Harriss record on abortion energizes Democrats
Good morning! Happy to be in the Health Brief saddle this morning. Send news and your best tips on beating the summer heat to rachel.roubein@washpost.com. (Though I not-so-secretly love summer.) ☀️
Today’s edition: Pharmacy benefit managers are set to be back in the hot seat on Capitol Hill. President Biden’s exit from the campaign has increased scrutiny around former president Donald Trump’s age and health. But first …
Democrats see new window to reframe the 2024 election around abortion rights
Vice President Harris emerged as the White House’s chief defender of abortion rights in the two years since Roe v. Wade was overturned.
Now, the increasing likelihood that Harris will emerge at the top of the Democratic ticket has buoyed party leaders counting on abortion to energize voters after a tough three-week campaign stretch, Yasmeen Abutaleb and I report this morning.
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Abortion rights advocates are galvanized by the increasing likelihood that Harris, one of their fiercest allies, will be the Democratic presidential nominee in the first presidential race since the Supreme Court eliminated the constitutional right to an abortion in 2022. In Harris, Democrats see a more natural messenger for an issue they believe is key to not only winning the presidency but also maintaining control of the Senate and recapturing the House.
By contrast, President Biden, a devout Catholic whose position on abortion has shifted during his lengthy political career, has at times spoken about abortion in euphemisms — lamenting in reelection campaign stump speeches about Republicans wanting to take away “freedoms,” including reproductive rights.
- “There’s a real electric energy right now in the party,” said Jessica Mackler, the president of Emily’s List, a political action committee that supports Democratic women who champion abortion rights. “Just looking at the outpouring of support that we’ve seen in the last 24 hours — really even less than 24 hours — for the vice president, people are fired up and they are excited about her. And a lot of that is about the leadership that she provides on reproductive rights.”
The details
Harris, a former district attorney who once specialized in prosecuting child sexual assault cases, has a long history of standing up for abortion rights.
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- As California’s attorney general, her department fought antiabortion advocates who recorded undercover videos of Planned Parenthood. As a U.S. senator, she grilled then-Supreme Court nominee Brett M. Kavanaugh on abortion, asking him if he could “think of any laws that give the government the power to make decisions about the male body.”
- Prominent abortion rights advocates and Democrats say her record combined with being the first woman — and woman of color — to serve as vice president makes her uniquely qualified to bring the issue to the forefront of voters’ minds.
Within hours of Biden dropping his reelection bid and throwing his support behind Harris, she drew endorsements from two prominent abortion rights groups: Reproductive Freedom for All and Emily’s List.
Harris received high-profile endorsements from Democratic governors and lawmakers on Capitol Hill who have strongly advocated for abortion rights. (And late yesterday, she secured pledges of support from a majority of Democratic National Convention delegates, which signals that she’s likely to become the party nominee next month.)
On the other side, antiabortion groups rushed to issue statements painting Harris as an extremist.
“Harris is so committed to abortion that she can’t see anything else — including the developmental stages of children before birth or the real needs of women,” said Marjorie Dannenfelser, the president of SBA Pro-Life America, a leading antiabortion group that plans to spend $92 million this election cycle.
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She added: “While Joe Biden has trouble saying the word abortion, Kamala Harris shouts it.”
Want more? Read the rest of our story here.
On the Hill
PBMs back in the hot seat
On tap today: The House Oversight and Accountability Committee is hauling three of the nation’s largest pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) to Capitol Hill for a hearing focused on their role in the prescription drug market.
Executives from CVS Caremark, OptumRx and Express Scripts are set to testify about their companies’ alleged anticompetitive policies. Committee leaders argue that PBMs’ practices have increased prescription drug costs, harmed independent pharmacies and hurt patient care — accusations the industry’s main lobbying group rebuts.
Key context: This is the oversight committee’s third hearing examining the business practices of PBMs. In February, the committee advanced bipartisan legislation that would require PBMs contracting with carriers offering federal health benefit plans to “de-link” the fees they charge insurers from the price of drugs, among other reforms.
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The hearing follows the release of an interim report by Federal Trade Commission staff this month that found PBMs might be profiting off a “highly concentrated” market at the expense of patients and small pharmacies. The Pharmaceutical Care Management Association criticized the report, calling it biased and built on “anecdotes and comments from anonymous sources and self-interested parties.”
In other news from Capitol Hill …
Legislation to fund the Food and Drug Administration in fiscal 2025 won’t be considered on the floor this week as House Republicans had planned, per Politico’s Caitlin Emma and Jennifer Scholtes.
The Financial Services spending bill is also delayed. Both measures failed to clear the floor last summer due to controversial funding levels and conservative policy riders, which are causing problems for GOP leaders again despite attempts to moderate the provisions.
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- One key issue dividing Republicans: A provision in the financial services bill that blocks a D.C. law preventing employer discrimination against workers seeking contraception or family planning services.
Why it matters: GOP leaders were aiming to pass their fiscal 2025 bills before the August recess. The setbacks dim the prospects for the FDA bill and worsens chances for the chamber’s Health and Human Services appropriations measure, which is tentatively slated for floor action next week.
Election watch
Trump’s age and health under renewed scrutiny after Biden’s exit
Biden’s decision to drop his reelection bid after weeks of intense scrutiny on his age and health has turned the spotlight on Trump, who is now the oldest presidential nominee in history, The Washington Post’s Michael Kranish reports.
A closer look: As president, Trump released a report that experts said showed he had heart disease and was obese. But as a candidate, the 78-year-old has refused to release bloodwork results, his weight or other key information to help experts assess his ongoing medical risks.
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Instead, Trump released a vague, three-paragraph letter from his primary care physician, Bruce A. Aronwald, who wrote in November that the former president was in excellent physical and mental health. Trump campaign officials told The Post “there is no need” to release additional medical reports.
Why it matters: Age is a hot-button issue for voters this year. A Washington Post-ABC News-Ipsos poll, conducted before last week’s Republican convention, found that 60 percent of Americans said Trump is too old for another term as president, including 82 percent of Democrats, 65 percent of independents and 29 percent of Republicans.
Agency alert
Biden administration targets online safety for kids
The Biden administration is urging tech companies to strengthen protections for children and teens online amid bipartisan concerns that social media platforms keep kids hooked and exposed to harm, The Post’s Cristiano Lima-Strong reports.
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A new report, backed by the White House and created by an interagency task force led by HHS and the Commerce Department, recommends limiting features that encourage “excessive or problematic” social media use by youths. The report also offers advice for parents and caregivers on protecting kids online and outlines the need for more research into the link between online activity and harm to children.
Key context: Many of the recommendations align with protections that lawmakers at the federal and state levels have struggled to implement amid legal challenges from tech industry groups who argue that those efforts infringe on free speech and would force companies to collect more data on users.
In other health news
- Biden’s covid-19 symptoms have “almost resolved completely,” according to an update from his doctor released by the White House. The president announced he had tested positive for the coronavirus last Wednesday.
- Iowa’s new law prohibiting most abortions after six weeks of pregnancy will soon take effect after the state Supreme Court denied Planned Parenthood’s request to reconsider its decision upholding the ban, William Morris reports for the Des Moines Register.
- The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services approved Minnesota’s request to engage in value-based purchasing arrangements with pharmaceutical companies, which tie drug pricing to patient outcomes.
Health reads
Sugar rush
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