Ron Wyden

A federal antitrust watchdog is conducting an investigation into, and has filed suit against, huge pharmacy middlemen. Two U.S. senators want the Federal Trade Commission to open a separate investigation.

In the face of conflicting state policies and an impending update to the U.S. Farm Bill, the Texas hemp industry finds itself at a legal crossroads. A crucial lawsuit from 2021 is now before the state's highest court, challenging Texas’ attempted ban on delta-8 THC, the popular but controversial hemp derivative.Hometown Hero Challenges Texas Hemp Ban Amid National DebateThe lawsuit, spearheaded by Hometown Hero and represented by Cynthia Cabrera, head of the Texas Hemp Business Council, argues against the ban’s sweeping language, which could implicate a wide array of cannabinoids under its prohibition. “The way that ban's language was written, it includes anything that could contain a trace of delta-8, which would be all cannabinoids,” Cabrera explained to Green Market Report.This legal battle is set against a backdrop of an ongoing national dialogue on hemp regulations, with states like California, New Jersey and Georgia recently implementing their own restrictions. In Missouri, the state passed a total ban but had to ...Full story available on Benzinga.com

Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) made headlines a week ago after introducing the Cannabinoid Safety and Regulation Act (CSRA), a measure that seeks to set up a federal framework for regulating hemp-derived cannabinoids like CBD and Delta-8 THC.On Wednesday, ONE HEMP hailed Congressional action toward the regulation of CBD as a dietary supplement, calling the move "long overdue."The coalition of industry leaders was committed to advancing regulatory standards for hemp-derived cannabinoid (CBD) products for years.“ONE HEMP has been deeply committed to a bipartisan legislative process and has worked closely with Congressional leaders on both sides of the political aisle to provide scientific and market expertise," said Kelly D. Fair, ONE HEMP counsel and partner at Dentons US. “The Wyden bill marks the beginning of a process that will ultimately lead to an approach that will promote a vibrant CBD industry and ensure access for millions of consumers to the highest quality and safest ...Full story available on Benzinga.com

In January 2023, U.S. federal agents raided the home of a Tucson maintenance worker who had a side hustle hauling packages across the border to Mexico.

Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) introduced the Hemp Economic Mobilization Plan (HEMP) Act on Thursday, aiming to relax federal constraints on hemp by tripling the allowable THC content from 0.3% to 1%.This legislation seeks to redefine hemp and simplify the testing process, shifting focus from raw hemp flower to finished products – a change that could ease operational challenges for hemp farmers and processors.HEMP Act Aims To Cut Red Tape"For years, I've led the fight in Washington to restore one of Kentucky's most historically vital crops by legalizing industrial hemp,” Senator Paul stated in a press release. “We achieved a hard-won victory, but there is still work to do to prevent the federal government from weighing down our farmers with unnecessary bureaucratic micromanaging. My legislation will help this growing ...Full story available on Benzinga.com

Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, and Senator Mark Warner, D-Virginia, have teamed up to announce legislation of "commonsense reforms" that aim to stem the wave of increased cyberattacks breaching Americans’ privacy and causing major disruptions to care nationwide. The Health Infrastructure Security and Accountability Act would not only mandate cybersecurity protocols but also increase funding to rural and underserved hospitals to meet new cybersecurity standards, Warner said in a statement Thursday.WHY IT MATTERSIf made law, the proposed reforms in the bill would result in enhanced auditing of healthcare organizations. They'd also pay higher user fees for the new regulatory services.Warner, who has been focused on improving the sector's cybersecurity posture and has urged U.S. Health and Human Services to end voluntary cybersecurity requirements and released a 2022 policy paper calling for a healthcare cybersecurity czar, said in a statement that he believes voluntary standards lack the teeth needed to protect patients’ most private data and care continuity.The lawmakers made it clear that they believe some of the largest healthcare organizations are "ignoring cybersecurity standards.""Megacorporations like UnitedHealth are flunking Cybersecurity 101, and American families are suffering as a result," Wyden said in the statement. "The healthcare industry has some of the worst cybersecurity practices in the nation despite its critical importance to Americans’ well-being and privacy." The Health Infrastructure Security and Accountability Act, according to a fact sheet on the proposed legislation, calls for "enhanced standards" that apply to "systemically important" entities and modernizing HIPAA mandatory minimum cybersecurity standards for healthcare providers, health plans clearinghouses and business associates. The bill would also require covered entities and business associates to submit annual independent cybersecurity audits and other measures that ensure they can restore services promptly after an incident – "which HHS can waive for small providers." Top executives would have to certify compliance with the requirements each year, and HHS would have to "proactively audit the data security practices of at least 20 regulated entities each year."The bill also proposes to eliminate the statutory caps on HHS’ fining authority so mega-corporations, like United Health Group, "face large enough fines to deter lax cybersecurity." While the additional security oversight and enforcement would be paid for by user fees on all regulated entities, the legislative proposal also provides $800 million for enhanced cybersecurity standards payments at rural and urban safety net hospitals and $500 million for all hospitals."With hacks already targeting institutions across the country, it’s time to go beyond voluntary standards and ensure healthcare providers and vendors get serious about cybersecurity and patient safety," Warner said.THE LARGER TRENDWarner and Wyden's announcement noted that after the Senate Finance Committee held a hearing in May with UnitedHealth Group CEO Andrew Witty about the February cyberattack against Change Healthcare, a subsidiary of UHG, Wyden called on the Biden administration to investigate the mega-corporation and hold it accountable for its "lax cybersecurity."Witty pledged to rebuild the afflicted healthcare payments clearinghouse with cloud-based security. Change also did not have multi-factor authentication in place, which left the organization vulnerable to the cyberattack.In a strategy paper released in December, HHS also called for new cybersecurity requirements for hospitals and outlined voluntary healthcare-specific cybersecurity performance goals."Funding and voluntary goals alone will not drive the cyber-related behavioral change needed across the healthcare sector," the agency said in an announcement at the time.Meanwhile, the American Hospital Association pushed back on suggested strategies that it said penalized hospitals for cyberattacks."No organization, including federal agencies, is or can be immune from cyberattacks," Rick Pollack, AHA’s president and CEO, had told Healthcare IT News. "Imposing fines or cutting Medicare payments would diminish hospital resources needed to combat cybercrime and would be counterproductive to our shared goal of preventing cyberattacks."Case in point: The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services recently mailed written data breach notifications to 946,801 people when it was snared along with a multitude of companies across sectors worldwide when a vulnerability in a third-party application used for file transfer was discovered earlier this year. CMS said in the letter that protected health information or other personally identifiable information may have been compromised in a cyber breach related to MOVEit software.ON THE RECORD"Cybersecurity remains an ever-evolving challenge in our healthcare ecosystem and more must be done to prevent cyber attacks and ensure patient safety," Andrea Palm, deputy secretary of HHS, said in a statement. "Clear accountability measures and mandatory cybersecurity requirements for all organizations that hold sensitive data are essential."Andrea Fox is senior editor of Healthcare IT News.Email: [email protected] IT News is a HIMSS Media publication.The HIMSS Healthcare Cybersecurity Forum is scheduled to take place October 31-November 1 in Washington, D.C. " target="_blank">Learn more and register. Enterprise Taxonomy: Cybersecurity and PrivacySecurityLegislationData and InformationPublic Policy

Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) introduced the Cannabinoid Safety and Regulation Act (CSRA) on Wednesday, aiming to establish a federal framework for regulating hemp-derived cannabinoids like CBD and Delta-8 THC. The legislation seeks to protect public health by setting national standards on age restrictions, safety testing and labeling for hemp products.FDA To Oversee Hemp Product Safety And AccessWyden’s CSRA proposes a national age limit of 21 for purchasing hemp-derived cannabinoid products and mandates that all such products undergo safety and manufacturing testing to ensure clean processes. The bill empowers the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to recall or ban cannabis products containing dangerous chemicals or additives, ensuring truth in labeling.“Just like the tobacco industry marketing cigarettes to young people, nobody should be slapping fun cartoons and glitzy candy wrapper packaging on cannabis products meant for adults,” Wyden stated in a press release. “A federal floor for regulation of hemp products is non-negotiable to ensure that consumers aren't put at risk by untested products of unknown origin. My legislation will ensure that adult consumers know what they're getting, and that hemp products are never sold or marketed to children.”Synthetic Cannabinoids Would Face Federal BanThe legislation allows states to impose their own regulations on hemp-derived products ...Full story available on Benzinga.com

Oklahoma Republican Sen. James Lankford is pictured in the Capitol during votes on July 31. Lankford on Tuesday blocked a resolution expressing a sense of the Senate that every patient should have the right to emergency health care, including abortion, regardless of where they live, saying that “there is no state in America where a woman faces prosecution for having an abortion.”

As Kamala Harris pivots to the center in the final weeks of the 2024 presidential election, the agenda she’s using to convey a pragmatic streak includes various unanswered questions.

A subcommittee of the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources on Wednesday got its first look at a bill sponsored by Colorado's two senators that would help finance the Arkansas Valley Conduit.

Thomas' wife thanked a conservative legal group for opposing efforts to impose court reforms.

Vice President Harris’ campaign on Thursday will roll out some of her housing policy proposals including that she supports efforts aimed at lowering the cost of rent and supporting renters struggling financially, according to details obtained by NBC News from a campaign official.

A top Senate Democrat is introducing a bill to counter a landmark Supreme Court decision that gives the court significantly more influence over what federal agencies can do, Axios has learned.Why it matters: Democrats fear that the SCOTUS decision, which overturned its 40-year-old "Chevron deference" doctrine, will hamstring federal agencies' ability to deal with top policy areas, like climate and labor.Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden's (D-Ore.) bill would give lawmakers the ability to effectively overturn court rulings that undermine the intent of laws passed by Congress granting power to the executive branch.Presidents rely heavily on executive actions and federal agencies to carry out much of their agenda. But the SCOTUS decision has thrown that into flux.The Chevron decision was another made by the court's conservative majority, outraging Democrats about what they say is judicial overreach.The big picture: The Chevron ruling is already sending shockwaves through Washington amid questions about how it affects environment, technology and energy regulation.And it comes after Democrats successfully signed into law sweeping environmental and energy reforms under President Joe Biden's watch.Wyden's bill, the "Restoring Congressional Authority Act," would mandate that the judiciary defer to public agencies as they implement laws.Zoom out: It's part of a wave of Democratic legislation and messaging against the conservative Supreme Court."At every turn, MAGA judges are hellbent on dragging our country backwards," Wyden said in a statement.Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) this week also introduced a bill that would reverse last month's presidential immunity decision.And the court's ruling striking down Roe v. Wade over two years ago remains a top Democratic talking point and policy priority.Catch up quick: The court's "Chevron doctrine," decided 40 years ago, held that the courts would defer to an agency's interpretation of the law, if the underlying law was vague or unclear.But conservative justices had increasingly ignored the doctrine over the last few years — and have now given it a kill shot.Reality check: While Wyden is one of the most powerful chairmen in the Senate, this bill is likely going nowhere. Instead, it's a Democratic messaging play.But the measure gives Democrats a starting point on how to deal with the Chevron decision if they are able to win control of the White House and Congress on Nov. 5.

More than 200,000 people have complained to the federal government this year that they have been switched in health care enrollment or plan and never authorized it.

'Passed the Senate in a 91-3 vote'

Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer said the vote was a step in "the most important update in decades to federal laws to protecting kids on the internet."

Sens. Richard Blumenthal and Marsha Blackburn, center, join families of victims of online abuse at a news conference Thursday on the childrens' online safety bill that advanced in the Senate.

A number of Democratic lawmakers, governors and past leaders were quick to rally behind Vice President Harris as she pursues the Democratic Party's presidential nomination following President Biden's withdrawal from the race. Shortly after dropping out of the presidential race, Biden endorsed Harris as his successor, stating it is "time to come together and beat" [...]

Notwithstanding the superficial appeal of a wealth tax given deceptively low tax rates and citizens’ basic sense of fairness, as a matter of policy it’s a terrible idea, for myriad reasons

The Biden administration has time to reassess its position, not least because there does not appear to be interagency consensus on the issue.

It took six decades and many attempts before Congress passed a statehood bill and admitted New Mexico to the union in 1912. That is cause for optimism, said Sen. Martin Heinrich, who right now is thinking about the future of Puerto Rico. The Caribbean island of a little more than 3 million people has been […] The post Senate Democrats make the case for Puerto Rico self-determination appeared first on Roll Call.

A bipartisan duo on the Senate panel with jurisdiction over tax and trade legislation is calling on the Biden administration to scrap or at minimum suspend a treaty with Russia that reduces taxes levied on cross-border profits amid rising tensions over its attack on Ukraine. Senate Finance Committee members Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., and John Cornyn, R-Texas, […] The post Senate duo aims to cut off Russia tax treaty benefits appeared first on Roll Call.

More than 300 guests are attending the state dinner that President Biden and first lady Jill Biden are hosting for Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, but outside of political luminaries, the guest list features few well-known names.