Trending News Today: Conservative Group Renews Fight to Repeal ACA

The rising costs of older drugs may threaten public healthcare programs, including Medicaid. A new analysis revealed that hundreds of older drugs cost Medicaid billions in extra spending in 2016 compared with 2015, according to Kaiser Health News. The investigators reported that the drugs that drove spending were both branded and generic products. There were 313 brand-name drugs found to increase costs by $3.2 billion, while generics and non-branded drugs cost an extra $258 million in 2016, according to Kaiser.

Due to the uncertainty of subsidies, the Trump administration is allowing insurers more time to determine price increases for 2018, The New York Times reported. The insurers will receive an extension of nearly 3 weeks to plan for 2018 premiums. In addition to the yearly increases in line with inflation, several insurers are raising prices due to the threat of subsidy cuts, which the companies use to cover the costs for lower-income Americans purchasing health insurance, according to the Times.

The House Freedom Caucus renewed the fight for healthcare reform by demanding a new House vote this fall, according to the Los Angeles Times. The conservative group is asking for a repeal of much of the Affordable Care Act without a replacement plan. This approach gives GOP lawmakers the chance to show that the fight is not over, while also calling out others who have pledged to repeal the ACA, but have not voted to do so, according to the Times.