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Tom Howell Jr.

Tom Howell Jr.

Tom Howell Jr. covers politics and the White House for The Washington Times. He can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.

Articles by Tom Howell Jr.

West Virginia attorney general Patrick Morrisey is shown in this Monday, Sept. 18, 2017, photo at a news conference at Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia. Attorneys general from dozens of states are urging health insurers to review their policies for pain management treatment to spark higher use of alternatives to opioid prescriptions. (AP Photo/John Raby) **FILE**

West Virginia AG announces proposal to crack down on opioids abuse

West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey on Tuesday proposed a five-point strategy to rein in opioid abuse in his hard-hit corner of Appalachia, from launching an "enforcement surge" of 150 state troopers to limiting certain prescriptions for painkillers to just three days Published February 6, 2018

House to vote on sexual harassment bill

The House will vote Tuesday on new rules requiring lawmakers pay for any workplace discrimination or sexual harassment settlements out of their own pockets, moving to clean up Capitol Hill's act after members used taxpayer money to silence unflattering accusations. Published February 5, 2018

Annemarie Mogil heads to her apartment after a visit with her neighbor, Alice Singer, in Prospect Park Residence, an assisted living apartment complex for seniors in Brooklyn borough of New York on Thursday, April 7, 2016. The residence has become the focus of a two-year-old fight springing from its owner's decision to sell the building to be converted to condos. Mogil, Singer and three other remaining residents have refused to leave, shedding light on the rights of elders and the difficulty of transition in life's twilight. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews) **FILE**

Gov’t watchdogs see gaps in oversight of assisted living facilities

Many states are unable to tally and describe safety problems at assisted living facilities, government inspectors said Monday, even as the popular alternative to nursing-home care soaks up an increasing amount of taxpayer dollars under Medicaid. Published February 5, 2018

This Monday, Dec. 4, 2017 photo shows Pfizer's generic version of Viagra, sildenafil citrate, at the company's headquarters in New York. The drugmaker is launching its own cheaper generic version of Viagra rather than lose sales when its impotence pill gets its first generic competition. (AP Photo/Richard Drew) ** FILE **

Most voters say drug prices should be priority for Congress: Survey

More than eight in 10 people think lowering the cost of prescription medicines is a "top" or "important" priority for Congress, according to a poll Monday that suggests drug prices are top-of-mind for Americans across the political spectrum. Published February 5, 2018

Fitzgerald

CDC focuses on fighting flu after Brenda Fitzgerald resignation

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the resignation of its director will not disrupt efforts to combat a severe flu season that's killed more than 50 children and is on pace to break hospitalization records. Published February 4, 2018

Rep. Brad Wenstrup, R-Ohio, a member of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs, questions officials from the Department of Veterans Affairs about allegations of gross mismanagement and misconduct at VA hospitals possibly leading to patient deaths, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, May 28, 2014. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Brad Wenstrup: FBI memo not about Trump vindication

A Republican member of the House Intelligence Committee on Sunday said the release of a GOP memo detailing how the FBI used Democrat-funded information to snoop on one of President Trump's campaign aides is about government oversight -- not "vindication" for a White House besieged by probes into possible ties with Russia. Published February 4, 2018

Former CIA Director John Brennan testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, May 23, 2017, before the House Intelligence Committee Russia Investigation Task Force. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais) ** FILE **

John Brennan slams Devin Nunes for ‘reckless’ handling of memo

Former C.I.A. Director John Brennan on Sunday chastised the Republican chairman of the House Intelligence Committee on Sunday for his handling of a bombshell memo that delved into the secretive world of surveillance courts, saying the push to expose bias at the FBI was one-sided and shut out opposing views. Published February 4, 2018

Senate Minority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer of N.Y., speaks to reporters following a Senate policy luncheon on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

Chuck Schumer to Trump: Back Democratic memo release

Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer told President Trump on Sunday to support the release of a Democratic memo that serves as a rebuttal to the House GOP memo that alleges the FBI used biased information to begin snooping on a former Trump campaign aide in late 2016. Published February 4, 2018

Sen. Dick Durbin D-Ill. questions Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen as she testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee in Capitol Hill on Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018, in Washington. ( AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana) ** FILE **

Richard Durbin: Don’t use memo to fire Rosenstein, Mueller

Senate Minority Whip Richard J. Durbin warned President Trump and his GOP allies on Sunday not to use a bombshell memo on the FBI's snooping powers to upend independent probes into Russian meddling in the 2016 campaign, saying it could spark a "constitutional crisis." Published February 4, 2018

"They could have easily said it was the DNC and Hillary Clinton. That would have been really easy," said Rep. Trey Gowdy, South Carolina Republican. (Associated Press/File)

Trey Gowdy says FBI concealed Clinton role in Steele dossier

The House's top investigator on Sunday said the FBI failed to notify a surveillance court that it was relying on material backed by the Democratic National Committee and the Hillary Clinton campaign when it asked to snoop on a former adviser to the Trump campaign. Published February 4, 2018

Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, speaks at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, Thursday, Feb. 1, 2018. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

Adam Schiff says Nunes memo ‘political hit job’ on FBI

Rep. Adam Schiff of California said Sunday a House GOP memo criticizing the government's push to snoop on a Trump campaign aide is a "political hit job on the FBI at the service of the president." Published February 4, 2018

President Donald Trump, left, listens as Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, right, speaks after being sworn in at the Roosevelt Room at the White House, Monday, Jan. 29, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

HHS approves Indiana plan to tie Medicaid benefits to work

Indiana has become the second state to require some Medicaid enrollees to work if they want to keep their coverage, extending President Trump's push to revamp taxpayer-funded insurance without help from Congress. Published February 2, 2018

Biologist Rebecca Gillespie places a vial of flu-fighting antibodies in ice at the Vaccine Research Center at the National Institutes of Health, Tuesday, Dec. 19, 2017, in Bethesda, Md. Scientists now think people respond differently to vaccination based on their flu history. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Flu season has killed more than 50 children: CDC

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday the resignation of its director will not disrupt efforts to combat a severe flu season that's killed more than 50 children and is on pace to break hospitalization records. Published February 2, 2018

Republican presidential candidate Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., speaks at a Town Hall Meeting in Manchester, N.H., Saturday, Aug. 1, 2015. (AP Photo/Cheryl Senter)

Lindsey Graham tells GOP to continue fight against Obamacare

Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina pleaded with fellow Republicans Thursday to keep their fight against Obamacare alive, saying it's "naive" to think repeal of the mandate to hold insurance is good enough. Published February 1, 2018

FILE - This Tuesday, Aug. 15, 2017 file photo shows an arrangement of pills of the opioid oxycodone-acetaminophen, also known as Percocet, in New York. Cities and counties of all sizes have sued companies that make and distribute prescription opioids. Among the plaintiffs so far: Philadelphia; the state of Ohio; Princeton, West Virginia; the Cherokee Nation; and a consortium of counties across Wisconsin. (AP Photo/Patrick Sison)

Trump administration proposes ways to limit opioids under Medicare

The Trump administration said Thursday it wants to check the flow of potentially dangerous opioids to seniors, curtailing initial fills of some pain pills and adding a "trigger" for patients who seek too many opioids from the pharmacist. Published February 1, 2018

In this Jan. 5, 2018, file photo, Idaho Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter speaks to reporters about the 2018 legislative session at the State Capitol in Boise, Idaho. (AP Photo/Otto Kitsinger, File)

Democrats urge HHS to stop Idaho plan to skirt Obamacare

The state of Idaho appears to be violating federal law by proposing the sale of insurance plans that do not comply with Obamacare's strictures, top Democrats said Wednesday, pressing the Trump administration to either justify the proposal or intervene. Published January 31, 2018