By Christine Condon | Reporter
“Under this bill, when Medicare negotiates what it pays for a drug, Maryland can pay the same once our board signs off. No more starting over, no more starting from scratch,” — Gov. Wes Moore (D), on pharmaceutical legislation he’s supporting during the 2027 session.
Happy Thursday. Just about 90 days separate us and the next 90-day legislative session in Annapolis.
The governor hopes it will include the passage of a bill that could hasten price reductions for prescription drugs. So do dozens of legislators, reports Danielle J. Brown.
Meanwhile, a short drive from the State House, officials unveiled a new monument dedicated to Malcolm X. Check out that story from William J. Ford.
And remember those 287(g) agreements that Maryland lawmakers banned earlier this year? Reporting from Ariana Figueroa shows the agreements have been instrumental in strengthening President Donald Trump’s (R) immigration crackdown.
All that and more awaits you in this morning’s edition of the Maryland Matters Memo.
Vincent DeMarco, president of Maryland Health Care for All, celebrates the governor's approval of 2025 legislation that could help Marylanders save on prescription drug costs. (Photo by Bryan P. Sears/Maryland Matters)
By Danielle J. Brown
Gov. Wes Moore offered his “public and loud” support for proposed legislation that would allow the state to more quickly reduce the price of some expensive drugs for non-Medicare recipients by piggybacking on the federally negotiated price limits under Medicare.
And at a press conference Wednesday announcing the legislation, he promised to sign the bill, assuming it survives the 2027 legislative session. The current odds look promising.
The Maryland Healthcare for All Coalition, the organization driving the measure, recently sent letters to House and Senate candidates in the upcoming midterm elections asking for their stance on the measure.
The coalition received support from 29 Senate candidates with 26 incumbents backing the measure, along with 98 House candidates, of whom 79 are incumbents.
One side of the two-sided Malcolm X Monument near the Michael E. Busch Annapolis Library. (Photo by William J. Ford/Maryland Matters)
By William J. Ford
A double-sided monument sharing quotes and photos of civil rights activist Malcolm X was unveiled Wednesday at the Michael E. Busch Annapolis Library.
Malcolm X, who died at the age of 39 in 1965, had no direct connection to Maryland, but that was not a deterrent to honoring him, said Sen. Shaneka Henson (D-Anne Arundel).
“Why not Malcom X?” Henson said. “When you think of Malcolm X and you think of a library, Malcolm X was a storyteller.”
Officers from the Tennessee Highway Patrol and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security at a traffic stop in Memphis in October, 2025. (Photo by John Partipilo/Tennessee Lookout)
By Ariana Figueroa
This summer, arrests of immigrants in the United States soared to the highest levels since President Donald Trump returned to office.
An unprecedented increase in cooperation between local and state law enforcement and federal immigration officers through collaborations known as 287(g) agreements helped drive numbers up.
The agreements allow state and local law enforcement agencies to enforce parts of federal immigration law and have become an arm of Trump’s mass deportation campaign.
IN OTHER NEWS
Next act for No Kings: The movement that has brought millions to the streets across the United States three times since the start of President Donald Trump’s (R) second term is staging its next event at the polls.
Crusade continues: The U.S. Department of Justice is demanding California not count ballots from voters it says are suspected noncitizens, a move by the Trump administration to apply last-minute pressure as voting begins in the midterm elections.
Grid stressed again: The electricity grid operator for Maryland and much of the mid-Atlantic is warning this week that warm weather and maintenance outages could push the system close to its limits.
TODAY'S COMMENTARY
Anti-labor rules: An enormous swath of the union workers who keep Maryland running are prohibited from using what is normally a union’s strongest tool to obtain leverage in negotiations. What does that cost Maryland?
MATTERS YOU MAY HAVE MISSED
Stormy debate for Harris: Outbursts from the audience, largely in opposition to comments from Rep. Andy Harris (R-1st), defined the debate between the longtime Congressman and his challenger, Democrat Dan Schwartz.
Criticism for the governor: Media advocates sent a fiery letter to Gov. Wes Moore’s (D) administration Tuesday, condemning its policy of sending media requests from Sinclair outlets for legal review as he faces a lawsuit from Sinclair chairman David Smith.
High marks for the bay: The Chesapeake Bay earned a C+ on its report card from Maryland scientists, notching the best score it has earned since the annual study began in 2006. But the states surrounding the nation’s largest estuary still have work to do.
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