LYRA MCKEE. 57-year-old woman arrested for murder of Northern Ireland LGBTQ journalist. ‘McKee, 29, was shot in the Creggan area of Londonderry in what police in Northern Ireland described as a “terrorist attack.” The prominent freelance journalist had written for publications including The Atlantic and Buzzfeed News.’
Friends of slain journalist Lyra McKee have put red paint handprints over the front of dissident republican HQ Junior McDaid House in #Derry in protest over the murder of the 29-year-old #LyraMcKeepic.twitter.com/jzhnTM0GcX
DON MCGAHN. Trump and Giuliani amp up attacks: “Mr. Giuliani’s attacks on Mr. McGahn have unnerved some senior White House officials, who have argued privately that the president and his legal team should stop drawing attention to damaging episodes in the report, according to two people close to the White House. But Mr. Trump has privately complained about the accounts, particularly the ones given by Mr. McGahn, and has said the only way to protect himself from impeachment is to attack Mr. Mueller and Mr. McGahn, the people said.”
NATIONAL HERO. Maltese excitement builds for Pete Buttigieg: “But on the tiny European island, the Maltese are already making plans for what they will do if their favorite son’s son, Pete Buttigieg, is elected as the next U.S. president. Prime Minister Joseph Muscat has even officially endorsed Buttigieg’s candidacy and has said he is proud to call him a friend.”
POLLS. Buttigieg climbs in New Hampshire: “The latest Granite State Poll from the University of New Hampshire finds Sanders at 30 percent, followed by Biden at 18 percent and Buttigieg at 15 percent. No other candidate has more than 5 percent support. Seventy-seven percent of Democrats said they’re still trying to decide who to support.”
ISRAEL. Netanyahu planning to name Golan Heights town after Trump: “After the Passover holiday I intend to bring to the government a resolution calling for a new community on the Golan Heights named after President Donald J. Trump.”
ממשיך לטייל עם המשפחה ברמת הגולן. לכבוד הנשיא טראמפ שהכיר בריבונות ישראל על הגולן, בקרוב אקרא ליישוב ברמת הגולן על שמו. חג שמח! pic.twitter.com/pnwngkr4XO
WE MAKE YOUR BED. Undocumented immigrant housekeeper slams Stephen Miller: “When Stephen Miller goes to sleep at Trump properties, like Bedminster [Trump’s golf club in New Jersey], he is sleeping in a bed made by undocumented immigrants. When he wakes up, he is fed by them. The same is true for the Trump family. They rely on our labor even as the attack us and our communities. What a bunch of hypocrites. Cruel, demeaning hypocrites.”
MACRO BUG OF THE DAY. Tortoise beetles, Cassidinae own their name to the carapace under which they can find shelter like a tortoise, with the difference that their carapace can open for flight.
New Federal Rule Will Help People Living with HIV Afford Life-Saving Medication
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has finalized a new rule that allows people who rely on expensive non-generic prescription drugs — including those living with HIV — to count toward their annual insurance deductible the charitable drug assistance they may be receiving.
This is a significant development, as, over the past few years, we and other advocates for people living with HIV have witnessed insurers and pharmacy benefit managers implementing practices to shift the burden of rising prescription drug costs to patients.
One such practice, known as the ‘co-pay accumulator’ policy, prevented an individual from using a manufacturer’s co-pay card or other form of charitable drug assistance to count toward the patient’s deductible or annual out-of-pocket maximum. As a result, people living with HIV, and other high-cost health conditions, have had to pay more for their life-saving medications. HRC along with a number of coalition partners wrote to the nation’s state insurance commissioners in May 2018 to intervene and stop the practice. Recently, Virginia and West Virginia passed laws to do just that.
In January, CMS outlined its proposal for addressing this harmful policy. HRC and HIV advocates weighed-in again emphasizing that higher out-of-pocket costs were affecting patient’s adherence to their medications.
HRC is encouraged by the news that the CMS’ final rule on the use of co-pay accumulators responds to the concerns highlighted by HIV advocates — that preventing the use of manufacturer co-pay assistance was unfairly affecting people living with HIV, and other life-threatening conditions.
The final rule prohibits the use of ‘co-pay accumulators’ in cases where there is no generic equivalent for the brand name drugs. The specialty drugs to treat HIV are costly with few, if any, lower cost alternatives. The new regulation will apply to the individual health insurance market, small group, large group and self-insured group plans beginning in 2020.
While this is a win, there will be other efforts on the horizon to shift the cost burden for HIV and other specialty drugs onto patients. HRC will be ready to fight for those who need affordable and accessible life-saving treatment.
