Uncategorized


September 2, 2026

EW: TAVR NCD Expectations & Implications

By John Leppard

With CMS set to release its finalized update to the TAVR NCD by Sept. 13 [likely posted after the close here], we largely expect it to maintain the core elements of the original proposal. More…

Read More >>

September 1, 2026

[DVA, FRE.DE, private US Renal] Final CY27 Dialysis Reg Likely Similar to Proposal; Limited, but Plausible, Paths to Upside

By Beth Steindecker

Our review of stakeholder feedback on CMS’s CY27 Medicare payment rule for dialysis centers [DVA, FRE.DE, private US Renal Care and Innovative Renal Care] leaves us expecting a final rule similar to the June proposal,…

Read More >>

August 31, 2026

Capitol Policy Weekly: Government Funding and Legislative Outlook

By Joe Lieber

The House is in session this week but will be out next week for the Labor Day district work period. The Senate will not return until the week of September 14. In addition to looking…

Read More >>

August 27, 2026

Semiconductor Tariffs: Phase Two Is Coming

By Joe Lieber

Following reports that the Trump administration is considering eliminating the tariff exemptions for data centers and extending Sec. 232 semiconductor tariffs to servers and other chip products, we assign ~70% odds that Trump announces expanded…

Read More >>

August 26, 2026

Rx Pricing: “Deal” or No Deal?

By John Leppard

Bloomberg is reporting that the White House intends to “announce a new round of drug pricing agreements with several midsized biotech companies on Monday,” and that “in exchange, the companies will be exempt” from the…

Read More >>

August 26, 2026

(META, GOOGL, SNAP, PINS, RDDT) The Next Social Media Risk: Private Litigation, Adult Claims and Product Restrictions

By Joe Lieber

We think Meta’s (META) settlement with state attorneys general (AG) is positive for the company and the social media industry. The state AG cases were the largest and most advanced litigation threat facing the company,…

Read More >>

August 25, 2026

Medtech & Biopharma Catalyst Calendar

By John Leppard

This fall seems likely to be a busy one for medtech and biopharma, with key policy catalysts coming up for a number of companies. These span from both the far-reaching in terms of most favored…

Read More >>

August 21, 2026

[HUM, ALHC, UNH, CVS, AGL, ASTH]: MA Tech Changes Rule Expectations: Stars Likely in Focus, Major Risk Adjustment Change Seem Less So

By Beth Steindecker

The pending Contract Year (CY) 2028 Technical and Policy Changes proposal for the Medicare Advantage (MA) insurers [HUM, ALHC, UNH, CVS, ELV, CNC, CLOV, MOH] and MA-exposed providers [AGL, ASTH] could be relatively more consequential…

Read More >>

August 20, 2026

2026 Midterms: Democrats Still Overwhelming Favorite to Flip House

By Joe Lieber

We continue to believe the odds Democrats win control of the House are greater than 80%, while we give Republicans roughly a 60% chance of retaining the Senate. In this note, we are focusing on…

Read More >>

August 19, 2026

HTFL: SaMS & Longer-Term Medicare Rate Outlook

By John Leppard

Following HTFL’s strong 2Q26 results, we have received a number of questions on how Medicare hospital outpatient reimbursement might evolve in light of CMS’s proposal to eventually establish a new payment paradigm for software as…

Read More >>