Tom Howell Jr.
Articles by Tom Howell Jr.
Obamacare defenders face Saturday deadline, plead for signups
Sen. Sherrod Brown isn't just pleading with folks to get covered under Obamacare by Saturday's deadline -- he's showing them how to do it, too. Published December 14, 2018
GOP investigators question need for fetal-tissue research
President Trump's biggest GOP allies pushed Thursday to discontinue the use of fetal tissue in taxpayer-funded research, saying its benefits are overblown, it offends their constituents and good alternatives seem to exist. Published December 13, 2018
HealthCare.gov signups 500K behind last year’s pace
Roughly 500,000 fewer people have selected coverage on the main Obamacare website than at this point last year, the administration reported Wednesday, meaning sign-ups continue to lag heading into the final days of 2019 enrollment. Published December 12, 2018
Naloxone maker rolls out cheaper generic, after pricing outcry
A Virginia drugmaker said Wednesday that it will roll out a far cheaper, generic version of its overdose-reversing naloxone, one month after Senate investigators accused the company of capitalizing on the U.S. opioid epidemic by dramatically hiking its price. Published December 12, 2018
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Pramila Jayapal and Mark Pocan call for ‘Green New Deal’
Two key liberal leaders on Tuesday signed onto Rep.-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's call for a "Green New Deal" in the new Congress next year, as progressive activists warned that Democrats will pay an electoral price among young voters if they don't get behind the plan. Published December 11, 2018
Kevin Brady calls for delaying some Obamacare-related taxes
A top House Republican on Monday proposed new delays on some of Obamacare's remaining taxes, hoping to harness bipartisan antipathy to the levies to sweeten a broader package of tax tweaks he has been trying to get passed. Published December 10, 2018
Marlboro maker invests $1.8 billion in pot, pivots away from vaping
Marlboro cigarette maker Altria on Friday said it's investing nearly $2 billion in a Canadian cannabis company and pivoting away from its e-cigarette business, which faces new regulatory hurdles and has struggled for market share against major players like JUUL. Published December 7, 2018
Women facing brunt of Ebola outbreak in DRC
Global responders say the unfolding Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo is having an outsized impact on women and children, due in part to their societal roles and the transmission of the disease among families. Published December 7, 2018
Stephen Lynch reverses, backs Nancy Pelosi for speaker
Rep. Stephen Lynch of Massachusetts on Friday became the latest Democrat to rally behind Rep. Nancy Pelosi after vowing to oppose her, saying she convinced him the caucus will work to bring working-class voters who flocked to President Trump in 2016 back into their tent. Published December 7, 2018
Health care spending stabilized, Obamacare’s impact waned, say federal actuaries
Health care spending stabilized during President Trump's first year in office, as patients used fewer services, Obamacare's impact waned and patients no longer needed pricey hepatitis C drugs, federal actuaries said Thursday. Published December 6, 2018
4 in 10 don’t plan to get flu shot: Survey
Roughly four in 10 Americans say they haven't gotten a flu shot and don't plan to, despite the federal government's push to avoid another brutal influenza season this winter, the University of Chicago reported Wednesday in a survey. Published December 5, 2018
Wisconsin GOP passes bills to limit incoming Democratic governor, AG
The GOP-led Wisconsin legislature passed bills in the wee hours Wednesday that scale back the powers of Gov.-elect Tony Evers and Attorney General-elect Josh Kaul, both Democrats. Published December 5, 2018
Wisconsin Republican bill blocks Tony Evers pledge
The Republican-led Wisconsin Legislature is rushing to pass legislation that would bar the incoming governor and attorney general, both Democrats, from fulfilling a campaign promise to leave a lawsuit seeking to overturn most of Obamacare. Published December 4, 2018
China declares fentanyl illegal amid Trump pressure
One week before the midterm elections, seven members of Congress jetted to China with specific marching orders from the Trump administration and Ambassador Terry Branstad: Urge Beijing to crack down on fentanyl, the No. 1 killer in the U.S. overdose crisis. Published December 3, 2018
George H.W. Bush lies in state at U.S. Capitol
Americans began to get a chance to pay their respects in person Monday to former President George H.W. Bush, whose body was brought to the U.S. Capitol to lie in state, joining just 31 other heroes so honored. Published December 3, 2018
Democratic Republic of Congo’s Ebola outbreak now second-worst in history
New case counts from the Democratic Republic of Congo indicate its lingering Ebola outbreak is now the worst in recorded history behind the massive outbreak that killed thousands in West Africa earlier this decade. Published November 30, 2018
House Democrats unveil sweeping political reform bill as ‘HR1’
House Democrats set to retake the majority unveiled a political-reform bill Friday that would bolster ethics rules in Congress, push for automatic voter registration and require presidential nominees to release their tax returns -- a direct rebuke of President Trump. Published November 30, 2018
Donald Trump outlines ways states can duck Obamacare’s strictures
The Trump administration on Thursday outlined ways that states can skirt Obamacare, freeing adventurous governors and legislators to spend federal money on health plans that don't meet the strict standards of the law's exchanges. Published November 29, 2018
Nancy Pelosi short on votes to be House speaker
The House Democratic Caucus voted 203-32 to name Nancy Pelosi speaker-designee, showing she is well within striking distance of the 218 total she will need Jan. 3. Published November 28, 2018
Steny Hoyer selected by House Democrats as majority leader
House Democrats backed Rep. Steny Hoyer of Maryland to serve as majority leader in the new Congress, extending his lengthy reign in the top ranks of party leadership. Published November 28, 2018