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If the federal government breaches the debt ceiling, Medicare wouldn't be able to pay providers — and states wouldn't get their federal Medicaid funding, experts tell Axios. Losing out on those payments, even for a short time, could be disastrous for providers’ bottom lines — and the effects could trickle down to patients. (Goldman and Knight, 5/5)

�������ýҕ�l Health News: 'What The Health?' Podcast: Health Programs Are At Risk As Debt Ceiling Cave-In Looms

The partisan fight in Congress over how to raise the nation’s debt ceiling to prevent a default has accelerated, as the U.S. Treasury predicted the borrowing limit could be reached as soon as June 1. On the table, potentially, are large cuts to federal spending programs, including major health programs. (Rovner, 5/4)

The Senate Finance Committee will hold a hearing next week on the impact U.S. international tax policy has on the pharmaceutical industry, Chair Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) said Thursday. Wyden said the hearing will focus on the effects of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, which Democrats widely criticize, and what he characterizes as the drug industry’s “tax avoidance schemes.” (Lim, 5/4)

Medical experts urged Congress to hold insurance companies accountable for inaccurate medical directories that can hamper access for patients seeking mental health treatments. The problem, referred to as a “ghost network,” occurs when health insurance providers ostensibly provide coverage, but direct customers to nonexistent or unavailable doctors and providers. (Yarrow, 5/4)

A handful of activists from the progressive group Indivisible hopped on Zoom this week to directly pose questions to Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s staff that are swirling in the U.S. Capitol and California political circles. Will the Democratic senator, who was diagnosed with shingles in late February and has not been back to Washington since, return to the Senate, they asked, according to a participant on the call. If so, when? Is there a process to determine her timetable, or a plan if she cannot return? (Mason, Oreskes and Joseph, 5/4)

The 2021 book, “The Truth About COVID-19: Exposing the Great Reset, Lockdowns, Vaccine Passports, and the New Normal,” denounces government-approved vaccines as unsafe and ineffective and urges readers to take vitamins and medications rejected by U.S. health officials. The lead author, Dr. Joseph Mercola, a Florida osteopath, sells some of the products he recommends and was issued a warning letter in 2021 by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration saying he was advertising “unapproved and misbranded products” as established COVID-19 treatments on his website. (Egelko, 5/4)