Recently, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) released a report developed by the American Institutes for Research (AIR), which provides an update to a previous 2023 report examining telehealth’s association with healthcare quality, access and cost in Medicare. Key metrics were developed to measure quality, access, and cost in a setting where both telehealth and in-person visits are available for fee-for-service (FFS) Medicare beneficiaries. The health quality outcomes that were examined focused on ambulatory care-sensitive hospitalizations and emergency department visits, while access outcomes focus on clinician encounters. Key findings include the following:

1.           Telehealth and Quality: No significant association was found between telehealth intensity and quality outcomes.

2.           Telehealth and Access: Higher telehealth intensity was associated with fewer clinician encounters for both behavioral and non-behavioral health.

3.           Telehealth and Costs: There was evidence suggesting that higher telehealth intensity is associated with a decrease in the total cost of care, although the results were not conclusively definitive.

Sixteen medical assistant apprentices were recently hired by Esperanza Health Center, Jefferson Hospital, and Nemours Children’s Hospital for on-the-job training while taking classes at Drexel University as part of their inaugural Certified Clinical Medical Assistant Apprenticeship Program. This program creates a pathway for those who are underrepresented from the local community to obtain quality careers in health care. Drexel will be recruiting for the next cohort in Spring 2025 and hopes to add additional health care industry partners across the state. If you are interested in connecting with Drexel to explore becoming a clinical site, reach out to Caitlin Wilkinson, Co-Director of the Pennsylvania Primary Care Career Center.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved neffy (epinephrine nasal spray) for the emergency treatment of allergic reactions (Type I), including those that are life-threatening (anaphylaxis), in adult and pediatric patients who weigh at least 30 kilograms (about 66 pounds). Neffy is a single dose nasal spray administered into one nostril. As with epinephrine injection products, a second dose (using a new nasal spray to administer neffy in the same nostril) may be given if there is no improvement in symptoms or symptoms worsen. Patients may need to seek emergency medical assistance for close monitoring of the anaphylactic episode and in the event further treatment is required.

Senators Ron Wyden (D-OR), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), and Ben Ray Luján (D-NM) recently introduced S.4957, the Health Workforce Innovation Act, which would provide federal funding for health center-led workforce development partnerships with high schools and community colleges. A similar bipartisan bill, H.R.7307, was introduced in the House of Representatives earlier this year. We encourage health center advocates, particularly those in Republican districts, to reach out to their senators and representatives to co-sponsor these bills to ensure Congressional support for this legislation remains strongly bipartisan.

Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro and Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs (DDAP) Secretary Dr. Latika Davis-Jones met with recipients of DDAP’s substance use disorder (SUD) student loan repayment program during a roundtable discussion at Dauphin County Drug & Alcohol Services. Through the program, DDAP provides student loan repayment as an incentive to retain SUD practitioners, administrators, and supervisors who commit to continuing to provide services within Pennsylvania. In this latest round of funding, DDAP is awarding $22 million to assist approximately 400 practitioners within the SUD treatment, prevention, case management and recovery support services workforce. The program prioritizes SUD professionals who work in rural areas of the commonwealth that are experiencing SUD workforce shortages as well as those who provide SUD services in counties with underserved minority populations. Click here to learn more.

Pennsylvania’s multibillion-dollar surplus will soon be halved according to a projection by a state budget watchdog, the result of a long-running structural deficit combined with a growing list of obligations competing for public dollars. The commonwealth’s recent $47.6 billion budget increased spending by 6%, with more than $1 billion in new money going to public schools in response to a court ruling that found Pennsylvania underfunds poor districts. However, the state brought in just $44 billion in net revenue last fiscal year. So, to afford the spending plan, lawmakers are reaching into the state’s sizable cash reserves, which sat at roughly $13.6 billion as of June 30, according to the Independent Fiscal Office. Click here to learn more.

The latest feature from The Rural Monitor is about a community-wide task force in Kingsville, Texas that is raising awareness about the issue and expanding local services.

– Thursday, August 29 at 2:00 pm Eastern. The National Association of Rural Health Clinics (NARHC), in partnership with the Collaborative for Rural Graduate Medical Education Technical Assistance Centers, will host the free, FORHP-supported webinar. Rural Training Track medical students completing rural rotations were more than twice as likely to practice in rural areas than general family medicine graduates. RHCs can play a critical role in that training through their ability to serve as rotational sites for many different providers. This webinar will feature Pennsylvania Rural Health Clinic and Rural Residency Planning and Development grantee, St. Luke’s Miners who will discuss their experience with GME and RHC site rotations. Additional time for Q&A will be provided. Advanced registration is required.

– Thursday, August 15 at 2 pm Eastern. The National Association of Rural Health Clinics (NARHC) will host the free webinar with details on the recently released Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Calendar Year 2025 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) proposed rule. This annual regulatory update contains Rural Health Clinic (RHC) specific proposals to eliminate productivity standards, remove hemoglobin/hematocrit from the six required lab services, reform care management billing, and allow RHCs to bill for administration of part B preventive vaccines at time of service, among other proposals. Additional time for Q&A will be provided. Advanced registration is required.