- CMS: Medicare Program; Prospective Payment System and Consolidated Billing for Skilled Nursing Facilities; Updates to the Quality Reporting Program for Federal Fiscal Year 2026
- CMS: Medicare Program; FY 2026 Hospice Wage Index and Payment Rate Update and Hospice Quality Reporting Program Requirements
- Public Inspection: CMS: Medicare Program: Prospective Payment System and Consolidated Billing for Skilled Nursing Facilities; Updates to the Quality Reporting Program for Federal Fiscal Year 2026
- Public Inspection: CMS: Medicare Program: Fiscal Year 2026 Hospice Wage Index and Payment Rate Update and Hospice Quality Reporting Program Requirements
- CMS: Request for Information; Health Technology Ecosystem
- VA: Staff Sergeant Fox Suicide Prevention Grant Program Funding Opportunity
- State: 60-Day Notice of Proposed Information Collection: J-1 Visa Waiver Recommendation Application
- Public Inspection: CMS: Request for Information: Health Technology Ecosystem
- HHS: Request for Information (RFI): Ensuring Lawful Regulation and Unleashing Innovation To Make American Healthy Again
- VA: Solicitation of Nominations for the Appointment to the Advisory Committee on Tribal and Indian Affairs
- GAO Seeks New Members for Tribal and Indigenous Advisory Council
- VA: Staff Sergeant Fox Suicide Prevention Grant Program Funding Opportunity
- Telehealth Study Recruiting Veterans Now
- USDA Delivers Immediate Relief to Farmers, Ranchers and Rural Communities Impacted by Recent Disasters
- Submit Nominations for Partnership for Quality Measurement (PQM) Committees
Pennsylvania Funding for Volunteer Fire Companies to Increase Protection from Wildfires in Rural Areas
Pennsylvania Governor Wolf’s Administration announced that funding is now available to help Pennsylvania’s rural communities increase protection from wildfires.
“Weather can be friend or foe in our wildfire prevention and suppression efforts, but DCNR has no stronger ally — especially during these most difficult times of the pandemic — than the men and women of the volunteer fire companies serving rural areas and communities where forest and brush fires are common,” said Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) Secretary Cindy Adams Dunn. “To appreciate the value of well-equipped and highly trained wildfire fighters, one only has to look outside Pennsylvania to the horrific fires that sometimes plague other states.”
Fire Commissioner Bruce Trego praised volunteer fire companies’ service to communities close to home, as well as those members who often join DCNR’s Bureau of Forestry crews battling wildfires far beyond Pennsylvania’s borders.
“Wildfires continue to pose a dangerous and growing threat to our state’s forests, economic interests and the communities that live and recreate near them,” Trego said. “Grant programs like these are vital tools for state government to ensure volunteer firefighters get needed equipment and training so they may perform their jobs as professionally and safely as possible.”
Local firefighting forces in rural areas or communities with fewer than 10,000 residents qualify for the aid, which is used for training and equipment purchases directly related to fighting brush and forest fires.
Grant applications must be electronically submitted through DCNR’s grant website by 4:00 PM, Thursday, May 13, 2021. To expedite applications and decision-making processes, DCNR is accepting only online applications.
The key objective is to better equip and train volunteers to save lives and protect property in unprotected or inadequately protected rural areas. Grant recipients are selected based on vulnerability and adequacy of existing fire protection.
In application reviews, priority will be placed on projects that include the purchase of wildfire suppression equipment and protective clothing. Grants also may be used for purchasing mobile or portable radios, installing dry hydrants, wildfire prevention and mitigation work, training wildfire fighters, or converting and maintaining federal excess vehicles. These vehicles are presented to the local departments exhibiting the greatest needs and those that commit to outfitting them for fire suppression.
Aid is granted on a cost-share basis. Grants for any project during a fiscal year cannot exceed 50 percent of the actual expenditures of local, public, and private nonprofit organizations in the agreement. The maximum grant that will be considered from any fire company in 2021 is $10,000.
Both Trego and Dunn noted the readiness of volunteer fire companies is demonstrated every spring and summer when they answer assistance calls coming from other states, while also responding regularly to local woodland and brush fires. They noted the wildfire grants help enable smaller companies to concentrate more on public safety and training while easing their fiscal constraints.
In 2020, almost $592,000 was awarded to 109 volunteer fire companies serving rural areas and communities where forest and brush fires are common. The grant program, offered through DCNR and paid through federal grants from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service, has awarded more than $13 million since it began in 1982.
Pennsylvania Transportation Department Invites Pennsylvanians to Share Feedback on Winter Services
Statewide Online Survey Available Until April 6
The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) is seeking the public’s feedback on winter services through an online survey found at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/PDWinter2021.
“PennDOT is proud of our winter operations and communications,” said PennDOT Secretary Yassmin Gramian. “The results from this survey will help us measure public expectations and identify education opportunities.”
The survey is available through April 6 and should take about five minutes to complete. All responses are completely anonymous.
The 12-question survey asks respondents about their timeline expectations for safe and passable roadways, how they rank snow-removal priorities, and how they rate PennDOT’s winter services.
Respondents are also asked how they receive PennDOT roadway information, and whether or how they use the state’s 511PA traveler information services. During the winter, www.511PA.com offers its standard traffic and incident information while adding PennDOT plow-truck locations, winter roadway conditions, and other services.
At any time, motorists can check conditions on more than 40,000 roadway miles by visiting www.511PA.com. 511PA, which is free and available 24 hours a day, provides traffic delay warnings, weather forecasts, traffic speed information, and access to more than 1,000 traffic cameras.
511PA is also available through a smartphone application for iPhone and Android devices, by calling 5-1-1, or by following regional Twitter alerts accessible on the 511PA website.
As construction season begins, information on projects occurring or being bid this year is viewable at www.projects.PennDOT.gov. Visit the “Regional Offices” page at www.PennDOT.gov to sign up for travel alerts in a specific area.
Subscribe to statewide PennDOT news at www.PennDOT.gov/news. Follow PennDOT on Twitter at www.twitter.com/PennDOTNews, like the department on Facebook at www.facebook.com/PennsylvaniaDepartmentofTransportation and Instagram at www.instagram.com/pennsylvaniadot.
Pennsylvania Releases Land and Water Trail Network Plan to Ensure Access for All Pennsylvanians
Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) Secretary Cindy Adams Dunn announced the release of Pennsylvania’s new Land and Water Trail Network Strategic Plan extending through 2024. The plan’s vision is to develop a statewide land and water trail network to facilitate recreation, transportation, and healthy lifestyles for all.
“We are proud that our trails can serve Pennsylvanians in their time of need during this pandemic,” Dunn said. “Our state has a long history of supporting trail development. This Land and Water Trail Network Strategic Plan 2020-2024 outlines goals and strategies to ensure motorized and non-motorized trails continue to facilitate recreation, transportation, and healthy lifestyles for all Pennsylvanians for years to come.”
The plan is a blueprint including seven recommendations and 40 action steps for meeting the trail needs of all Pennsylvanians.
Specifically, the plan prioritizes the closing of Priority Trail Gaps, the completion of Major Greenways, emphasis on regional initiatives, the needs of specialized trail-user groups, and ensuring everyone feels welcome on trails in Pennsylvania. These actions are designed to eventually have Pennsylvanians living within 10 minutes of a trail.
Guided by the 20-member Pennsylvania Trails Advisory Committee, the Land and Water Trail Network Strategic Plan’s priorities, recommendations, and actions were well established before the challenges of COVID-19 and protests around racial injustice. However, the framework for state outdoors recreation addresses those and other pressing challenges of today.
In April 2019, DCNR began a more than a year-long public process of developing the plan in coordination with development of the state’s 2020-2024 Statewide Outdoor Recreation Plan. States are required to maintain a state trail plan to receive federal funding through the Recreation Trails Program.
The plan is the result of input from thousands of state residents, including local trail providers, outdoor enthusiasts, and the public at large. With more than 12,000 miles of trails, Pennsylvania is a national leader in trails and hiking opportunities.
Pennsylvanians took to trails and greenways in unprecedented numbers in 2020, according to an analysis of 67 non-motorized trail systems throughout the state commissioned by the Pennsylvania Environmental Council (PEC). In March 2020 alone, the study showed trail traffic spiked by as much as 200 percent in some areas compared with the same period during the previous two years.
In a reflection of trail and hiking popularity, DCNR annually supports Trails Month each September. Also, each year DCNR, in partnership with the Pennsylvania Trails Advisory Committee, designates a Pennsylvania trail for Trail of the Year honors. In mid-January, DCNR named the Delaware & Hudson Rail-Trail (D & H Rail-Trail) in Northeastern Pennsylvania as Pennsylvania’s 2021 Trail of the Year.
Biden-Harris Administration Increases Medicare Payment for Life-Saving COVID-19 Vaccine
On March 15, CMS increased the Medicare payment amount for administering the COVID-19 vaccine. This new and higher payment rate will support important actions taken by providers that are designed to increase the number of vaccines they can furnish each day, including establishing new or growing existing vaccination sites, conducting patient outreach and education, and hiring additional staff. At a time when vaccine supply is growing, CMS is supporting provider efforts to expand capacity and ensure that all Americans can be vaccinated against COVID-19 as soon as possible.
Effective for COVID-19 vaccines administered on or after March 15, 2021, the national average payment rate for physicians, hospitals, pharmacies, and many other immunizers will be $40 to administer each dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. This represents an increase from approximately $28 to $40 for the administration of single-dose vaccines and an increase from approximately $45 to $80 for the administration of COVID-19 vaccines requiring two doses. The exact payment rate for administration of each dose of a COVID-19 vaccine will depend on the type of entity that furnishes the service and will be geographically adjusted based on where the service is furnished.
These updates to the Medicare payment rate for COVID-19 vaccine administration reflect new information about the costs involved in administering the vaccine for different types of providers and suppliers, and the additional resources necessary to ensure the vaccine is administered safely and appropriately.
CMS is updating the set of toolkits for providers, states, and insurers to help the health care system swiftly administer the vaccine with these new Medicare payment rates. These resources are designed to increase the number of providers that can administer the vaccine, ensure adequate payment for administering the vaccine to Medicare beneficiaries, and make it clear that no beneficiary, whether covered by private insurance, Medicare, or Medicaid, should pay cost-sharing for the administration of the COVID-19 vaccine.
Coverage of COVID-19 Vaccines:
As a condition of receiving free COVID-19 vaccines from the federal government, vaccine providers are prohibited from charging patients any amount for administration of the vaccine. To ensure broad and consistent coverage across programs and payers, the toolkits have specific information for several programs, including:
Medicare: Beneficiaries with Medicare pay nothing for COVID-19 vaccines and there is no applicable copayment, coinsurance, or deductible.
Medicare Advantage (MA): For calendar years 2020 and 2021, Medicare will pay providers directly for the COVID-19 vaccine (if they do not receive it for free) and its administration for beneficiaries enrolled in MA plans. MA plans are not responsible for paying providers to administer the vaccine to MA enrollees during this time. Like beneficiaries in Original Medicare, Medicare Advantage enrollees also pay no cost-sharing for COVID-19 vaccines.
Medicaid: State Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program agencies must provide vaccine administration with no cost sharing for nearly all beneficiaries during the Public Health Emergency (PHE) and at least one year after it ends. Through the American Rescue Plan Act signed by President Biden on March 11, 2021, the COVID vaccine administration will be fully federally funded. The law also provides an expansion of individuals eligible for vaccine administration coverage. There will be more information provided in upcoming updates to the Medicaid toolkit.
Private Plans: CMS, along with the Departments of Labor and Treasury, is requiring that most private health plans and issuers cover the COVID-19 vaccine and its administration, both in-network and out-of-network, with no cost sharing during the PHE. Current regulations provide that out-of-network rates must be reasonable, as compared to prevailing market rates, and reference the Medicare reimbursement rates as a potential guideline for insurance companies. In light of CMS’s increased Medicare payment rates, CMS will expect commercial carriers to continue to ensure that their rates are reasonable in comparison to prevailing market rates.
Uninsured: For individuals who are uninsured, providers may submit claims for reimbursement for administering the COVID-19 vaccine to individuals without insurance through the Provider Relief Fund, administered by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).
More Information:
- Medicare COVID-19 Vaccine Shot Payment webpage: Payment for COVID-19 vaccine administration, including a list of billing codes, payment allowances, and effective dates
- CDC COVID-19 Vaccination Program Provider Requirements and Support webpage: How the COVID-19 vaccine is provided at 100% no cost to recipients
- HRSA COVID-19 Claims Reimbursement to Health Care Providers and Facilities for Testing, Treatment, and Vaccine Administration for the Uninsured webpage
Becerra’s Nomination Receives Bipartisan Support in the Senate
Senators Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Susan Collins (R-ME) signaled their support for President Biden’s nominee for HHS Secretary, Xavier Becerra. The support from both members indicates that Mr. Becerra will be confirmed on a bipartisan basis. NRHA looks forward to working with presumptive Secretary Becerra on various issues including protecting the 340B program, ensuring the Provider Relief Fund, and now the new Health Care Heroes Sustainability Fund, have fair reporting requirements and are able to be utilized.
Rural Hospital Closure Relief Act is Reintroduced in the House and Senate
Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and James Lankford (R-OK) and Representatives Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) and Jimmy Panetta (D-CA) reintroduced the Rural Hospital Closure Relief Act (S. 644 / H.R. 1639). The legislation would update Medicare’s “Critical Access Hospital” (CAH) designation so more rural hospitals can qualify for this financial lifeline and continue to serve their communities with high quality, affordable health care services. Read the full joint press release here.
CRS on Broadband Provisions passed by Congress
The Congressional Research Service (CRS) provides objective policy and legal analysis to committees and members of the House and Senate. This report provides information on each federal program included in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, designed to increase broadband availability for underserved areas of the United States.
AHRQ Requests Supplemental Evidence and Data on Improving Rural Health Through Telehealth-Guided Provider-to-Provider Communication
The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) within HHS is seeking scientific information submissions from the public. Scientific information is being solicited to inform our review on Improving Rural Health Through Telehealth-Guided Provider-to-Provider Communication, which is currently being conducted by the AHRQ’s Evidence-based Practice Centers (EPC) Program. Access to published and unpublished pertinent scientific information will improve the quality of this review.
Biden Administration to Expand COVID-19 Vaccine Program to 950 Community Health Centers
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), announced that an additional 700 HRSA-supported health centers will be invited to join the Health Center COVID-19 Vaccine Program. These health centers will have the opportunity to join the program over the next six weeks, increasing the total number of invited health center participants to 950. Find the full HHS press release here and a list of the health centers participating in or invited to join the program here.
President Biden Signs the American Rescue Plan into Law
Yesterday, President Biden signed into law a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package. Thanks to the advocacy of NRHA and its members, the package includes a number of provisions to protect and promote rural health. Most notably, NRHA has secured the infusion of $8.5 billion for rural providers, a key provision which NRHA worked closely with Senator Manchin’s office to develop. The $8.5 billion for rural providers will be provided through a fund called the Health Care Heroes Sustainability Fund (HCHSF), which will be similar to the Provider Relief Fund (PRF) but specific to rural providers. Find details on the additional rural health provisions included in the relief package in the National Rural Health Association’s latest Rural Health Voices blog.