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Dear members,

Last week saw legislative days 17 – 20, marking the halfway point for the 40-day legislative session. Most notably, House Bill 85, legislation requiring insurance coverage of biomarker testing if ordered by a medical professional, passed out of the House last week and has been assigned to the Senate Health & Human Services Committee. We do not expect committee action on this until after Crossover Day (Monday, March 6th). We do anticipate another round of proposed amendments to the bill in committee from the insurance lobby and will begin our conversations with committee members to reject those changes.

House Bill 343, the Lowering Prescription Drug Costs for Patients Act, would require 80% of pharmaceutical manufacturers rebates be passed along to the customer at the point of sale. The bill has been assigned to the House Health Committee and is scheduled to be presented during tomorrow’s meeting at 2 p.m. in CLOB 515. Live stream of the meeting is also available HERE if you would like to watch.

Senate Bill 106, the Healthy Babies Act, would establish a 3-year pilot program to offer remote maternal clinical care for high-risk pregnancies under Medicaid. The bill passed out of the Senate Health & Human Services Committee last week and waits to be heard in Senate Rules. We know this is a priority of several of our medical device companies and patient groups, so we will work to get this passed out of the Senate before the Crossover Day deadline.

A few other items we are monitoring and supporting are House Bill 416, authorizing qualified pharmacy technicians to administer vaccines, and Senate Bill 109, adding continuous glucose monitors as a pharmacy benefit under Medicaid. SB 109 passed out of Senate HHS last week and waits in Senate Rules, while HB 416 is scheduled to be heard by the House Health Committee tomorrow at 2 p.m.

We are only two weeks away from Crossover Day, so legislation will start to move much faster as we grow closer and then for the remaining 12 legislative days after March 6th. We will do our best to keep you informed, especially as we see the need for Calls to Action to legislators on certain issues. That being said, please do not hesitate to reach to us should you have any questions or concerns as we are here to represent you!

REGISTER TODAY!

Join the CGHI: Georgia Bio policy team and members of the Georgia General Assembly, including House Speaker Jon Burns and Senate Majority Leader Steve Gooch, on TOMORROW, February 22nd at 5 p.m. for a Legislative Reception! Hosted at the Tower Square lobby, the event will feature cocktails, light hors d’oeuvres, networking with elected officials, and tours of the pre-construction CGHI Innovation District, scheduled to open late 2023.

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FEDERAL FLY-INS

AdvaMed/SMTA Fly-in:                                                                                  

March 7-8, 2023

Capitol Hill/AdvaMed Offices (1301 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Suite 400, Washington D.C. 20004)

RSVP HERE

CSBA Fly-in:

March 28-29, 2023

Capitol Hill/BIO Offices (1201 New York Ave. NW, Washington D.C. 20005)

RSVP and Hotel Registration HERE

 

CONTACT THE TEAM

Should you have questions, concerns, or just want more information on a legislative issue, please don’t hesitate to reach out to members of our Policy Team.

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Ashley HaltomVP of Government AffairsCenter for Global Health Innovation: Georgia Bioahaltom@gabio.org

(478) 217-0232

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Marcus DownsChair, Policy & Advocacy CommitteeDirector, State Government AffairsTakeda Pharmaceuticals America, Inc.marcus.downs@takeda.com

(678) 234-4060

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Sally KilpatrickPrincipalCornerstone Government Affairsskilpatrick@cgagroup.org

(404) 805-6363

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