It’s the economy, stupid

Democrats’ off-year election strategy is to try tying health care to the economy as Trump’s favorability on the economy falls and Democrats make hay out of Republican cuts to health care. Today’s elections will offer an initial test of that approach, Daniel Payne reports.

A new Washington Post-ABC News-Ipsos poll shows that 37% of Americans approve of President Trump’s handling of the economy, and 62% disapprove. In an interview shortly after the election, Trump said the economy was one of the big reasons he won.

Democrats have been harping on the nearly $1 trillion in Medicaid cuts that Republicans are using to help pay the $4.5 trillion cost of extending tax cuts. But those cuts take place after the midterms, so Democrats separately have made the extension of extra subsidies for ACA plans their central demand for funding the government to draw attention to health care issues. People have already started seeing the premium increases.

“We see time and again that the biggest issues right now for Americans are the economy and affordability,” Democratic Governors Association communications director Sam Newton told Daniel. “Whether or not you can get the health care you need and afford it plays directly into that.”

But Republican strategists say their party could make headway on health issues by highlighting the high taxpayer cost of health subsidies or tying health care to immigration and gender-affirming care.

It’d be a mistake to read too much into a handful of state races, but we’ll be watching the results in Virginia and New Jersey.

Medicaid

States reject Oz's Medicaid stats

Several states have rejected CMS Administrator Mehmet Oz’s claims that they’re spending federal funds to provide Medicaid for undocumented immigrants, Daniel reports.

Oz posted Friday on X that after an audit, CMS found “a terrifying reality” of more than $1 billion of federal dollars being spent on care for “illegal aliens” in California, Illinois, Washington, Colorado, Oregon, and the District of Columbia. So Daniel called those states to get their take. Four got back to him.

Read more to learn which state said CMS has already privately admitted to an error.

fda

Drama atop the FDA

George Tidmarsh, the FDA’s top drug regulator, resigned after the agency’s top biologics regulator accused Tidmarsh of using his position to punish a former business partner with whom Tidmarsh had a falling out, Lizzy Lawrence and Adam Feuerstein report.

Tidmarsh, who had earlier been abruptly placed on leave by Commissioner Marty Makary, denied wrongdoing and accused senior FDA officials — including CBER chief Vinay Prasad — of being in the wrong.

Read all about the beef between Tidmarsh and Prasad and the role of a separate beef, between Tidmarsh and Kevin Tang, a San Diego-based health care investor and business owner, in Tidmarsh’s ouster.

Lizzy and Matthew Herper wrote a follow-up story with more details about the soap opera and commentary from former FDA officials and experts.

And you can get the lowdown on the feud between Prasad and his staff in an exclusive story by Lizzy. Dozens of scientists are considering leaving Prasad’s biologics center, where mistrust and paranoia have taken root.

But wait, there’s more. Andrew Joseph tells us about an explosive lawsuit against Tidmarsh that includes a series of incendiary texts and emails he is said to have sent to Tang.

maha

Deep in the heart of MAHA

Many Texans probably don’t like being compared to Californians, but Isabella Cueto did it anyway.

After a weeklong trip around the state talking with everyday folks, Isa found that although the average Texan might not recognize the Make America Healthy Again movement by name, many embrace its ethos. The state also has become a testing ground for the movement’s odd mix of legislative priorities.

“Really, the nation has just caught up with what we’ve been dealing with in Texas for the past 10 years,” said Rekha Lakshmanan, chief strategic officer for The Immunization Partnership, a nonprofit group that promotes vaccination as a public health strategy.

Isa did a great job on this one. You should read it.

doctors

Medicare cuts pay for surgeries

In a blow to specialists, Medicare on Friday made good on its earlier proposal to cut payments for surgeries, outpatient procedures, and other services it believes can be done more efficiently, Tara Bannow reports.

The policy is both controversial and easy to miss, due to its technical nature, but Tara knows her stuff.

The policy involves a so-called efficiency adjustment, which assumes that advances in technology and standardized workflows reduce the time and expense of performing certain procedures. Medicare will cut pay rates 2.5% for those services starting Jan. 1.

Meanwhile, payments for time-based services that primary care doctors typically provide, such as office visits or behavioral health therapy, will not be cut. Telehealth and certain maternity services will also be unaffected.

What we’re reading

Trump says he will help ‘Dilbert’ creator get cancer drug, STAT
Trump administration says SNAP will be partially funded in November, Associated Press
UnitedHealth pays its own physician groups 17% more than outside ones, study shows,