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The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday ruled 6-3 against President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs, saying that he exceeded his authority when implementing them, in today's bite-sized hospital and health industry news from the District of Columbia, Maryland, and New York.
- District of Columbia: The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday ruled 6-3 against President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs, saying that he exceeded his authority when implementing them. Last year, the Trump administration imposed broad tariffs on a wide variety of products, including pharmaceuticals, and against many other countries. According to the administration, the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) authorizing the president to "regulate … importation" granted Trump full powers over tariffs rates. Several organizations and states have sued over the tariffs, with lower courts ruling against the Trump administration in two cases. In the Supreme Court's ruling, Chief Justice John Roberts wrote that "[t]he president asserts the extraordinary power to unilaterally impose tariffs of unlimited amount, duration, and scope," but the Trump administration "points to no statute" in which Congress said the language in the IEPPA could apply to tariffs. In response to the decision, Trump signed new executive orders that initially imposed new 10% tariffs under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974. These tariffs were later increased to 15%, the maximum allowed under Section 122. Notably, pharmaceuticals and pharmaceutical ingredients are exempt from the new tariffs. According to Fierce Healthcare, several major health systems and group purchasing organizations have said they have been able to avoid tariffs so far due to multi-year contracts with locked rates and ongoing efforts to shift their purchasing to domestic manufacturers or those in countries with lower tariff rates. (Muoio, Fierce Healthcare, 2/20; Hurley, NBC News, 2/20; Fritze, CNN, 2/20; Romm/Swanson, New York Times, 2/21)
- Maryland: NIH has updated its clinical trial definition to no longer include basic experimental studies involving humans (BESH). Under the new definition, NIH requires clinical trial research to produce "a health-related biomedical or behavioral outcome as having the potential for direct advancement of health." According to the agency, BESH research can contribute to future health advancements, but since it is not conducted with the purpose of changing clinical practice, it does not meet the definition of a clinical trial. Any BESH applications submitted to NIH on or after May 25, 2026, will not be required to meet clinical trial guidelines, but they must still comply with all other application clinical research, laws, policies, and regulations. Currently, NIH is reviewing its systems and will provide additional guidance in the future on how to assess whether a study meets the definition of a clinical trial. (Gregerson, Becker's Clinical Leadership, 2/13)
- New York: According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the United States will participate in an upcoming meeting on the composition of the next flu vaccine despite withdrawing from the agency in January. On Feb. 26, WHO will meet in Turkey to discuss the composition of the 2026-2027 flu vaccine for the northern hemisphere. "The vaccine composition meeting will be taking place later this month. The U.S. will participate in that meeting as far as I understand," said Maria Van Kerkhove, interim director of WHO's department of epidemic and pandemic management. According to The Hill, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has said he is open to the United States rejoining WHO and that he hopes the country will reconsider its withdrawal. Since the United States formally left the organization, California, Illinois, and New York City have joined WHO's global disease network. (Choi, The Hill, 2/11)
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