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The U.S. Indian Health Service’s latest effort to protect patients from abuse falls short, federal inspectors said in a report to be released Friday, despite a rush to overhaul policies this year following a sex-abuse scandal. The new policies are too narrow and haven’t been implemented at some facilities, according to the Office of Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees the health care agency. (Frosch and Weaver, 12/20)

House Energy and Commerce Chairman Frank Pallone is calling for CMS Administrator Seema Verma’s resignation, becoming the highest-ranking Democrat so far to urge her to quit. Pallone told reporters today that he agreed with Democrats, including some on his committee, who have called for Verma to lose her job over questions about her stewardship of taxpayer funds. (Cancryn, 12/19)

The U.S. escalated its efforts to counter Chinese government programs to draw on the skills of top scientists in the U.S., requiring a Michigan research institute to pay $5.5 million to resolve allegations it made false claims about the Chinese grants its researchers received. The novel settlement announced on Thursday—the first of its kind—is part of a growing U.S. effort to try new legal avenues to address what it sees as threats from so-called talent programs run by the Chinese government. U.S. officials say the programs create conflicts of interest and offer incentives to bring intellectual property back to China. (Viswanatha and O'Keeffe, 12/19)

Suicide rates in the United States have climbed steadily over the past two decades, contributing, along with drug overdoses, to a decline in the average U.S. life expectancy for the third year in a row. The demographers who first identified this trend have called it “deaths of despair.” In response, Congress enacted the National Suicide Hotline Improvement Act of 2018, to encourage more people to seek help. It directed the Federal Communications Commission to study the feasibility of creating a three-digit suicide hotline number, like 9-1-1, that more people could remember. (Vestal, 12/20)