[{"_1":2,"_99":-5,"_100":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":72,"_74":72},"mediaId",6333484,"mediaKeyId","2302362-a0cafdff465ac9e9d1bac3a34cad7784","parentId",2302362,"title","Democrats warn NIH, Medicaid and marketplace cuts would harm patients and research at Ways and Means hearing","audioSeconds",95,"startMs",2935000,"endMs",3030000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2302362-a0cafdff465ac9e9d1bac3a34cad7784&start=2935&end=3030","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2302362-a0cafdff465ac9e9d1bac3a34cad7784/thumbnail_2935000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6333484/Democrats-warn-NIH-Medicaid-and-marketplace-cuts-would-harm-patients-and-research-at-Ways-and-Means-hearing","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6333484-128ca654a16ab29b1f61ce3f88a73c81/orig.mp4?Expires=1775901344&Signature=jkQg4GN6AcNU0UoauOOKpjMD1GdL0pBvfPcqIjLzKvebddrBXjTJtgWePiFLjIkHtTXK5x4aI0o5heJ9jWTKMPnYWZfT8OmHzl13btp9zo4swbMn0YSLNLU~zQNH7lJY1bN9tshpoHFnqjiqOlTCHXF9T4~JRMeTwIDYSXG5kTMUO8IuYH1wlYlu0WOPeDbB4RnQHaaml~PnnNgIX1Mf1FBMwC4OgH71BeuwH0ZAreGcBoZfGxZ3urrCK4v7nmCuQ-DtskpSEGBP4I5mBZwrrCEVsV4CKu6LEKCpAqrq0yJRaBPojdbGmQuwa~u9UKZg1G4pGGnyZdsIT~AbUzlZjw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","U.S. House Committee on Ways & Means","date","2025-02-11T21:44:04Z","article","Leslie Dock, founder and co‑chair of Protect Our Care and a former senior HHS official, and several Democratic members warned the House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee that proposed funding freezes and cuts to NIH, Medicaid and enhanced marketplace premium tax credits (APTCs) would harm patients, slow research and increase costs.

“Proposals before Congress would cut over $2,000,000,000,000 from Medicaid, which provides health care to over 72,000,000 people,” Dock said, citing figures she said are in circulation and urging lawmakers to protect Medicaid and NIH funding. She told members that Medicaid is a lifeline for nursing home residents, children and people with disabilities and said cuts would strain state budgets and rural hospitals.

Dock also described a temporary federal grant freeze issued January 27 by the new administration that affected community health centers’ cash flow; witnesses and members said some community health centers reported difficulty accessing funds to pay staff. Dock urged Congress to oppose actions that would pause NIH grants, halt clinical trials or limit public access to scientific guidance.

Committee Democrats emphasized that Medicaid and NIH support are central to prevention, treatment and research. Members recounted district‑level impacts — for example, the University of Texas system and research centers were named as facing potential NIH funding losses in testimony — and pressed witnesses to outline the consequences for people with chronic diseases and for rural hospitals which rely heavily on Medicaid payments.

Republican members also expressed interest in prevention and reducing costs, but the hearing showed clear partisan disagreement about the effect of proposed budget and regulatory changes. Democratic witnesses and members asked the committee to act to preserve research funding, community health‑center stability and enhanced marketplace credits that lower premiums for many working families.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Hearing on Modernizing American Health Care: Creating Healthy Options and Better Incentives","oneSentenceSummary","Protect Our Care and Democratic members told a House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee hearing that proposed cuts to NIH, Medicaid and the possible expiration of enhanced marketplace tax credits would worsen access, research and outcomes for people with chronic diseases.","taxTitle","Ways and Means: House Committee, Standing Committees - House & Senate, Congressional Hearings Compilation, Legislative, Federal","taxId",1828,"location","","headline","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":72,"_74":72},6333486,"Small business owners and consultants urge expanded HSAs, ICRAs and direct primary care to lower costs",187,2623000,2810000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2302362-a0cafdff465ac9e9d1bac3a34cad7784&start=2623&end=2810","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2302362-a0cafdff465ac9e9d1bac3a34cad7784/thumbnail_2623000.jpg","/articles/6333486/Small-business-owners-and-consultants-urge-expanded-HSAs-ICRAs-and-direct-primary-care-to-lower-costs","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6333486-3278cf5788343f27012f9f1b945e11f7/orig.mp4?Expires=1775901344&Signature=OrlG2cHnrLki4VBRbmfNZKZ3mNIBZ6jQ3dau5Myq6JDQx6YeTod8hdlu59w-Xo7SAklgsps0tyORmNzKB4xEIwpvC5GIznWhhucbKyxvhSnsp9g727Zc0XCtw3sRoilurS-9eYl4sILdTUH7v7L8~niCcz6HAaVKSbzD6Y1YDYn36E5xSLkw-RwDFycIwlaKluEDiA6HFZi~iEzmuIa~FVkLoTZHkxu0-z~0BKdAwcb96r~~Kck9cS4kVOabcoJYXMaYVaKmO~5MgXQjT3yyIoyMit8mgRJPabgfOgMul~ld4Md7NGGe552lCVzTPQ6YBeR6DQuKZ8ICyc39eEsJtQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Marcy Strauss, a small business owner and benefits consultant, told the House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee that small employers need more flexibility to offer affordable benefits, including expanded health savings account (HSA) rules, wider use of individual coverage health reimbursement arrangements (ICRAs) and the ability to use HSAs to pay for direct primary care memberships.

“HSAs have become quite popular, over the last several years. For us, we pretty much put an HSA qualified plan in with every one of our group benefits that we write,” Strauss said. She described local trends she sees: family premiums in her home county rose about 85% over eight years and small‑group participation has fallen; she attributed those patterns to mounting premium costs and limited plan choices for small employers. She said allowing HSAs to cover more preventive and holistic services, increasing contribution limits and permitting Medicare beneficiaries to continue contributing would improve participation.

Strauss described practical barriers to wider ICRA adoption by small employers. Under current marketplace rules, she said, an employer contribution that is insufficient to offset marketplace subsidies can leave an employee without marketplace premium tax credits; she urged tax incentives or contribution offset mechanisms to make ICRAs practical for small firms. She also recommended allowing HSA funds to pay for direct primary care memberships, which she called “medical home” services that can improve access through telehealth, texting and workplace wellness activities.

Committee members from both parties pressed witnesses about how prevention‑oriented savings vehicles and employer choice could change outcomes. Supporters argued these tools can lower premiums, give employees more control over spending and help employers remain competitive in hiring. Witnesses and members emphasized the need for consumer education and regulatory fixes so small employers can adopt these options without unintentionally reducing employees’ marketplace subsidies.","Small‑business testimony at the Ways and Means Health Subcommittee called for expanded health savings account rules, broader use of individual coverage HRAs (ICRAs) and access to direct primary care, saying those tools can improve preventive care and make employer benefits more affordable for small employers.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":72,"_74":72},6333491,"Witnesses tell Ways and Means hearing early‑detection tests show promise but raise access and cost questions",565,1973000,2538000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2302362-a0cafdff465ac9e9d1bac3a34cad7784&start=1973&end=2538","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2302362-a0cafdff465ac9e9d1bac3a34cad7784/thumbnail_1973000.jpg","/articles/6333491/Witnesses-tell-Ways-and-Means-hearing-earlydetection-tests-show-promise-but-raise-access-and-cost-questions","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6333491-648d962de53a4f2b648be4e59f0bba72/orig.mp4?Expires=1775901344&Signature=OdIWZJGswzTWg~dv0qQZrHJXo5MSft4JsiHkFrNdaRNUafBQ4ZJDP7b16AvWDwYAjnCkjNNtMFd14iQc2z6EMz1rd3PNlT4cLdZtK3Cgtc2zvfj67UJV9H2fP7PccQjQXTjKDy566DT1C-FiU7FnVoEQRqdEuzKEgZskxdswi61Dm8yymGi--0HK4Bm8kkDcbTNxmaeadWy5eqSMYLczWyz7JdLJ23U~itdC5NIwJU~r~yHDBGevLJqaK-ZuHevW7F~0-b~1n9CCf9J-CiA~AS-3jfXudHHmVLSGlz3avbtcA613ISeCmBqU2xjYWAfojk6WraTxLeUaUj1-Fy6DlA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Brooks Tingle, chief executive officer of John Hancock, and Jay Carlson, a gynecologic oncologist and clinical chair at Mercy’s research arm, told a House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee hearing that multi‑cancer early detection (MCED) tests and insurer incentive programs can advance prevention and early diagnosis — but questions remain about Medicare reimbursement, access and downstream costs.

Tingle described John Hancock’s decade‑long Vitality wellness program, which uses app‑based incentives and partner discounts to encourage healthier behavior. “We introduced John Hancock Vitality, a program rooted in behavioral science that offers our life insurance customers tools, resources, incentives, and rewards to help improve their long term health,” Tingle said. He said the company began a partnership in 2022 to offer discounted access to the Grail “Galleri” multi‑cancer early detection test to participating customers and that John Hancock intentionally does not take possession of individual customers’ test results to avoid chilling consumer uptake.

Carlson described Mercy Health System’s implementation of MCED and other precision‑medicine tools across its hospitals and clinics. Mercy developed clinician and patient education, a patient‑facing website, and an AI‑driven effort to target higher‑risk cohorts. “We’ve been using this process for 2 years and approximately 3,000 patient provider referrals as well as more than 9,000 self referrals through the website,” Carlson said. He reported that Mercy has recorded 27 MCED positive signals that yielded 22 confirmed cancers and said Mercy provides same‑day virtual review and rapid diagnostic follow‑up for patients who test positive.

Committee members and witnesses highlighted both potential benefits and limitations. Witnesses and members noted that Medicare coverage questions remain: a Medicare reimbursement pathway and a large Medicare clinical trial were described as key steps to wider adoption, and speakers said reimbursement could spur additional private‑sector investment. Carlson said some screening tests of the future will combine omics assays and artificial intelligence and will require provider education and system‑level coordination to deploy safely and effectively.

Panelists also acknowledged possible harms and operational challenges. Carlson and others emphasized counseling patients about the risk of false positives and the need for standardized diagnostic workflows; Mercy said it has seen a small number of false positives and that the company and vendors offer retesting or surveillance at no cost when appropriate. Tingle described concrete incentives John Hancock offers — for example, a healthy food savings program that provides discounts at grocery stores — as part of a prevention strategy that insurers may be uniquely positioned to deliver because of long customer relationships.

The witnesses urged congressional action to clarify Medicare policy and to provide predictable coverage paths for MCED tests so that health systems and payers can scale counseling, diagnostic capacity and quality controls without shifting undue cost or anxiety onto patients.","Executives and clinicians at a House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee hearing described pilot use of multi‑cancer early detection tests and insurer incentive programs, saying the technologies can find cancers earlier but that Medicare coverage, cost and false positives remain barriers to broad access.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Democrats warn NIH, Medicaid and marketplace cuts would harm patients and research at Ways and Means hearing

Small business owners and consultants urge expanded HSAs, ICRAs and direct primary care to lower costs

Witnesses tell Ways and Means hearing early‑detection tests show promise but raise access and cost questions