- Weathering the Storm Together: Community Resiliency Hubs Hold the Promise of Local Self-Sufficiency and Supportive Mutual Aid
- Virginia Tech Researchers Bring Rural Families into the Nation's Largest Study of Early Brain and Child Development
- Expanding Access to Cancer Care for Rural Veterans
- VA: Veterans Rural Health Advisory Committee, Notice of Meeting
- Scaling Rural Wellness with Clever Collaboration
- Stroudwater Associates Enhances Rural Healthcare Dashboard with New Data to Support State Rural Transformation Grant Applications
- Harvest Season Is Here: Busy Times Call for Increased Focus on Safety and Health
- HHS Dispatches More Than 70 Public Health Service Officers to Strengthen Care in Tribal Communities
- Wisconsin Rural Hospitals Team up to Form Network
- CMS Launches Landmark $50 Billion Rural Health Transformation Program
- American Heart Association Provides Blood Pressure Kits at Southeast Arkansas Regional Libraries to Support Rural Health
- Broadening Access to Minimally Invasive Surgery Could Narrow Rural-Urban Health Gaps
- Instead of Selling, Some Rural Hospitals Band Together To Survive
- Help Line Gives Pediatricians Crucial Mental Health Information to Help Kids, Families
- Rural Health: A Strategic Opportunity for Governors
CMS Issues Draft Guidance for 2028 Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) seeks comments on draft guidance describing how manufacturers will implement negotiated Maximum Fair Prices (MFPs) for Medicare Part B and Part D drugs beginning in 2028, including new operational requirements affecting hospitals, physicians, and other Part B providers.
CMS will issue final guidance later this year setting forth CMS’s final policies on the issues discussed in this draft guidance.
Comment by September 18.
MedPAC Releases 2026 Medicare Data Book
The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC), an independent congressional advisory agency, released its July 2026 Data Book: Health Care Spending and the Medicare Program.
This annual publication compiles the latest available data on national health care spending, Medicare enrollment, beneficiary demographics, supplemental coverage, Medicare Advantage, prescription drugs, post-acute care, physician services, hospitals, and other components of the Medicare program.  It examines several key data points by urban/rural residence of the beneficiary.
Finding Evidence-Based Interventions for OUD and Pain
This interactive platform guides users through proven interventions, from chiropractic care and cognitive behavioral therapy for chronic pain to medications for opioid use disorder like buprenorphine, methadone, and naloxone.
Each intervention module delivers practical insights, including potential barriers and facilitators for implementing the intervention, strategies to overcome the barriers, cost considerations, key health outcomes, and emerging research directions.  The Evidence-Based Navigator Tool was designed by the HEAL Data2Action (HD2A) Research Adoption Support Center (RASC), a specialized support hub funded by the National Institutes of Health to improve the real-world application, scalability, and sustainability of evidence-based practices for opioid use disorder (OUD) and pain management. HEAL is the NIH Helping to End Addiction Long-Term initiative, a federally funded effort to speed scientific solutions to the national opioid public health crisis.
States Ordered to Redetermine Medicaid Eligibility for Cuban, Haitian, Nicaraguan, and Venezuelan Immigrants
The Cuban Haitian Nicaraguan and Venezuelan (CHNV) Program was a Biden-era humanitarian parole initiative that allowed certain Cuban, Haitian, Nicaraguan, and Venezuelan individuals to reside temporarily in the U.S. if they passed vetting and had a financial sponsor.
Parolees under this program, like other individuals with certain immigration statuses, could qualify for Medicaid in many states. After the U.S. Supreme Court lifted a lower court injunction in May 2025, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was allowed to terminate CHNV parole while litigation continued.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) sent a letter to state Medicaid agencies reminding them that they are now expected to review the eligibility of all individuals who previously qualified for Medicaid based on CHNV parolee status, unless an individual is eligible under another status, they must be disenrolled from Medicaid.
Pennsylvania Pilots Text Message Pilot for SNAP Reporting & Requirements
Starting July 20, 2026, the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services (PA DHS) will send Semi-Annual Reporting (SAR) and reporting requirements text reminders to SNAP recipients in the following counties: Bucks, Berks, Chester, Dauphin, Delaware, Lancaster, Montgomery, Philadelphia, and York. These text messages will be sent to SNAP-only recipients who are subject to SAR.
More information is also available on the SAR page at dhs.pa.gov/SAR, which includes a SAR FAQ and a copy of the text messages. Click here to learn more.
PA Insurance Department Received Proposed 2027 Health Insurance Marketplace Rates
For 2027 coverage, Pennie Marketplace insurers submitted rates for individuals with an average 17.1% increase and 11.5% increase for small businesses.
The rates are higher than anticipated and the Pennsylvania Insurance Department (PID) will work with insurers to ensure rates are reasonable and justified. Final approved rates will be made public in the fall. All eight insurers plan to continue participation in Pennie.
View the 2027 coverage map.
GME Development Guide Now Available
The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) recently announced the release of their new resource, A Guide to GME Development in Rural and Underserved Areas, which is available on their GME Resource Center on Learn at ACGME.
Developed in collaboration with the Technical Assistance Center for the Health Resources and Services Administration’s (HRSA) Rural Residency Planning and Development and Teaching Health Center grant programs, this practical guide is designed to help organizations navigate development and expansion of graduate medical education (GME) in rural communities and communities with limited access to care.
Create a free account to access this content.
New PA Health Resource: Vaccine Recommendations for Health Care Personnel
The Pennsylvania Department of Health (PA DOH) released a new resource available on their website, Health Care Personnel Vaccination Recommendations.
Chapter 5, Clinical Staffing of the HRSA Compliance Manual, discusses immunization requirements for staff and refers to state specific recommendations. This resource developed by PA DOH provides the Pennsylvania state recommendations.
Public Charge Final Rule Issued
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and the Department of Homeland Security have issued a final rule that changes how it evaluates public charge determinations for certain individuals seeking lawful permanent resident status.
Scheduled to take effect on September 18, 2026, the rule eliminates most current public charge regulations and paves the way for new guidance that could expand the factors considered during immigration reviews. While the rule does not identify specific programs that will be included in these assessments, benefits such as premium tax credits, Medicaid, and state-funded health coverage could potentially be considered as part of an applicant’s overall circumstances. Officers may have greater flexibility to assess whether an applicant is likely to depend on government assistance in the future.
Enrollment Assisters, Community Health Workers, and Navigators are encouraged to provide accurate, timely information to help individuals understand the potential impact of the rule and make informed decisions.
PA Health Insurance Exchange 2027 Open Enrollment Period Returns to November 1, 2026-January 15, 2027
As a result of ongoing litigation, the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland has temporarily halted several provisions included in the 2027 Notice of Benefit and Payment Parameters (NBPP) that were scheduled to take effect for Plan Year 2027.
One of the provisions was to limit the length and time for open enrollment periods in Federally Facilitated and State-based Marketplaces.
In response, the Pennsylvania Health Insurance Exchange (Pennie) Board voted to reinstate the previous Open Enrollment Period, with enrollment beginning on November 1, 2026, and ending on January 15, 2027, for coverage beginning January 1 or February 1.
Pennie continues to evaluate the stay and will have more updates at the August 6 Pennie Board Meeting.