By Chelsea Cirruzzo and Ben Leonard

Presented by PCMA // Pharmaceutical Care Management Association

Rep. Greg Murphy, a co-chair of the GOP Doctors Caucus, is pushing for states to be in charge of regulating AI in health care. | Josep Lago/AFP/Getty Images

DOCS CAUCUS CO-CHAIR: REGULATE AI LOCALLY — Rep. Greg Murphy (R-N.C.), a co-chair of the GOP Doctors Caucus, called for artificial intelligence in health care to be regulated at the state level first, not nationally, Ben reports.

Speaking Tuesday at the Connected Health Initiative’s AI and the Future of Digital Healthcare event in Washington, D.C., Murphy warned against the FDA “controlling” AI regulation, saying the agency should be viewed as a partner in regulation.

“The federal government does not know the difference between Montana and New Jersey, but the folks in Montana do,” Murphy said at the event, hosted by the group and Duke AI Health. “It should be up to the folks who understand it to control that.”

Murphy’s state-centric stance could put him at odds with others in Congress, which is broadly interested in exploring AI regulation but focused largely on the federal level. Murphy’s comments come after Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer held a forum earlier this month on the potential regulation of AI. Schumer is eyeing a federal policy framework.

Questions over which level of government should regulate AI are sure to be contentious. Lawmakers in some states like California have proposed their own health care AI legislation. State and federal regulations could clash, as has happened with privacy regulation.

Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee’s ranking member, has floated changes to how artificial intelligence in health care is regulated, focused at the federal level. Reps. Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.), the ranking member of the Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee, and Dan Crenshaw (R-Texas) have put forward legislation to examine how AI might threaten biosecurity.

Federal agencies like the FDA and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT have proposals on how to regulate the technology, as have health industry leaders.

What else Murphy said: He also raised concerns about potential new liability issues if doctors decide to forgo what AI might tell them to do and warned about the potential impact on the doctor-patient relationship.

“The challenge is: Do we lose our humanity in this?… Do we let the machines control us or do we control them?” Murphy asked.

However, Murphy thinks the technology will be a net positive, if not transformative, in the sector.

“I am optimistic that this will be the greatest tool in medicine since the discovery of the stethoscope or the EKG,” Murphy said.

WELCOME TO WEDNESDAY PULSE. Did you know that if the government shuts down, you can’t get married in the District of Columbia because local courts are federally funded? You can, however, file for divorce. Send your tips, scoops and feedback to [email protected] and [email protected] and follow along @_BenLeonard_ and @ChelseaCirruzzo.

A message from PCMA // Pharmaceutical Care Management Association:

Big Pharma is the link between patients and high Drug prices. Don’t fall for Big Pharma’s “delinking” blame game. Weakening tools pharmacy benefit companies use to lower drug costs gives Big Pharma more power to keep drug prices high. The Big Pharma bills to end so-called “delinking” hand billions of dollars annually to drug companies, while costing patients and payers billions. “Delinking” means employers lose out on savings and employees pay more for prescriptions.

TODAY ON OUR PULSE CHECK PODCAST, host Lauren Gardner talks with POLITICO health care reporter Daniel Payne, who explains how the American Medical Association’s shift to the left on social issues has strained its ties to the GOP, putting its influence on health care policy at risk.

Attorney General Merrick Garland and DEA Administrator Anne Milgram look at photos of people who have died from drugs during the Second Annual Family Summit on Fentanyl. | Jose Luis Magana/AP Photo

DEA: FENTANYL SEIZURE TO BREAK RECORDS — The Drug Enforcement Administration’s efforts to stop the flow of fentanyl have been more effective than last year, and the number of pills seized is likely to break annual records, DEA Administrator Anne Milgram said Tuesday, POLITICO’s Carmen Paun reports.

Since January, the DEA has seized more than 55 million fentanyl pills and 9,000 pounds of fentanyl powder, Attorney General Merrick Garland said at DEA headquarters Tuesday.

Why it matters: Despite government efforts to prevent drug trafficking, the number of drug overdose deaths in the U.S. hit a record 110,000 last year, with most involving fentanyl, according to the CDC.

The data comes after a dozen Democrats in Congress asked the White House to scrutinize how states plan to spend some $50 billion in opioid settlement money over the next 15 years.

Most of the money isn’t subject to any oversight, lawmakers wrote in a letter sent Monday, first shared with Pulse, led by Sen. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), chair of the Senate HELP Subcommittee on Primary Health and Retirement Security, and Rep. David Trone (D-Md.), co-chair of the Commission on Combating Synthetic Opioid Trafficking.

The money must be spent on addiction treatment and prevention, as stipulated in the settlements, not on other general state expenditures, they argue.

ONDCP did not respond to requests for comment.

HAPPENING 9/28 — INSIDE THE CANCER MOONSHOT: Join POLITICO on Thursday, Sept. 28 for an in-depth discussion on the future of cancer treatment and innovation. Hear from experts including scientists, government officials and industry leaders as we explore the critical roles played by private industry, nonprofits, the National Cancer Institute and the new Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health in achieving the Biden administration's goal of cutting the cancer death rate in half over the next 25 years. Don't miss this opportunity to dive into the progress of cancer treatments and learn about the challenges patients encounter in accessing care. REGISTER HERE.

MA PLAN PREMIUMS TO INCREASE — The average premium for Medicare Advantage plans is expected to increase slightly next year, according to the Biden administration, POLITICO’s Robert King reports.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said Tuesday that premiums will go up $0.64 a month in 2024. The number of plans is also expected to increase from 5,674 to more than 5,700.

Why it matters: The data comes as sign-ups in the Medicare Advantage program are expected to make up more than half of all Medicare enrollment next year amid growing congressional scrutiny over how plans advertise to older adults.

Average monthly premiums, which include those for stand-alone drug plans, are expected to rise from $17.86 this year to $18.50 in 2024.

The agency had said that monthly premiums for Medicare Part D stand-alone drug plans would be $55.50 in 2024, a slight decline from this year’s premiums of $56.49.

CMS projects that 33.8 million people will choose a Medicare Advantage plan in the 2024 open enrollment that runs from Oct. 15 through Dec. 7, up from 31.6 million in 2023.

A message from PCMA // Pharmaceutical Care Management Association:

NEW CANCER RESEARCH PROGRAMS — The Biden administration announced nearly $115 million in funding for three new cancer research programs Tuesday, plus a nationwide network to deploy health innovation and medical breakthroughs to a wider swath of the country faster, POLITICO’s Erin Schumaker reports.

The programs are through the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health, the new agency focused on high-risk, high-reward research.

Two awards are for the development of new cancer treatments: 

— Rice University will receive up to $45 million to develop an implant for patients that would sense and deliver specific doses of drugs to boost cancer therapy response rates.

— The University of Missouri will receive up to $19 million to develop an inexpensive and safe cancer therapy using engineered bacteria to target tumors’ immune cells to help the body fight cancer without the traditional side effects of drugs.

A third award is for early cancer detection: 

— The Georgia Institute of Technology and Emory University will receive up to $50 million to develop biosensor tools to recognize cancer-specific biomarkers. The goal is to eventually create an affordable test to identify common cancers when they're most treatable.

A NEW POLITICO PODCAST: POLITICO Tech is an authoritative insider briefing on the politics and policy of technology. From crypto and the metaverse to cybersecurity and AI, we explore the who, what and how of policy shaping future industries. We’re kicking off with a series exploring darknet marketplaces, the virtual platforms that enable actors from all corners of the online world to traffic illicit goods. As malware and cybercrime attacks become increasingly frequent, regulators and law enforcement agencies work different angles to shut these platforms down, but new, often more unassailable marketplaces pop up. SUBSCRIBE AND START LISTENING TODAY.

HALF OF ADULTS OK NEW VAX — Nearly half of U.S. adults say they’ll “definitely” or “probably” get the new Covid-19 vaccine, but most parents say they won’t get the shot for their children, according to a KFF poll out today.

Why it matters: Amid a renewed push by the Biden administration to get people vaccinated — and some hiccups in the rollout — the poll results suggest that this year’s updated shot uptake could be higher than previous shots, though still not as high as the initial vaccine uptake.

The poll results also mirror prior partisan divides, finding that 7 in 10 Democrats say they’ll get their vaccine compared with a quarter of Republicans — similar to the results of a recent POLITICO/Morning Consult poll.

Parents aren’t as interested: Fewer than 4 in 10 parents, however, say they’ll get their children ages 6 months through 4 years and 12 to 17 years vaccinated. KFF points to a 2022 poll of parents who expressed concerns about the vaccines’ side effects and overall safety.

Meanwhile, most adults, including three-quarters of those 65 and older, say they’ll get their flu shots, and 58 percent over 60 say they’ll “definitely” or “probably” get the new vaccine for respiratory syncytial virus.

Tom Hart has been named president and CEO of InterAction. He previously was president of the ONE Campaign.

Michael Pape is now an associate at Capitol South, LLC. He previously was the director of business development at VillageMD.

A message from PCMA // Pharmaceutical Care Management Association:

Why would Congress let drug companies boost their own profits at the expense of patients and taxpayers? Big Pharma is the link between patients and high drug prices.

Big Pharma is pushing for so-called “delinking” bills that would give them a profit windfall of $10 BILLION in Medicare alone, forcing patients, taxpayers and employers to pay as much as $18 billion more annually for prescription drugs.

What problem is Congress trying to solve? If the goal is to lower drug costs for patients, taxpayers, and employers, the Big Pharma “delinking” plan is the wrong approach.

“Delinking” means employers lose out on savings and their employees pay more for prescriptions they need.

Get the Facts.

The Washington Post reports on the NIH designating people with disabilities as a “health disparity population,” which expands funding and resources for studying disabilities.

STAT reports on how growing calls for Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) to resign could mean the loss of an ally for pharmaceutical companies.

Follow us on Twitter

Follow us

To change your alert settings, please log in at https://www.politico.com/_login?base=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.politico.com/settings

This email was sent to [email protected] by: POLITICO, LLC 1000 Wilson Blvd. Arlington, VA, 22209, USA

Please click here and follow the steps to unsubscribe.