President Trump issued an Executive Order, “Stopping Wall Street from Competing with Main Street Homebuyers,” to attempt to limit the role of large institutional investors in the single-family housing market in order to preserve homeownership opportunities for families, particularly first-time buyers. The order: Directs the Treasury to define “large institutional investor” and “single-family home” within 30 days. Establishes that within… (Marceno, January 22, 2026) #Public Health, #Social Determinants of Health

The House Budget Committee convened a hearing focused on the rapid growth of health care costs and their implications for the federal budget. The discussion centered on the scale of U.S. health spending, now exceeding $5 trillion annually, and the increasing share borne by the federal government through Medicare, Medicaid, Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies, and tax preferences for employer-sponsored… (Colocho, January 22, 2026) #Affordable Care Act, #Association Health Plans, #Costs, #COVID-19, #Drug Pricing, #Hospitals, #Insurance Reform, #Medicare Advantage, #Prescription Drugs, #Prevention, #Subsidies

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) recently released its Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 Agency Financial Report, which provides estimated improper payment data for the Medicare fee-for-service (FFS), Medicare Part C (Medicare Advantage), Medicare Part D, Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), and the Affordable Care Act Health Insurance Exchange Advance payment of the Premium Tax Credit (APTC) programs…. (Testa, January 21, 2026) #Program Integrity

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released a report and datasets on the implementation of the Federal Independent Dispute Resolution (IDR) process during the first six months of 2025.   Key Takeaways from the IDR Report In the report, the Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor, and the Treasury (the Departments) note that the proposed rule on Federal IDR operations, “if finalized, would… (McClurg, January 21, 2026) #No Surprises Act

Today, appropriations leaders from both chambers of Congress released a “minibus” that includes fiscal year (FY) 2026 appropriations for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and a bipartisan package of enhanced health care extenders (text; joint explanatory statement, Republican summary; Democratic summary), alongside appropriations for the departments of Defense, Education, Homeland Security, Labor, Housing and Urban Development, and Transportation. What it… (McClurg, January 20, 2026) #Budget, #Chronic Diseases, #Community Health Centers, #Disproportionate Share Hospitals (DSH), #Generic Drugs, #Graduate Medical Education (GME), #Medicare Advantage, #Mental and Behavioral Health, #National Institutes of Health, #No Surprises Act, #Nutrition, #Primary Care, #Public Health

House Oversight and Government Reform Chairman James Comer (R-KY) announced that he is requesting new information from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) regarding allegations that New York State has failed to properly match federal Medicaid dollars. According to the Chair, the inquiry, which began in July 2025, is based on whistleblower reports that the state has improperly required… (Marceno, January 16, 2026) #Cost-Sharing, #Disproportionate Share Hospitals (DSH), #Program Integrity