Health Care Week in Review January 31, 2025

Health Care Week in Review: OMB Issues and Rescinds Memo Freezing Federal Funds; Senate Finance and HELP Committees Hold HHS Nomination Hearings

Below is Alston & Bird’s Health Care Week in Review, which provides a synopsis of the latest news in health care regulations, notices, and guidance; federal legislation and congressional committee action; reports, studies, and analyses; and other health policy news.


Week in Review Highlight of the Week:

This week, OMB issued and then rescinded a memo to freeze disbursement of most Federal funds, and the Senate Finance and HELP Committees hosted their hearings for HHS nominee Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.


I. Regulations, Notices & Guidance

Note: For many Executive Office of the President (EOP) actions, the stated day reflects when the action was noticed to the Federal Register, not when it was first released by the White House.

  • On January 27, 2025, EOP released an executive order (EO) entitled, Executive Orders and Actions; Initial Rescissions. This EO rescinds seventy-eight EOs from the Biden Administration. A list of the EOs rescinded can be found here.
  • On January 27, 2025, EOP released an executive order entitled, Delivering Emergency Price Relief for American Families and Defeating the Cost-of-Living Crisis. This EO directs all executive departments and agencies to deliver price relief for housing and cost-of-living, including “unnecessary administrative expenses and rent-seeking practices that increase healthcare costs.”
  • On January 27, 2025, EOP released an executive order entitled, Government Agencies and Employees: Hiring Freeze. This EO freezes the hiring for positions vacant as of noon of January 20, 2025 and prohibits the creation of new positions. Military personnel, positions related to immigration enforcement, national security, public safety, and the provision of Social Security, Medicare, or Veterans’ benefits are exempted. Additionally, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) may grant exemptions.
  • On January 27, 2025, EOP released an executive order entitled, Government Agencies and Employees: Return to In-Person Work. This EO directs all heads of executive departments and agencies to terminate remote work and require employees to return to in-person work as soon as practicable.
  • On January 27, 2025, EOP released an executive order entitled, Regulatory Freeze Pending Review. This EO directs executive departments and agencies to not propose or issue any new rule, including sending a rule to the Office of the Federal Register (OFR) until a department or agency head is appointed or designated by the President. Additionally, any rules sent to the OFR but not published to the Federal Register must be withdrawn. Any rules that have been published in the Federal Register but have not yet been implemented may also be postponed for sixty days.
  • On January 28, 2025, EOP released an executive order entitled, Government Agencies and Employees: DEI Programs and Preferencing; Efforts To End. This EO directs executive departments and agencies to eliminate programs, mandates, policies, preferences, and positions related to “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion” (DEI) including programs related to “environmental justice” and “equity-related” grants and contracts.
  • On January 28, 2025, EOP released an executive order entitled, World Health Organization; U.S. Withdrawal. This EO provides notice that the U.S. intends to withdraw from the World Health Organization (WHO) and directs the Secretary of State and OMB Director to pause the transfer of government funds, support, or resources to WHO as well as recall and reassign any government personnel working in any capacity with WHO.
  • On January 29, 2025, OMB released a notice entitled, 2024 Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act Annual Report. This report was published as required by the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go (PAYGO) Act of 2010. The Act requires that OMB issue an annual report and a sequestration order, if necessary.
  • On January 30, 2025, EOP released an executive order entitled, Executive Orders; Revocation. This EO revokes EOs from the Biden Administration pertaining to COVID-19 safety procedures for Federal contractors and COVID-19 vaccination requirements for Federal employees.
  • On January 30, 2025, EOP released an executive order entitled, Government Agencies and Employees: Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity. This EO prohibits the use of diversity in Federal hiring decisions, eliminates any requirements for diversity and affirmative action within Federal contracts, and directs the heads of all agencies to find ways to encourage the end of DEI practices in the private sector.
  • On January 30, 2025, EOP released an executive order entitled, Federal Workforce; Efforts To Restore Accountability to Policy-Influencing Positions. This EO reinstates Schedule F designations for Federal employees and redesignates this schedule as the “Policy/Career” schedule and clarifies the requirements for these individuals.
  • On January 30, 2025, EOP released an executive order entitled, Science and Technology; President’s Council of Advisors. This EO establishes the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST).  Each new administration has re-chartered PCAST since 2001. President Trump’s PCAST will be co-chaired by the Assistant to the President for Science and Technology (APST) and the Special Advisor for AI & Crypto.
  • On January 31, 2025, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released revised guidance entitled, Recommendations to Reduce the Risk of Transmission of Disease Agents Associated with Sepsis by Human Cells, Tissues, and Cellular and Tissue-Based Products, etc.. This notice revises the final guidances entitled “Recommendations To Reduce the Risk of Transmission of Disease Agents Associated with Sepsis by Human Cells, Tissues, and Cellular and Tissue-Based Products (HCT/Ps)” and “Recommendations To Reduce the Risk of Transmission of Mycobacterium Tuberculosis (Mtb) by Human Cells, Tissues, and Cellular and Tissue-Based Products (HCT/Ps)” to change the time by which FDA recommends implementation of the recommendations in the guidances.
  • On January 31, 2025, EOP released an executive order entitled, Chemical and Surgical Mutilation; Efforts To Protect Children. This EO directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS Secretary) to increase the quality of data regarding treatments for minors with gender dysphoria as well directs the heads of executive agencies to ensure that medical institutions receiving Federal funding are prohibited from engaging in hormone treatments or sex change operations on transgender minors. It also directs the HHS Secretary to, within applicable law, utilize Medicare and Medicaid conditions of participation or conditions of coverage and clinical-abuse or inappropriate-use assessments for State Medicaid programs, among others, to end these treatments. Finally, the EO directs the Attorney General and Department of Justice to enforce existing laws on female genital mutilation and consider applying provisions from the Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act.
  • On January 31, 2025, EOP released an administrative order entitled, Mexico City Policy. This EO directs the Secretary of State, the HHS Secretary, and the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to reimplement the “Mexico City Policy” which prohibits the disbursement of federal funds to international organizations that provide abortion counseling or referrals or advocate for abortion decriminalization or expansion of abortion services.
  • On January 31, 2025, EOP published an executive order to the Federal Register entitled, Enforcing the Hyde Amendment. This EO directs the OMB Director to promulgate guidance to all Federal agencies on how to ensure that Federal funding is not used to fund or promote elective abortions.

Event NoticesNOTE: Due to an HHS communications freeze, many of these meetings have been cancelled or postponed. We are continuing to monitor.

January 27, 2025: The National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced a meeting of the National Advisory Allergy and Infectious Diseases Council. This is a virtual meeting with some sessions open to the public.

January 28, 2025: NIH announced a meeting of the National Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases Advisory Council. This is an in-person meeting open the public.

January 28, 2025: NIH announced a meeting of the National Advisory Council for Nursing Research. This is an in-person meeting open to the public.

January 29-30, 2025: The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) announced a meeting of the Advisory Commission on Childhood Vaccines. This is a virtual meeting open to the public.

February 5, 2025: FDA announced a joint public meeting of the Drug Safety and Risk Management Advisory Committee and the Anesthetic and Analgesic Drug Products Advisory Committee. This is a hybrid meeting open to the public.

February 6, 2025: The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced a meeting of the Advisory Panel on Outreach and Education (APOE). This is a virtual meeting open to the public.

February 10, 2025: NIH announced a meeting of the National Advisory Council for Human Genome Research. This is a virtual meeting open to the public.

February 11-12, 2025: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced a meeting of the Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL) entitled, Establishing a Road Map for Accelerated Diagnosis and Treatment of HCV Infection in the United States. This is a virtual meeting open to the public.

February 13-14, 2025: HRSA announced a meeting of the Advisory Committee on Heritable Disorders in Newborns and Children. This is a virtual meeting open to the public.

February 25, 2025: CDC announced a meeting of the Advisory Board on Radiation and Worker Health. This is a hybrid meeting open to the public.

February 25, 2025: FDA announced a public workshop entitled, Cell Therapies and Tissue-Based Products: A Public Workshop on Generating Scientific Evidence to Facilitate Development. This is a virtual workshop open to the public.

February 26-28, 2025: CDC announced a meeting of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). This is a virtual meeting open to the public.

March 5, 2025: The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced a meeting of the Rehabilitation Research and Development Service (RR&D) Scientific Merit Review Board. This is a virtual meeting, partially open to the public.

March 5-6, 2025: HRSA announced a meeting of the National Advisory Council on Nurse Education and Practice (NACNEP). This is a hybrid meeting open to the public.

March 27-28, 2025: HRSA announced a meeting of the Advisory Committee on Training in Primary Care Medicine and Dentistry (ACTPCMD). This is a hybrid meeting open to the public.

March 27-28, 2025: FDA announced a public workshop entitled, Optimizing Pregnancy Registries. This is an in-person workshop open to the public.

April 3, 2025: NIH announced a meeting of the Board of Scientific Counselors for the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. This is a hybrid meeting open to the public.

April 10-11, 2025: HRSA announced a meeting of the Council on Graduate Medical Education (COGME). This is a hybrid meeting open to the public.

April 30, 2025: NIH announced a meeting of the National Library of Medicine Board of Scientific Counselors. This is a hybrid meeting with some sessions open to the public.

May 14, 2025: HRSA announced a meeting of the National Advisory Council on Nurse Education and Practice (NACNEP). This is a hybrid meeting open to the public.

May 14, 2025: NIH announced a meeting of the National Advisory Council on Aging. This is an in-person meeting with one session open to the public.

June 3-4, 2025: FDA announced a public workshop entitled, Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 Generic Drug Science and Research Initiatives Workshop. This is a hybrid workshop open to the public.

August 6-7, 2025: HRSA announced a meeting of the National Advisory Council on Nurse Education and Practice (NACNEP). This is a hybrid meeting open to the public.

August 8, 2025: HRSA announced a meeting of the Advisory Committee on Training in Primary Care Medicine and Dentistry (ACTPCMD). This is a hybrid meeting open to the public.

September 11-12, 2025: HRSA announced a meeting of the Council on Graduate Medical Education (COGME). This is a hybrid meeting open to the public.

December 4-5, 2025: HRSA announced a meeting of the National Advisory Council on Nurse Education and Practice (NACNEP). This is a hybrid meeting open to the public.

II. Hearings & Markups

III. Reports, Studies, & Analyses

  • On January 27, 2025, the Congressional Research Service (CRS) released a report entitled, “Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) Executive Order: Early Implementation.” The report assesses the EO entitled “Establishing and Implementing the President’s ‘Department of Government Efficiency’” (DOGE), which reorganizes an existing entity in the EOP, the U.S. Digital Service, as the U.S. DOGE Service, using the same acronym as its predecessor (USDS). Two additional EOs identify other USDS activities related to agency hiring freezes and hiring plans. The report further describes the reorganized USDS’s duties and activities as outlined in the DOGE EO, historical operations of the legacy U.S. Digital Service, and potential areas of interest for Congress.
  • On January 29, 2025, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report entitled, Public Health Preparedness: HHS and Jurisdictions Have Taken Some Steps to Address Challenging Workforce Gaps, highlighting ongoing shortages in the U.S. public health workforce, particularly in nursing and data analytics. The report found that workforce gaps, worsened by public health emergencies, hindered disease surveillance, hazard identification, and emergency response. GAO states that key challenges include limited and inflexible funding, competition from higher-paying employers, and slow hiring processes tied to civil service rules. GAO notes that to address these issues, HHS has provided greater flexibility in grant funding for workforce support. Some jurisdictions have responded by increasing pay and streamlining hiring. GAO states that its analysis, based on 69 workforce studies and interviews with officials from HHS, national organizations, and 11 jurisdictions, underscores the need for continued investment and policy changes to strengthen public health preparedness.
  • On January 28, 2025, the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) released an issue brief entitled, Medicare Advantage Insurers Made Nearly 50 Million Prior Authorization Determinations in 2023. KFF states that its analysis highlights the growing use of prior authorization in Medicare Advantage (MA), where nearly all enrollees (99 percent) are subject to these requirements for certain services, including hospital stays, skilled nursing care, and chemotherapy. In contrast, KFF notes that traditional Medicare imposes prior authorization on a limited set of services. Further, KFF states that MA insurers made nearly 50 million prior authorization determinations in 2023, up from 42 million in 2022 and 37 million in 2021, reflecting the program’s enrollment growth. KFF also noted that while denial rates in MA declined slightly to 6.4 percent in 2023, a majority (81.7 percent) of appealed denials were overturned, which KFF claims is an indication that necessary care may have been delayed. The brief also discusses recent policy efforts to address prior authorization concerns, including rules finalized under the Biden Administration to streamline the process and increase transparency. In December 2024, the Biden Administration proposed additional changes, which the incoming Trump Administration could modify or finalize. KFF notes that Congress has also taken interest, with bipartisan support for reforms, but no legislation has been enacted. KFF highlights that the issue remains a focal point in ongoing debates about MA oversight and patient access to care.

IV. Other Health Policy News

  • On January 31, 2025, Representatives Greg Murphy (R-NC-03) and Jimmy Panetta (D-CA-19), along with a bipartisan group of Members of Congress, introduced the Medicare Patient Access and Practice Stabilization Act of 2025, which would address cuts to the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (PFS) that went into effect on January 1, 2025. The legislation would prospectively eliminate the 2.83 cut to the PFS beginning April 1 through December 31, 2025, and would provide a two percent payment update. A version of this bill was introduced last Congress, but Congress failed to pass it. The text of the bill is available here. A press release with more information is available here.
  • On January 27, 2025, the Trump Administration, through OMB, released a memorandum entitled, Temporary Pause of Agency Grant, Loan, and Other Financial Assistance Programs (OMB memo) to the heads of executive departments and agencies. The OMB memo stated that “Federal agencies must temporarily pause all activities related to obligation or disbursement of all Federal financial assistance, and other relevant agency activities that may be implicated by the [Trump Administration’s] executive orders, including, but not limited to, financial assistance for foreign aid, nongovernmental organizations, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), woke gender ideology, and the Green New Deal.” Of note, OMB states in a footnote that “[n]othing in this memo should be construed to impact Medicare or Social Security benefits.” However, the absence of Medicaid from the footnote caused confusion among stakeholders over the applicability of the funding pause on the Medicaid program.
  • On January 28, 2025, OMB released guidance clarifying that the requirement to “temporarily pause” all activities did not include a pause on all Federal financial assistance, but only for those implicated by EOs issued by President Trump. The guidance also provided that “any program that provides direct benefits to individuals is not subject to the pause.” Further, the guidance clarified that Social Security and Medicare, as well as mandatory programs like Medicaid, would continue without pause.
  • The OMB memo provided that the temporary pause would become effective on January 28, 2025, at 5 pm. However, minutes before the pause was to become effective, a U.S. District Judge in Washington, D.C. ordered an administrative stay, preventing the pause on funding until February 3, 2025, at 5 pm.
  • On January 29, 2025, OMB rescinded the memorandum. However, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt subsequently released a statement on the social media site X stating that this rescission did not apply to the funding freeze, only the OMB memo itself, and that the “President’s EO’s on federal funding remain in full force and effect, and will be rigorously implemented.” While the final status of which federal programs are under a funding freeze remains unclear, the court injunction is expected to prevent any freeze from taking place before February 3, 2025.
  • The rescinded OMB memo is available here. The district court’s order for an administrative stay is available here.
  • On January 29 and 30, 2025, the Senate Finance and Senate Health, Education, Labor, & Pensions (HELP) Committees respectively held confirmation hearings for HHS Secretary nominee Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. In both hearings, senators pressed Mr. Kennedy on his past statements on vaccines, public health, and chronic disease. Mr. Kennedy sought to clarify his stance on vaccines, stating that he is not anti-vaccine but rather “pro-safety”, emphasizing that all of his children are vaccinated. However, Democrats sharply criticized his history of spreading vaccine misinformation, arguing that his rhetoric has undermined public health efforts. Some Republicans also expressed concerns, but were generally more open to his nomination, focusing instead on his broader health care priorities.
  • Beyond vaccines, Mr. Kennedy spoke extensively about his commitment to tackling chronic disease, food safety, and conflicts of interest within health agencies. He stressed the importance of improving health care quality while reducing costs, advocating for a shift toward value-based care. Mr. Kennedy voiced support for expanding the health care workforce, increasing access to telemedicine, and ensuring primary care providers have the resources to manage chronic conditions. He also voiced support for lowering drug prices and increasing diversity in research and clinical trials.
  • Throughout the hearings, Mr. Kennedy faced a mix of skepticism and cautious support. Democrats remained largely opposed to his nomination, citing his vaccine stance and past health-related conspiracy theories. Meanwhile, Republicans were more receptive, with some seeing his focus on reducing costs and increasing transparency as aligning with conservative health policy goals. A recording of the Senate Finance Committee hearing is available here. A recording of the Senate HELP hearing is available here.

View our Health Care Legislative & Public Policy team.

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