Today’s reaction to the WSJ report that UnitedHealth (UNH) is under civil investigation by the DOJ for Medicare False Claims Act violations strikes us as overwrought, with ultimate financial liabilities (still 1-2 years away) unlikely…

With Royal Caribbean (RCL), Carnival Corporation (CCL), and Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings (NCLH) all down ~5% or more yesterday on fears that Congress will hike taxes on the industry as part of this year’s tax…

We think Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s proposal to cut 8% of the defense budget over the next five years will set up a clash with congressional Republicans, who have called for an increase in defense…

We suspect CMS’s draft National Coverage Determination (NCD) for renal denervation (RDN) [Medtronic, Otsuka] – scheduled for release July 13 – will limit eligibility to 10-20% (~3.1M-7.5M) of the estimated ~32M Medicare beneficiaries with hypertension…

While hospices [CHE, ADUS, private Gentiva, Compassus] are receiving a reprieve for now from more intensive oversight and the threat of termination from Medicare after CMS announced it was going to sideline the statutorily mandated…

This week, we expect the Senate to consider their FY25 budget resolution that would set off the two-reconciliation bill strategy. In addition, Kash Patel is likely to be confirmed by the Senate as FBI Director…

The House Republican budget released yesterday includes potential cuts to the food stamp / SNAP program that could be as high as $230 billion over ten years, which would be a negative for Walmart (WMT),…

Below we go over a host of issues that DC is grappling with from reconciliation / tax cut to defense spending, trade, Medicaid cuts, a potential government shutdown, the Fed’s independence and RFK’s nomination to…

We expect Humana (HUM) to ultimately prevail in its lawsuit against HHS to secure higher 2025 Medicare Advantage (MA) star ratings, but it may take longer than we originally expected (as early as March-April). While…

Trade, budget reconciliation, and nominations are likely to dominate Washington this week. Meanwhile, current government funding expires on March 14 and Republicans and Democrats are still reportedly very far apart on top-line spending numbers for…

As we await the House’s budget reconciliation strategy this week, the Senate FY25 budget resolution proposal released late Friday bolsters our expectations for Medicaid work requirements, which we see as one the most likely Medicaid-related…

NIH’s surprise announcement Friday of a 15% cap on indirect costs for both new and existing grants will likely trigger fresh uncertainty for life science tools (LST) manufacturers. While indirect costs are technically distinct from…

Bicameral reintroduction this week of legislation to allow – not require – Medicare coverage of multi-cancer early detection (MCED) tests starting in 2028 bolsters our view of its likely inclusion in a mid-March spending bill…

News that the Senate is looking to mark up a budget resolution as early as next week reinforces our view that the Congress is going to pass two reconciliation bills as opposed to one.  We…

With the briefing in a federal lawsuit having concluded and Congress on the hunt for legislative savings, the question is when, not if, CMS’s minimum nurse staffing rule is killed, eliminating the overhang and potential…