Axios

Altria Group, one of the world's largest producers and marketers of tobacco and cigarettes, is reportedly in talks to take a significant minority stake in e-cigarette company Juul, reports CNBC.

The big picture: Though Juul is reconstructing its marketing plan to curb usage among teens, the company still has a majority of the market share in e-cigarettes and is valued at $16 billion. The business for e-cigarettes is expected to rise at an annual growth rate of 17%, higher than 12% in 2017, according to a Wells Fargo analysis of Nielsen data.

Democrats and a lot of independents want Congress to tackle health care, but Republicans aren’t into it. That’s the takeaway from the Kaiser Family Foundation's latest health care tracking poll.

By the numbers: A strong plurality of Democrats — 27% — listed health care as the issue they most want the new Congress to address.

Congress' criminal justice reform bill has some implications for the opioid crisis.

Details: High-level fentanyl and heroin traffickers would not be eligible for credits to reduce their sentence. These credits are available to lower-level inmates — many of whom have a substance abuse disorder — and can be earned through participation in treatment programs. The bill also would require the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) to submit a report on a pilot program for medication-assisted treatment.

A new generic EpiPen made by Teva Pharmaceuticals carries a $300 list price — the same price as the generic EpiPen that Mylan rolled out in 2016, following widespread criticism of the company's large price hikes on the life-saving drug. It's unknown how much Teva's product will cost after taking out rebates paid to health insurers and pharmacy benefit managers.

Flashback: The FDA approved Teva's generic EpiPen in August, when Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said "patients living with severe allergies ... should have a lower-cost option."

Air ambulances can cost tens of thousands of dollars, and often don't provide an explanation of why they're medically necessary when there are ground options available, CNN reports.

By the numbers: Almost 50 million Americans didn't live within an hour of a level 1 or 2 trauma center as of 2005, and rural hospitals have closed in droves since then. Air ambulances have filled that gap, growing dramatically just in the past few years. Their price tags keep growing, too — the median cost of an airlift is now about $30,000, per CNN.

Go deeper: Why ending surprise medical bills is harder than it looks