Trump Prepares the Battle Ground
Regulatory Freeze Slows HHS
The Trump administration has ordered a governmentwide regulatory freeze that will halt progress on healthcare regulations.
The freeze stops the rulemaking process in its tracks and prevents the new Trump administration from issuing new rules for 60 days.
In that time, the new Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) leadership will decide which Biden-era regulations it wants to toss, which it will let stand, and which it wants to change.
The first Trump administration and the Biden administration instated regulatory freezes on the first days of their terms in 2017 and 2021, respectively.
“The administration gets in and understands the regulatory landscape of where things are and can put out their own kind of stamp on regulatory policies,” Jeff Davis, director of health policy at McDermott+, said.
Trump’s HHS will review regulations that were proposed, but not finalized, by the Biden administration, such as the proposed updates to the HIPAA Security Rule and the proposed rule for prescribing controlled substances via telehealth. Rules that were finalized by Biden but are not yet effective are also stalled for 60 days.
The freeze will give the Trump administration time to determine its regulatory priorities and how they differ from Biden’s. Also, the 60-day freeze gives the administration time to get through the confirmation process for agency officials.