- Fact Sheet: The Biden-Harris Administration Highlights Investments in Rural America, Invites Public Nominations for Rural Innovators Initiative
- Rural Victims of Intimate-Partner Violence Need More Resources and Support, Study Finds
- A Tribe in Maine Is Using Opioid Settlement Funds on a Sweat Lodge to Treat Addiction
- Fact Sheet: USDA, HHS Announce New Actions to Reduce Impact and Spread of H5N1
- Call for Experts: Forum on Aging, Disability, and Independence
- Bill to Expand Definition of 'Village' Qualifying for Water Funds Passes Alaska House
- Child Care Workers Caught in Middle of Michigan's Broken Child Care System
- Few Options Available for Substance Abuse Treatment in the Big Bend
- In Rural Texas, ERs Are Facing a Growing Mental Health Crisis
- Ways and Means Members Put Forth Solutions to Strengthen Telehealth Access and Improve Health Care for Rural Communities
- Sage Memorial Hospital in Navajo Nation Constructs New Facility to Improve Health Care
- How the State, Tribes and Federal Government Are Working to Curb SD's Syphilis Epidemic
- Rural Children Struggle to Access Hospital Services, Say Researchers
- RPHARM Program Fulfills Need for Rural Pharmacists
- A Pilot Program in Rural Vermont Hopes to Build a Blueprint for Substance Abuse Recovery
Marriage and Family Therapists and Mental Health Counselors: Enroll in Medicare Now
CMS will implement two new provider types on Jan. 1: marriage and family therapist and mental health counselor. These provider types must enroll in Medicare to submit claims and get paid for covered items or services. Enroll now. Find out how to become a Medicare provider, and take these steps to enroll:
- Review the application: electronic version in PECOS or paper CMS-855I (PDF)
- Gather your supporting documents
- Find your Medicare Administrative Contractor’s website
- Sign up to get CMS’ weekly MLN Connects newsletter
The effective enrollment date won’t be earlier than Jan. 1. More Information is available at Physician Fee Schedule final rule, Medicare Enrollment for Providers & Suppliers webpage, and FAQs (PDF).
Court Decision on 340B “Patient Definition” Causing Reassessment of Policies – By Both Covered Entities and Manufacturers
The November 3 court decision regarding how a “patient” should be defined under 340B is continuing to reverberate through the 340B world. Some media reports are hailing it as a “major victory” for covered entities (CEs), and many CEs are re-examining their current policies to determine if/how they can safely fill more prescriptions with 340B drugs. On the other hand, manufacturers are reportedly very concerned about the decision, pointing to a recent study suggesting that it will cause the program to expand by 50 to 100 percent. It is expected that many manufacturers will respond by further tightening restrictions on the program (e.g., contract pharmacy restrictions) and increase their efforts to convince Congress to address the program. These slides will help explain the decision and its impacts on Community Health Centers. If your health center intends to review your 340B patient definition considering the ruling, this template policy and procedure will help you address what types of services qualify an individual as a patient and how recently an individual must be seen at the health center to retain their “patient” status.
Many Americans Can’t Afford Health Coverage
According to a new Commonwealth Fund survey, having insurance doesn’t guarantee access to affordable care. More than half of all working-age Americans reported they struggle with health care costs, and more than one of three are saddled with medical debt. The respondents to the survey represent those insured for a full year and some who spent all or part of the year uninsured. Large shares of insured working-age adults surveyed said it was very or somewhat difficult to afford their health care. Nearly two of five working-age adults reported delaying or skipping needed health care or a prescription drug in the past year because they couldn’t afford it.
Read the full article here: Paying for It: How Health Care Costs and Medical Debt Are Making Americans Sicker and Poorer
Ensuring Medicare Beneficiary Access: A Path to Telehealth Permanency
The Senate Finance Health Subcommittee held a hearing on extending access to telehealth services for Medicare beneficiaries. In 2022, Congress extended certain key telehealth flexibilities instituted during the public health emergency (PHE) through December 31, 2024, as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023.
- Telehealth emerged as a vital connection for health centers and their patients during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2022, 100% of Pennsylvania health centers offered telehealth services, compared to just 23% in 2019. Virtual visits increased to more than 565,000 in 2022 compared to only 3,400 virtual visits in 2019. Almost half of these virtual visits in 2022 were for behavioral health services at the patients’ discretion.
- Forty-eight percent (48%) of Pennsylvania health centers are in rural communities. Telehealth programs are especially critical in rural areas, where many residents can face long distances and significant commute time between home and health providers, particularly specialized providers. Telehealth remains an integral part of health center operations, even after the end of Public Health Emergency.
Read the testimony from the hearing or watch the live stream here.
Pennsylvania Governor’s Administration Requires Autism Coverage
This month, Pennsylvania Gov. Shapiro announced a new requirement that all commercial insurers in Pennsylvania provide coverage for autism benefits starting on Jan. 1, 2024, in compliance with mental health parity laws. This follows a notice issued by the Pennsylvania Insurance Department in the PA Bulletin last week. While most commercial carriers operating in Pennsylvania already treat autism as a mental health condition, this action seeks to make that standard universal.
Read the full article here: Shapiro Administration Directs Insurers to Meet Obligations for Autism Coverage Under Mental Health Parity Laws, Removing Barriers to Care and Expanding Access to Services for Pennsylvanians
New Birthing Friendly Hospital Designation is Available on Care Compare Website
November 8th, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) began displaying the Birthing-Friendly icon on CMS’s online tool, Care Compare. This new designation identifies hospitals and health systems that participate in a statewide or national perinatal quality improvement program and that implement evidence-based care to improve maternal health. Along with the Care Compare tool, the public can use an interactive map to find the Birthing-Friendly designation at a hospital or health system nearby. With growing closures of obstetric units in rural hospitals, finding high quality care in rural areas has become increasingly important.
Read the full article here: Biden-Harris Administration Launches ‘Birthing-Friendly’ Designation on Web-Based Care Compare Tool
Proposed Updates: Medicare Advantage and Prescription Drug Plans – Comment by January 5
Last week, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services issued a proposed rule outlining new policies for Medicare Advantage (MA) and Prescription Drug (Part D) plans for Contract Year 2025. The proposals would set guidelines on compensation for agents and brokers, add a range of behavioral health providers to the current list that MA plans must contract with, require plans to notify enrollees mid-year of any supplemental benefits that are available to them but have not been used yet, conduct annual health equity analyses of prior authorization policies, and offer more enrollment opportunities in plans that integrate Medicare and Medicaid for dually eligible managed care enrollees. Enrollment in MA has been growing in recent years, especially in rural areas where 45.1 percent of beneficiaries were enrolled in MA plans as of January 2023.
New Partnership Creates Rural Health Equity Roadmap
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health have joined with two philanthropic organizations with experience in minority communities – Well-being and Equity (WE) in the World and Well Being In the Nation (WIN) Network – to collaborate on guidelines for what it will take to bring health equity to rural areas.
See the Rural Health Equity Roadmap