The Senate voted Wednesday evening to limit debate on Rep. Tom Price, MD, R-Ga., to 30 hours before taking a final vote on his nomination for HHS secretary, Politico reported.
If all the debate time is used, a vote will take place early Friday, according to the report. This is likely considering the decision to limit debate comes as more information is available about Rep. Price's potentially unethical stock trades during his time in Congress — something Democrat objections have focused on throughout the nomination process.
USA Today reported Wednesday Rep. Price often omitted trades or misstated timing on stock trade reports. These included his trades with Australian biotech company Innate Immunotherapeutics — which were highly debated during his two confirmation hearings — as well as his investments in medical equipment companies, according to the report.
USA Today obtained an unsigned statement from HHS indicating Rep. Price introduced legislation to maintain Medicare reimbursements for durable medical equipment one week before investing $15,000 in Blackstone, a company that would directly benefit from the legislation. A subsidiary of that company lobbied Congress to support the bill, according to the report.
Ethics lawyers told USA Today even if Rep. Price did not commit insider trading, he exercised bad judgment by trading in healthcare stocks so frequently. That frequency alone is enough to suggest an investigation may be necessary, they said, according to the report.
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