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On Wednesday, Casey Means, President Donald Trump's nominee for surgeon general, testified before the Senate Health Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) committee about her stance on vaccines, birth control, pesticides, and more, in today's bite-sized hospital and health industry news from the District of Columbia, New Jersey, and New York.
- District of Columbia: On Wednesday, Casey Means, President Donald Trump's nominee for surgeon general, testified before the Senate Health Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) committee. Trump originally nominated Means as surgeon general last May, and she was scheduled to go before the HELP committee in October, but the hearing was delayed when she went into labor. During the hearing, senators questioned Means on a variety of health topics, including vaccines, birth control, and pesticides. Although Means said that she believes "vaccines are a key part of any infectious disease public health strategy," she did not endorse childhood vaccinations for measles, the flu, or whooping cough. Instead, she encouraged patients speak to their doctors before getting vaccinated. Means also said that oral contraceptives should be available to all women in the United States but highlighted that they have significant risks "like all medications." When asked about her views on pesticides, Means said she was "very gravely concerned about the health impacts of these chemicals" but noted that changing the country's agriculture systems would not happen overnight. During the hearing, Democratic senators were also critical about her potential conflicts of interest with wellness companies and her credentials. Although Means graduated from Stanford Medical School, she did not complete her residency and currently has an inactive medical license, which means she cannot currently practice medicine. So far, it's unclear how the HELP committee will vote on Means' confirmation and how she will fare in front of the broader Senate. (Stolberg/Blum, New York Times, 2/25; Weber/Roubein, Washington Post, 2/25; Fields, The Hill, 2/25; Choi, The Hill, 2/25)
- New Jersey: Novo Nordisk will reduce the U.S. list price of its GLP-1 medications, including Wegovy, Ozempic, and Rybelsus, to $675 per month, starting Jan. 1, 2027. This is a 50% price reduction for Wegovy, which is used to treat obesity, and a 34% reduction for Ozempic, which is used to treat diabetes. According to Novo leaders, the company is cutting the list price for its GLP-1 medications to reduce high out-of-pocket costs for patients who are enrolled in high-deductible health plans or pay coinsurance based on the percentage of the list price. "Our hope is that reduced prices will lead to better access and affordability," said Jamey Millar, Novo's EVP of U.S. operations. This change in the list price is separate from discounted cash prices offered to patients paying for GLP-1s outside of insurance. Currently, Novo offers cash-pay prices between $149 to $499 a month for its GLP-1 medications, depending on the specific drug and dosage. Aside from Novo's efforts to cut costs, CMS will also implement new maximum fair prices for 15 high-cost Medicare Part D drugs, including Wegovy, Ozempic, and Rybelsus, on Jan. 1, 2027. The negotiated prices for the three GLP-1 drugs will be $274 per month, down from their 2024 list price of $959 per month. (Jeffries, Becker's Hospital Review, 2/24; Loftus, Wall Street Journal, 2/24)
- New York: Over 20 major health systems and strategic partners have partnered to create the National Specialty Care Access Coalition, a group that aims to address shortages of medical specialists in rural and underserved urban areas across the country. Some organizations in the coalition include the Children's Hospital Association, the Center for Telehealth and eHealth Law, T-Mobile, and Samsung. The coalition is convened and chaired by Chethan Sathya, VP of strategic initiatives at Northwell Health, and Raj Narula, founder and CEO of Sevaro. According to the coalition, it will initially focus on three main priorities: standardizing multispecialty care pathways for rural hospitals and high-need urban health systems, producing a white paper with recommendations for CMS and state Medicaid agencies, and accelerating real-world implementation of pilots and other programs in high-impact specialties. "We look forward to any opportunity to contribute to sustainability of rural healthcare. This seems like an opportunity that will help us lean into that important part of our mission," said Adam Hornung, VP of medical transport, telehealth, transfer centers, and outreach services at Intermountain Health. (DeSilva, Modern Healthcare, 2/18; Diaz, Becker's Health IT, 2/18; National Specialty Care Access Coalition press release, 2/18)
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