WASHINGTON — House Republicans have abandoned an effort to include reforms to pharmacy benefit managers in an end-of-year bill to fund the federal government.
Congressional leaders had reached a deal to rein in prescription drug middlemen earlier this week, but the larger package it was tacked onto fell apart following backlash from conservatives and top advisers to President-elect Trump. Instead, lawmakers are planning to pass a three-month government funding bill with extensions for basic public health programs and telehealth flexibilities ahead of a Friday deadline. On Thursday evening, the Trump-backed plan failed to pass the House, and Republican leaders decided to pursue a different path forward.
The reversal, after congressional leaders had announced a deal on PBM legislation Tuesday, means a host of legislation that multiple committees passed this Congress won’t become law. In addition to the PBM reforms, GOP lawmakers cut drug patent reforms, hospital billing transparency, Medicare pay bonuses for doctors, and reauthorizations of laws passed to address the opioid crisis and prevent pandemics from the year-end bill.
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