Tom Howell Jr.
Articles by Tom Howell Jr.
Chuck Grassley: EpiPen maker overcharged taxpayers nearly $1.3B
Mylan Pharmaceuticals, the maker of EpiPens for allergy sufferers, may have overcharged taxpayers as much as $1.27 billion by misclassifying their life-saving devices under Medicaid's drug rebate program from 2006 to 2016, a government watchdog has informed Sen. Charles E. Grassley of Iowa. Published June 1, 2017
Trump administration’s rollback of Obamacare’s contraceptive mandate thrills conservatives
Conservatives are cheering on the Trump administration's reported plans to let any employer duck Obamacare's contraceptive mandate by claiming a religious or moral objection. Published May 31, 2017
GOP health plan gets low marks, heaping pressure on Senate: Poll
Americans continue to view Obamacare more favorably than the House-passed plan to repeal it, according to a Wednesday poll that finds the public is increasingly wary of how the GOP replacement would affect them if it were passed by the Senate and signed into law. Published May 31, 2017
Donald Trump’s first foreign trip thrills Republicans, disappoints Democrats
President Trump declared he knocked it out of the park during his first overseas trip and prominent Republicans agreed Sunday, saying he reassured allies and talked tough when necessary, though Democrats argued that he fell short and faces stiffer tests back home. Published May 28, 2017
GOP health care plan could harm anti-opioid efforts
The House GOP's health care bill would leave 14 million fewer people on Medicaid and force other patients to pay thousands of dollars more for substance abuse treatment, analysts said, in what some lawmakers fear would be a major step backward in the national battle against opioid addiction. Published May 28, 2017
Adam Schiff: Reports on back-channeling with Russia ‘very concerning’
Rep. Adam Schiff of California on Sunday said reports that White House adviser Jared Kushner sought a secret channel to talk with the Russians would be "very concerning," if true, considering the Kremlin's alleged interference in the U.S. election. Published May 28, 2017
Donald Trump picks fight with media upon return to U.S.
President Trump on Sunday picked up where he left off upon his arrival home from a nine-day overseas trip, using his phone and thumbs to attack the media on Twitter and decry the steady stream of governmental leaks that are embarrassing the White House. Published May 28, 2017
John Kelly, DHS chief, says leaks are ‘borderline’ treason
Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly on Sunday said "it's borderline, if not over the line of treason" to leak highly classified information gleaned from foreign intelligence, citing Britain's alarm at seeing details of its probe into the Manchester terror bombing in the U.S. press. Published May 28, 2017
Bill Cassidy: Senate health bill will outdo House plan
Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana said Sunday his chamber plans to outdo a House-passed health bill that would repeal and replace Obamacare but, according to estimates, would result in 23 million fewer people holding insurance a decade from now. Published May 28, 2017
Lindsey Graham skeptical of report on Kushner, Russians
Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina said Sunday that he is highly suspicious of the latest bombshell allegations to roil White House -- that President Trump's son-in-law tried to set up a secret channel of communications between the transition team and the Kremlin. Published May 28, 2017
Senators fed up with flow of illicit opioids through mail
Senators from both parties said Thursday they're growing impatient with foreign postal services that do not provide electronic data to U.S. inspectors hoping to intercept packages that contain highly dangerous opioids. Published May 25, 2017
Paul Ryan defends health plan amid CBO score furor
House Speaker Paul D. Ryan defended the Republican health care bill Thursday amid blowback over formal estimates that said the plan would result in 23 million fewer people holding coverage and dramatically hike prices for sicker Americans in certain states. Published May 25, 2017
GOP health care plan would leave 23 million uninsured, erase more than $30B in taxpayer savings: CBO
The latest version of House Republicans' health care bill will lower the cost of insurance for many Americans compared with what they would pay under Obamacare, but would leave 23 million fewer people with health insurance a decade from now, the Congressional Budget Office said Wednesday. Published May 24, 2017
Trump admin. delays decision on Obamacare payments, causing uncertainty
The Trump administration told a federal appeals court Monday it needs more time to determine the fate of critical Obamacare payments, prolonging uncertainty in the marketplace even as insurers mull rate hikes or whether to quit the program altogether. Published May 22, 2017
Obamacare exchanges squeeze lawmakers for quick fix
With Obamacare still the law of the land, Republicans and Democrats are searching for quick fixes that will help Americans who live in parts of the country that insurers have forsaken, saying they just can't make money under the strictures of the 2010 health care law. Published May 21, 2017
Democrats pressure Trump family over health care
Six women from the House Democratic caucus on Thursday invited Ivanka Trump to a "constructive discussion" on women's health, as her father weighs pivotal moves on birth control and cheers on legislation that would defund Planned Parenthood. Published May 18, 2017
WHO: Up to 20 Ebola cases, and three deaths, reported in Congo
The World Health Organization said Thursday it is launching a "no regrets" response to an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where the number of suspected cases has risen from nine to 20 in the past week. Published May 18, 2017
National Institutes of Health lobbies Congress to maintain funding
House lawmakers signaled Wednesday that President Trump's proposed budget cuts to the National Institutes of Health will never see the light of day, saying the loss of funds would derail life-saving work and induce budget-busting medical costs down the road. Published May 17, 2017
Donald Trump’s drama a Republican distraction
Republicans said they would prefer less drama from the White House but generally reserved judgment on reports of President Trump's sharing of potentially classified information. They said they weren't sure how to sort out accusations by anonymous sources in news articles. Published May 16, 2017
Trump administration encourages states to ask for Obamacare waivers
The Trump administration on Tuesday encouraged states to ask for Obamacare waivers to set up high-risk pools, creating a pathway for interested states to begin to adopt key parts of the GOP's repeal plans even before they pass a bill through Congress. Published May 16, 2017
