costs, and the federal government. Kaiser Family Foundation estimates suggest that some 5 to 7 million beneficiaries each year use the types of high-cost drugs that could be subject to negotiation and will directly face higher cost sharing if these provisions are repealed.

The Inflation Reduction Act also requires prescription drug companies to pay rebates if they increase drug prices faster than inflation. According to an analysis by the Department of Health and Human Services, the cost of 1,200 prescription drugs rose faster than inflation in the last year alone – some prescription drugs increasing by $1000 in just one year. If Congressional Republicans repeal the Inflation Reduction Act, drug companies will be able to continue raising prices without paying a rebate, rather than putting that money back into Americans’ pockets.
 

Before the Inflation Reduction Act, Medicare beneficiaries with conditions like cancer, multiple sclerosis, and lung disease could face thousands of dollars in out-of-pocket prescription drug costs per year. Thanks to President Biden and Congressional Democrats’ Inflation Reduction Act, those costs will be capped at $2,000 per year, saving over 1 million beneficiaries an average of over $1,300 per year. If Congressional Republicans get their way and repeal the law, over 1.4 million Medicare beneficiaries will pay more each year – thousands of dollars more in some cases – for drugs at the pharmacy.
 

Drug manufacturers have raised insulin prices so rapidly over the last few decades that some Medicare beneficiaries struggle to afford this life-saving drug that costs less than $10 a vial to manufacture. Today, Medicare beneficiaries are enrolling in plans that must cap the out-of-pocket cost of insulin at no more than $35 per month per prescription, a protection they will lose if the law is repealed.
 

The Inflation Reduction Act saves 13 million Americans an average of about $800 per year on their health care premiums, by continuing the improvements to Affordable Care Act (ACA) premium tax credits enacted in the American Rescue Plan. By making health care more affordable, these improvements have expanded coverage to millions of people, helping bring the uninsured rate to an all-time low. Starting today, during Open Enrollment season, Americans can choose health insurance plans that lock in the Inflation Reduction Act’s cost savings for 2023. But Congressional Republicans would repeal this assistance, drive premiums higher, and jeopardize the progress the Biden Administration has made in driving the uninsured rate to a historic low. Older Americans would see especially large premium spikes; in most states, annual premiums for a 60-year old making $60,000 would more than double to over $10,000.

Biden Administration, Health Care

Biden Acts to Lower Health Care and Prescription Drug Costs for Americans

This is a fact sheet from the White House on actions President Biden has taken to lower health care and prescription drug costs:

To mark the start of Medicare Open Enrollment season, President Biden highlighted how seniors can take advantage of the Inflation Reduction Act’s cost-saving provisions as they shop for new health insurance plans. The President also signed an Executive Order directing the Department of Health and Human Services to explore additional actions it can take to lower prescription drug costs to build on his Administration’s work lowering costs for working and middle-class families © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

To mark the start of Medicare Open Enrollment season, President Biden highlighted how seniors can take advantage of the Inflation Reduction Act’s cost-saving provisions as they shop for new health insurance plans. The President also signed an Executive Order directing the Department of Health and Human Services to explore additional actions it can take to lower prescription drug costs to build on his Administration’s work lowering costs for working and middle-class families.
 
Americans are squeezed by the cost of living – that’s been true for years and is a key reason the President ran. Health care costs in particular are driving inflation. Too many Americans face challenges paying for prescription drugs. On average, Americans pay two to three times as much as people in other countries for prescription drugs, and one in four Americans who take prescription drugs struggle to afford their medications. Nearly three in ten American adults who take prescription drugs say that they have skipped doses, cut pills in half, or not filled prescriptions due to cost.
 
The Inflation Reduction Act – which President Biden and Congressional Democrats delivered – tackles that problem and locks in on average $800 per year lower health care premiums for 13 million families, lowers seniors’ prescription drug prices, and caps their out of pocket expenses for prescription drugs at $2,000 per year. The Inflation Reduction Act protects Medicare beneficiaries from catastrophic drug costs by phasing in a cap for out-of-pocket costs at the pharmacy, establishing a $35 monthly cap per prescription of insulin, requiring companies who raise prices faster than inflation to pay Medicare a rebate, and allowing Medicare to negotiate prices for high-cost prescription drugs for the first time ever. Republicans in Congress, meanwhile, have said their top priority is to repeal the Inflation Reduction Act, ending these cost-saving provisions and raising prices for tens of millions of Americans.
 
To further lower health care costs, earlier this week, the Treasury Department took action to fix the so-called “family glitch” rule that was making it harder for families to afford health care coverage for their spouse or child. About 1 million Americans will either gain coverage or see their insurance become more affordable as a result of the new rule.
 
Lowering Medicare Costs This Open Enrollment Season
 
Starting this January, seniors and other Medicare beneficiaries will begin to see the benefits of these cost-saving measures. Because of the Inflation Reduction Act:

  • A month’s supply of insulin will be capped at $35 starting on January 1, 2023.
  • Medicare beneficiaries will pay $0 out of pocket for recommended adult vaccines covered by their Part D plan, including the shingles vaccine – which costs seniors up to $200.
  • Prescription drug companies that try to raise their prices faster than inflation will be required to pay Medicare a rebate. 

Earlier this year, HHS released a report showing that the price of 1,200 prescription drugs rose faster than inflation in just the last year. For example, one manufacturer of a drug used to treat high blood pressure and heart failure, used by millions of Medicare beneficiaries, increased the drug’s price by nearly 540 percent in 2022. Another drug used to treat autoimmune conditions increased by $1000 just this year.
 
During Medicare Open Enrollment – running from October 15 to December 7 – seniors and other beneficiaries will be able to choose drug coverage that reflects these new cost-savings, putting money back into their pockets.
 
Medicare beneficiaries should visit Medicare.gov or call 1-800-MEDICARE to review their options for the coming year, and make sure their health and prescription drug coverage is right for them. 
 
Using HHS’ Innovation Center to Further Bring Down Costs
 
As the Biden-Harris Administration works to implement the Inflation Reduction Act, President Biden will sign an Executive Order today directing the Department of Health and Human Services to consider additional actions to further drive down prescription drug costs. That includes leveraging the “Innovation Center” at HHS, created by the Affordable Care Act, which has authority to test new ways of paying for Medicare services that improve the quality of care while lowering costs. 
 
Under the Executive Order, HHS will have 90 days to submit a formal report outlining any plans to use the Innovation Center’s authorities to lower drug costs and promote access to innovative drug therapies for Medicare beneficiaries. This action would build on the Inflation Reduction Act’s landmark drug pricing reforms and help provide additional breathing room for American families.

Biden Administration, Health Care, News & Photo Features

FACT SHEET: Biden Takes Action to Lower Health Care and Prescription Drug Costs for Americans

President Biden Signs Executive Order Directing HHS to Explore Additional Actions to Lower Prescription Drug Costs

Starting this January, seniors and other Medicare beneficiaries will begin to see the benefits of these cost-saving measures. Because of the Inflation Reduction Act: a month’s supply of insulin will be capped at $35; Medicare beneficiaries will pay $0 out of pocket for recommended adult vaccines covered by their Part D plan, including the shingles vaccine – which costs seniors up to $200; Prescription drug companies that try to raise their prices faster than inflation will be required to pay Medicare a rebate © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

This fact sheet about actions that President Biden is taking to lower health care and prescription drug costs was provided by the White House:

To mark the start of Medicare Open Enrollment season, President Biden is highlighting how seniors can take advantage of the Inflation Reduction Act’s cost-saving provisions as they shop for new health insurance plans. The President  also signed an Executive Order directing the Department of Health and Human Services to explore additional actions it can take to lower prescription drug costs to build on his Administration’s work lowering costs for working and middle-class families.

Americans are squeezed by the cost of living – that’s been true for years and is a key reason the President ran. Health care costs in particular are driving inflation. Too many Americans face challenges paying for prescription drugs. On average, Americans pay two to three times as much as people in other countries for prescription drugs, and one in four Americans who take prescription drugs struggle to afford their medications. Nearly three in ten American adults who take prescription drugs say that they have skipped doses, cut pills in half, or not filled prescriptions due to cost. 

The Inflation Reduction Act – which President Biden and Congressional Democrats delivered – tackles that problem and locks in on average $800 per year lower health care premiums for 13 million families, lowers seniors’ prescription drug prices, and caps their out of pocket expenses for prescription drugs at $2,000 per year. The Inflation Reduction Act protects Medicare beneficiaries from catastrophic drug costs by phasing in a cap for out-of-pocket costs at the pharmacy, establishing a $35 monthly cap per prescription of insulin, requiring companies who raise prices faster than inflation to pay Medicare a rebate, and allowing Medicare to negotiate prices for high-cost prescription drugs for the first time ever. Republicans in Congress, meanwhile, have said their top priority is to repeal the Inflation Reduction Act, ending these cost-saving provisions and raising prices for tens of millions of Americans. 

To further lower health care costs, earlier this week, the Treasury Department took action to fix the so-called “family glitch” rule that was making it harder for families to afford health care coverage for their spouse or child. About 1 million Americans will either gain coverage or see their insurance become more affordable as a result of the new rule.

Lowering Medicare Costs This Open Enrollment Season

Starting this January, seniors and other Medicare beneficiaries will begin to see the benefits of these cost-saving measures. Because of the Inflation Reduction Act:

• A month’s supply of insulin will be capped at $35 starting on January 1, 2023. 

• Medicare beneficiaries will pay $0 out of pocket for recommended adult vaccines covered by their Part D plan, including the shingles vaccine – which costs seniors up to $200. 

• Prescription drug companies that try to raise their prices faster than inflation will be required to pay Medicare a rebate. 

Earlier this year, HHS released a report showing that the price of 1,200 prescription drugs rose faster than inflation in just the last year. For example, one manufacturer of a drug used to treat high blood pressure and heart failure, used by millions of Medicare beneficiaries, increased the drug’s price by nearly 540 percent in 2022. Another drug used to treat autoimmune conditions increased by $1000 just this year.

During Medicare Open Enrollment – running from October 15 to December 7 – seniors and other beneficiaries will be able to choose drug coverage that reflects these new cost-savings, putting money back into their pockets. 

Medicare beneficiaries should visit Medicare.gov or call 1-800-MEDICARE to review their options for the coming year, and make sure their health and prescription drug coverage is right for them.  

Using HHS’ Innovation Center to Further Bring Down Costs

As the Biden-Harris Administration works to implement the Inflation Reduction Act, President Biden signed an Executive Order directing the Department of Health and Human Services to consider additional actions to further drive down prescription drug costs. That includes leveraging the “Innovation Center” at HHS, created by the Affordable Care Act, which has authority to test new ways of paying for Medicare services thatimprove the quality of care while lowering costs.  

Under Executive Order XX, HHS will have 90 days to submit a formal report outlining any plans to use the Innovation Center’s authorities to lower drug costs and promote access to innovative drug therapies for Medicare beneficiaries. This action would build on the Inflation Reduction Act’s landmark drug pricing reforms and help provide additional breathing room for American families.

Economic Development, Health Care, New York State politics, News & Photo Features

NYS Makes Significant Investment in Feinstein Institutes to Make Long Island a Life Sciences Global Leader 

New York State Governor Kathy Hochul at Northwell Health on Long Island announces new funding for the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research’s Center for Bioelectronic Medicine and funding to expand life sciences on Long Island, including a $50 million competition to incentivize commercialization of new discoveries © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

By Karen Rubin, News-Photos-Features.com

New York State Governor Kathy Hochul today announced the $350 million Long Island Investment Fund awarded its first grant to the The Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research to construct 40,000 square feet of new state-of-the-art labs to support medical and infectious disease research. The $10 million Long Island Investment Fund grant complements an additional $30 million in State support previously awarded to the Feinstein Institutes to modernize 20,000 square feet of its Institute of Bioelectronic Medicine, which Governor Hochul opened today. New York State’s assistance is part of an $85 million modernization effort at the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research in Manhasset, Nassau County, and a broader initiative to highlight the growing life science industry on Long Island. The Feinstein Institutes is the research arm of Northwell Health and is one of the leading laboratory and research centers in the country, conducting cutting-edge studies that seek to cure diseases.

“New York is leading the way in medical innovation, and the Long Island Investment Fund will support life-saving research on the cutting edge of the life sciences industry,” Governor Hochul said.”Our investment in the Institute of Bioelectronic Medicine is already improving the lives of everyday New Yorkers, and the additional Long Island Investment Fund award announced today reaffirms our commitment to remaining a national leader in the health and medical research fields. I am proud to support the Feinstein Institutes and their research, which will lead to life-changing medicine and treatments that will improve the lives of New Yorkers on Long Island and across the State.”

The field of bioelectronic medicine was born here, she said, thanks to the pioneering work of Dr. Kevin J. Tracey, President and CEO of Feinstein Institutes, and the funding will enable this work to be greatly expanded, attracting top scientists from around the world.

Included as part of Governor Hochul’s FY 2023 Enacted Budget, the Long Island Investment Fund focuses on projects that will support and grow the regional economy, enhance communities, and have lasting economic impacts across Long Island. The Fund’s $10 million award to the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research will support the renovation and construction of 26 new state-of-the-art research labs on two floors as well as the hiring of 10 new principal investigators and 60 research employees. These modernized labs will advance research efforts to develop novel therapies for cancer, diabetes, obesity, lupus, and other conditions.

Long Island has become a life sciences hub, with a defined corridor that links Stony Brook University, Brookhaven National Labs (energy), Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (genomics) and Northwell’s Feinstein Institutes.

The state is also launching a $50 million life science business competition on Long Island, in order to bridge the divide between research and commercialization, and bring the innovations to market with start-ups, many of which may well come out of the four research institutions.

In all, New York is investing $620 million in life sciences sector, statewide.

New York State Governor Kathy Hochul with Empire State Development’s President, CEO and Commissioner Hope Knight and Chairman Kevin Law, announce the $350 million Long Island Investment Fund, which will focus largely on developing life sciences research and businesses © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

“The Long Island Investment Fund represents a strategic investment to further enhance the region as a powerhouse for the life sciences industry, which is an important driver of New York State’s economy,” Empire State Development President, CEO and Commissioner Hope Knight said. “The Feinstein Institutes play a critical role in life-changing medical discoveries and therapeutics that can improve our everyday lives. ESD is proud to support the growth of visionary life sciences companies like the Feinstein Institutes, whose work is crucial to building a healthier and stronger Empire State.”

The Feinstein Institutes is the global scientific home of bioelectronic medicine, a growing scientific field that uses technology to read and modulate electrical activity within the body’s nervous system. The new, modernized labs at the Institute of Bioelectronic Medicine will support discoveries to find cures that will reduce the need for drugs, reduce painful side effects, and give life back to people who are suffering. Early discoveries have emerged from its labs, opening new treatment options for patients with diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes, paralysis, and even cancer. Clinical studies in bioelectronic medicine have already yielded results with those who are paralyzed: recent research utilizing an over-the-skin spinal cord stimulation patch has allowed participants to regain their ability to move and feel. 

Governor Hochul acknowledged that the new technology could also help in the state’s effort to diagnose and treat Long COVID which is afflicting so many New Yorkers.

The Institute of Bioelectronic Medicine’s renovation includes wet-lab bench space, multiple tissue culture rooms, cold storage rooms, workstations for researchers, and a brand-new Biosafety Level 3 facility to allow new research into infectious diseases and other complex viruses, such as COVID-19. The expansion also supports the hiring of 13 new principal investigators and 100 new research employees.

Dr. Kevin J. Tracey, President and CEO of Feinstein Institutes, in one of the new labs devoted to making breakthroughs in bioelectronic medicine. The facilities are expected to attract world-class researchers © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

The Feinstein Institutes President and CEO Dr. Kevin Tracey said, “At the Feinstein Institutes, scientific progress is made every day. With the proper facilities and tools, we can help advance that progress even further. We are thankful to the Governor and Empire State Development for their funding of our new space, and we look forward to continuing our breakthrough medical research that will benefit our Long Island communities and beyond.”

Northwell Health’s President and CEO, Michael Dowling said,”This new facility and its resources, made possible by Governor Hochul and the Empire State Development, will allow our researchers at The Feinstein Institutes – Northwell’s home of research and the global scientific home of bioelectronic medicine – to pursue their mission of discovering new treatments to cure disease and improve the health of the communities we serve.”

Long Island is at the forefront of the life sciences industry as new research and discoveries in bioelectronic medicine – a new scientific field born and bred on Long Island – will attract the best and brightest researchers and world-leading strategic partners to create the cures that can transform lives. The life sciences industry has become a powerful engine of economic growth and innovation for New York, turning key regions of the State into dynamic life science hubs. Investing in life sciences is crucial to identify the next scientific or medical breakthrough that will develop new life-saving technologies. Through its support of the Feinstein Institutes’ growth, New York is expanding its ability to commercialize research and spur the growth of a world-class life science industry on Long Island and across the State.

“Under Governor Hochul’s leadership, New York is making smart investments to catalyze economic growth on Long Island. The Long Island Investment Fund will help the region thrive and strengthen New York’s leadership in the global innovation economy,” Empire State Development Board Chairman Kevin Law said. “The Fund’s $10 million award to the Feinstein Institutes reaffirms our commitment to the growing life sciences ecosystem that will support the advancement of game-changing medical discoveries.”

“Thanks to smart investments by the State of New York in partnership with the private sector, Long Island’s life sciences industry is growing and thriving, bringing great jobs to our community, and driving innovation that will make our world a better place,” State Senator Anna M. Kaplan said. “I fought for the Long Island Investment Fund to be included in this year’s state budget because we need to continue making smart investments in our community that build on our many strengths and make our region more attractive for private investors and job creators to set up shop and expand their operations locally. I’m thrilled that, thanks to this fund, the world-class Feinstein Institute for Medical Research right here in Manhasset will be able to modernize their Institute of Bioelectronic Medicine that’s doing incredible work to cure diseases and change the world.”

Dr. Kevin J. Tracey President and CEO of Feinstein Institutes discusses the breakthrough science of bioelectronic medicine © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

During a walk-through of the new and renovated labs, Dr. Tracey explained how bioelectric medicine involves building devices to control nerves, to treat disease. “Pick a disease, pick target, figure out the  neural signals to control target.” The technology can be used to activate immune system to intercept a disease. “Send the right neural signal to the right nerve to trigger immune system.” It can be used to create new neural pathways to restore function to stroke victims, and has application to rehabilitation, such as the loss of hand function after a car accident.

But, he adds, you can’t treat a disease until you understand its mechanism, which is why mental illness is not on the list at this time.

“Things are happening fast,” he said, The FDA granted the technology “breakthrough” designation, which means the innovations can be fast tracked.

Devices invented at the Institute of Bioelectronic Medicine at Feinstein are used to track neural impulses sent to specific disease targets © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

In the bioengineering lab, he points to the “wireless mouse” – not the computer device, but devices that can be inserted into a mouse to receive signals to stimulate specific nerves, and send the nerve recording back. A mouse is important for research because scientists can create disease in the mouse genetically, locate it, and generate the evidence that can be used to treat humans.

Investing in the Future of Long Island

The $10 million Long Island Investment Fund grant announced today complements historic initiatives and investments for Long Island:

  • $157 million investment — repaving 300 lane miles of state highways to date.
  • More than $457 million for school aid – a 12.7 percent increase compared to FY 2022.
  • $63 million for addiction treatment, recovery and prevention services.
  • The homeowner Tax Rebate Credit, with an average benefit of $1,300 for 494,000 Long Island homeowners.
  • $500 million to develop New York’s offshore wind infrastructure and supply chain – ultimately creating more than 2,000 green jobs.
  • Completing Long Island Rail Road’s historic Third Track project, allowing trains to run more often and creating a smoother ride for LIRR commuters.

____________________

© 2022 News & Photo Features Syndicate, a division of Workstyles, Inc. All rights reserved. For editorial feature and photo information, go to www.news-photos-features.com, email [email protected]. Blogging at www.dailykos.com/blogs/NewsPhotosFeatures. ‘Like’ us on facebook.com/NewsPhotoFeatures, Tweet @KarenBRubin