On The Hill

U.S., China Move Closer to ‘Phase One’ of Trade Deal The beginning of a long-term trade deal between the U.S. and China could be one step closer to finalization. U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin cited progress after their Friday (Oct. 25) phone call with Chinese Vice Premier Liu He,…

Though House Impeachment proceedings into President Trump dominated a rollercoaster week on Capitol Hill, there were numerous healthcare headlines as well. The House Energy & Commerce and Education & Labor Committees approved Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-CA) drug pricing bill (H.R. 3), while the House Ways & Means Committee held a full committee hearing on the…

OECD Releases Pillar One ‘Blueprint’ for Global Digital Tax On Wednesday (Oct.9), the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) released a proposal for Pillar One of the Programme of Work (PoW) adopted by the Inclusive Framework on BEPS in May 2019. Pillar One outlines the Secretariat Proposal for a “unified approach” while addressing the…

Healthcare headlines were scant this week, as Congress was out for its recess and set to return next week. House Ways & Means Chairman Richard Neal (D-MA) announced that the committee will hold a hearing next week on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-CA) drug pricing bill (H.R. 3). Additionally, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid…

U.S., China Reach Partial Trade Agreement The United States and China reached a partial agreement on Friday (Oct. 11) that could potentially lead to a truce in the ongoing trade war between the two superpowers. Chinese Vice Premier Liu He, the nation’s top trade official, met with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary…

Several pieces of taxation legislation were released in recent weeks, including a proposal to repeal the excise tax on university investment income and two separate tobacco tax bills. In other tax news, House members have united to push lawmakers in the Senate to vote to repeal a tax on Gold Star military families. Additionally, Puerto…

As the impeachment inquiry into President Trump continues to seize the headlines in Washington, Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-CA) “Lower Drug Costs Now Act” continued atop healthcare matters for the week, as Congress began its first of two weeks in recess. Additional headlines included Ways and Means Chairman Richard Neal’s (D-MA) new approach to surprise billing…

U.S. Awarded $7.5B by WTO in Boeing-Airbus Dispute On Wednesday (Oct. 2), the World Trade Organization (WTO) ruled the U.S. can issue punitive tariffs on roughly $7.5 billion of goods from the European Union (EU). The award, the largest-ever award issued by the trade body, stems from a Section 301 investigation “EU Large Civil Aircraft”…

Carbon Tax On Thursday (Sep. 26) Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) introduced a carbon tax bill that would put a price on carbon and invest the revenue in infrastructure. The legislation is similar to the “MARKET CHOICE Act,” a carbon tax bill authored by former representative Carlos Curbelo of Florida. Fitzpatrick co-sponsored that bill, which would…

Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-CA) recently unveiled drug pricing plan, the Lower Drug Costs Now Act of 2019 (H.R. 3), had hearings this week in both the House E&C and Ed.& Labor Committees. However, it is likely to take a backseat on Capitol Hill with the recent impeachment inquiry led by House Democrats into President Trump.…