Biophysical Society Bulletin | February 2020

Public Affairs

2020 State of the Union Address Announced In the midst of settling the fiscal year 2020 federal budget and the House approving bills of impeachment, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi extended the formal invitation for President Trump to address a joint session of Congress to deliver the State of the Union. The President will deliver his final State of the Union address of his current term on February 4. While scientific research wasn’t a priority in the President’s first two addresses to the nation, it was a strong theme in 2019 is likely to be again in 2020. Brouillette Confirmed to Lead Department of Energy House Passed HR 3 Projected to Deliver Important Investments

On December 2, 2019, the United States Senate easily confirmed Dan Brouillette to lead the Energy Department, capping one of the smoothest confirmation processes for a Trump Administration official in recent memory. Brouillette, who served as deputy secretary since August 2017, replaces Rick Perry , who departed December 1 after nearly three years as chief of the department. Brouillette has held a variety of posts inside and outside of government. He was chief of staff on the House Energy and Commerce Committee and served as an assistant secretary of energy for two years during the George W. Bush administration. He is the 15th Senate-confirmed energy secretary in US history. Tensions Continue to Rise Between Heads of HHS and CMS Acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney has ordered Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Seema Verma to attend counseling in order to assess whether they can continue to work together. The feud goes beyond the ques- tionable reimbursement requests for lost personal items and consultant fees that have put Verma under a microscope as of late — and even beyond rumors that unfavorable leaks about Administrator Verma came from within the walls of HHS — and stems from more serious policy conflicts and efforts to publicly undercut one another’s initiatives. With health care expected to be center stage in next year’s election, losing either official could hinder President Trump’s efforts to deliver on promises he made in 2016 to meaningful- ly reduce health care costs and increase transparency.

On December 12, 2019, the House of Representatives passed their updated drug pricing bill, the Lower Drug Costs Now Act (HR 3), which includes significant investments in public health. The legislation invests an additional $10 billion at the National Institutes of Health to provide 10 years of sustainable fund- ing to build on the momentum of the 21st Century Cures Act. For the amount authorized for research for FY 2021 through 2030, the funding would be allocated as follows: $2.07 billion for the Precision Medicine Initiative; $2.04 billion for the BRAIN Initiative; $1.56 billion for cancer research; $1.14 billion for research related to combating antimicrobial and antibiotic resistance; $53.6 million for rare diseases; and $154 million for regenerative medicine using adult stem cells. HR 3 also includes $2 billion for the FDA for a variety of activ- ities including: modernizing the agency’s technical infrastruc- ture; more widespread adoption of continuous manufactur- ing techniques for drugs and biologics; the development of individual gene therapies; and, recruitment and retention of scientific and technical talent. The bill also includes $10 billion for combating the opioid cri- sis, $10 billion for community health centers, reauthorizes and expands the Health Profession Opportunity Grant Program, and doubles the investment in the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program to help reduce maternal mortality and morbidity. HR 3 has been referred to the Senate, but has not yet been referred to a Committee; an indication the Senate has no plans to take action on this bill and instead focus on their own package.

February 2020

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