| | | | |  | | By Ben Leonard and Chelsea Cirruzzo | | | | | | | 
Sens. Mitt Romney (left) and Susan Collins (right) could aid in elevating Dr. Monica Bertagnolli to the NIH's top position. | Stefani Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images | PATH FORWARD OPENS FOR NIH NOM — Sens. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) told POLITICO they’re supporting Dr. Monica Bertagnolli to head the NIH, which will help her overcome Senate HELP Chair Bernie Sanders’ opposition. She’s set for a vote today in the committee, which, given the Republicans’ support, will likely put her on track to be confirmed by the full Senate. The NIH has been without a confirmed director since the end of 2021. Unless other Democrats defect, Bertagnolli will have enough votes to clear the full Senate, which requires a simple majority vote. The confirmation had been in jeopardy after the Vermont Democrat said Tuesday he would vote against her over concerns that she won’t “take on the greed and power of the drug companies and health care industry,” POLITICO’s Erin Schumaker, David Lim and Ben report. Sanders’ opposition had left the White House needing some support from across the aisle. The White House reminded the senator that President Joe Biden had signed the Inflation Reduction Act into law, which allows Medicare to negotiate drug prices for the first time. “The President shares the senator’s concerns on drug pricing,” a White House official told POLITICO. While Sanders was able to delay Bertagnolli’s nomination and got a “commitment … from the White House to keep working to lower the price of prescription drugs,” his position has been rendered largely symbolic. He also held up the National Cancer Institute director’s nomination until the administration promised to do more to reduce drug prices. He let up in September, scheduling her hearing after the federal government struck a deal with biotech company Regeneron, which included a reasonable pricing clause for a Covid therapy it’s developing with federal assistance. Earlier this week, Sanders called for an investigation of the NIH over an exclusive patent for an NIH-developed cancer treatment the agency proposed in September. What other Republicans are thinking: It’s unclear how much more Republican support Bertagnolli will get. So far, only one Republican on the committee has come out as an outright no — Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.). Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) told POLITICO, “I’d probably lean toward ‘no’ right now.” Ranking member Bill Cassidy (R-La.) declined to say Tuesday afternoon how he’d vote. Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) said Tuesday he hadn’t decided yet, and Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) declined to say. Sen. Mike Braun (R-Ind.) said he’s still thinking about it and Sen. Lisa Murkowski(R-Alaska) declined to answer a question as she headed into the Senate chamber. WELCOME TO WEDNESDAY PULSE. We’re excited about the seeming last gasp of summer-like weather that’s going to come to D.C. later this week. Reach us at bleonard@politico.com or ccirruzzo@politico.com. Follow along @_BenLeonard_ and @ChelseaCirruzzo. TODAY ON OUR PULSE CHECK PODCAST, host Katherine Ellen Foley talks with Chelsea, who caught up with new CDC Director Mandy Cohen to discuss her efforts to regain the public’s trust in the sometimes beleaguered agency and her plans for the CDC's future.
| | | | | | | A message from PhRMA: Middlemen game the system at your expense. Pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) charge fees tied to the price of medicines, which experts warn can lead to higher costs for patients and the health care system. A new survey finds 72% of voters believe PBMs should receive a fixed fee for their services instead. See the data. | | | | | | | 
CDC Director Mandy Cohen has taken to the road to promote Covid-19 vaccination. | Mike Stewart/AP | 12 MILLION VACCINATED — The Biden administration’s yearly campaign to persuade Americans to get their annual Covid-19 shot is off to a slow start compared with last year. Even so, the nation’s top public health official said the U.S. remains “on track” to hit last year’s uptake levels — which crested at 17 percent of the U.S. population. So far, 12 million people, or about 3.6 percent of the U.S. population, have gotten the shot in the five weeks since it hit pharmacy shelves — though reporting lags mean it’s likely a bit higher, Dr. Mandy Cohen, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told Chelsea. More people — at least 16 million adults — are getting their annual flu vaccine, Cohen said, attributing the difference to Americans’ long-held routines. Cohen is in the middle of a national tour promoting vaccination, targeting older Americans at high risk of severe disease from Covid as well as underserved communities. The goal: The agency hasn’t defined what it would consider to be a success in the fall vaccination campaign, but Cohen called the 17 percent of bivalent booster coverage seen last season a “fair benchmark.”
| | | | GO INSIDE THE MILKEN INSTITUTE FUTURE OF HEALTH SUMMIT: POLITICO is proud to partner with the Milken Institute to feature a special edition of our Future Pulse newsletter at the 2023 Milken Institute Future of Health Summit from November 6-8. The newsletter takes readers inside one of the most influential gatherings of global health industry leaders and innovators solving the biggest public health issues to ensure a healthier, more resilient future for all. SUBSCRIBE TODAY TO RECEIVE EXCLUSIVE COVERAGE. | | | | | | | | | RSV SHOT DEMAND ‘UNDERESTIMATED’ — Manufacturers of a new injection to protect babies against respiratory syncytial virus “definitely underestimated demand,” CDC Director Mandy Cohen said Tuesday. “We were told there were no supply constraints,” she told POLITICO. “That’s not the case, obviously.” Her comments came the day after the CDC urged doctors to ration the limited number of doses amid supply shortages and a seasonal uptick in cases, Chelsea reports. Cohen said her agency is pressing Sanofi and its partner AstraZeneca, which manufacture the therapy, to accelerate the release of doses the companies have been holding for later in the RSV season. A Sanofi spokesperson declined to say how many doses short the companies are or when it would deliver more. The spokesperson reiterated the company’s prior statement that demand for the shot “outpaced estimates” and confirmed the company was coordinating with the CDC to manage supply.
| | | | RFK JR. GETS ANTI-VAX BOOST — Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s presidential campaign has received more than $400,000 from people who practice alternative medicine or have fringe beliefs about health care and treatments since its launch in April, according to newly released disclosures analyzed by POLITICO’s Megan R. Wilson. The money comes from chiropractors, acupuncturists, herbalists, energy healers, homeopathic doctors, hypnotherapists and specialists in rolfing — a treatment focused on connective tissue in the body that some consider a pseudoscience. Other donors, according to FEC filings: a “dolphin ambassador” offering dolphin energy-healing sessions for humans and an animal medium who communicates with people’s dead pets. Among the notable donors is Dr. Pierre Kory, co-founder of the Front Line COVID-19 Critical Care Alliance — a group that promoted off-label use of Ivermectin to prevent and treat Covid — who contributed $3,815. Kennedy’s campaign didn’t respond to a request for comment on the donations.
| | | | A message from PhRMA:   | | | | | BUSH UPS PEPFAR PUSH — Former President George W. Bush is escalating his bid to protect the major global HIV/AIDS program he created in 2003, POLITICO’s Carmen Paun reports. Some Republicans claim the Biden administration is backing abortion abroad through the program, dubbed the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, by funding overseas groups that also offer abortion. Democrats and Biden deny the charge. The George W. Bush Institute and 30 other faith, democracy global health and human rights groups wrote to Congress today, pushing for lawmakers to reauthorize PEPFAR, which lapsed at the end of September. It’s the first time Bush’s group has publicly backed the program’s reauthorization. While touting the estimated 25 million lives the program is credited with saving over its two-decade existence, the letter also argues to Congress that PEPFAR is an asset for the U.S. abroad as America competes with China and Russia for influence in Africa. The path forward is unclear. Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas), chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said he is working to extend the program, potentially for less than the usual five years. Senate Foreign Relations Chair Ben Cardin (D-Md.) said late last month he'd keep pushing for a five-year renewal.
| | | | A NEW POLITICO PODCAST: POLITICO Tech is an authoritative insider briefing on the politics and policy of technology. From crypto and the metaverse to cybersecurity and AI, we explore the who, what and how of policy shaping future industries. We’re kicking off with a series exploring darknet marketplaces, the virtual platforms that enable actors from all corners of the online world to traffic illicit goods. As malware and cybercrime attacks become increasingly frequent, regulators and law enforcement agencies work different angles to shut these platforms down, but new, often more unassailable marketplaces pop up. SUBSCRIBE AND START LISTENING TODAY. | | | | | | | | | Ilse Zuniga, HHS’ senior adviser for public health communications, is leaving the department after nearly two years as part of its comms shop, POLITICO’s Adam Cancryn reports. Zuniga plans to join AARP as the organization’s director of media relations.
| | | | A message from PhRMA: Middlemen can make you pay more. Newly released data show 74% of voters think health insurers and their PBMs should pass the rebates and discounts they receive to patients, so no patient pays more for their medicines than their insurer. Read the new poll. | | | | | Healthcare Dive writes about a report finding more than 2 million people would get coverage if the states that haven’t yet expanded Medicaid did so. In a STAT opinion piece, Kristina Carvalho wonders whether “dementia villages” work. CNN reports on the potential of take-home flu vaccines. | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Follow us | | | | |
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