Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) released the text for the draft of next year’s (2023) Labor-HHS spending bill, as well as its accompanying explanatory statement and bill summary. The draft spending bill was developed without Republican input and will face intense scrutiny from Republican Members of Congress upset over the lack of bipartisan collaboration

Senate Democrats have been working to pass a significant legislative package to support President Biden’s domestic policy agenda for over a year. Last week, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) ironed out the details of a narrowly defined tax, health, and climate package. The $740 billion bill, titled the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, allows Medicare to negotiate with pharmaceutical manufacturers to lower prescription drug costs for certain drugs; extends Affordable Care Act (ACA) health care subsidies for three years; closes tax loopholes, and enforces the IRS tax code. Other health care provisions, including those benefitting health centers, were not included in this narrow package. Senators are planning to vote on the legislation before they leave for August recess. Senate Democrats need all 50 Democrats on board to pass the bill. Click here to read Senator Manchin’s press release on the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. 

The Hill reported on August 3, 2022, that President Biden ordered federal regulators to consider allowing Medicaid waivers that cover expenses for women who cross state lines for an abortion. Under the executive order, states, where abortion is legal, would apply for a section 1115 waiver to cover reproductive healthcare services for out-of-state residents. Read More.

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has upheld the commonwealth’s mail ballot law, preserving for the time being a popular voting method that passed by the legislature with bipartisan support but was later challenged by Republican elected officials. In a 5-2 decision released Tuesday, the justices rejected the GOP argument that the legislature did not have the power under the state constitution to allow Pennsylvanians to vote by mail without an excuse. The 2019 law, known as Act 77 and used for the first time during the contentious 2020 presidential election, ushered in the most sweeping expansion of voting access in Pennsylvania in decades. Despite the decision, ongoing Republican challenges to the law and a gubernatorial election later this year mean there is still some uncertainty about the future of mail voting. Read more.

On July 7, 2022, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf signed Act 32 of 2022, which amends the state Mental Health Procedures Act (MHPA) to align with federal health privacy standards to permit providers, facilities, and health plans to share patient mental health and substance use disorder-related information more easily. The amendments meet existing Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) requirements to ensure patient confidentiality. Act 32 of 2022 utilizes terminology and requirements that are already familiar to providers to create a consistent standard and revise outdated regulations to provide consistency between statutory and regulatory language and their intended requirements. The Office of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (OMHSAS) is currently reviewing Act 32 of 2022 and the Chapter 5100 regulations to determine the next steps and will provide additional information and details via the OMHSAS Listservs.

The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute conducted a rapid review of telehealth use for prenatal and postpartum health care visits during the COVID-19 pandemic.  Their report indicates telehealth is a promising alternative to in-person care and also finds gaps that point to future research priorities. 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention oversee the purchase and distribution for all children under age 19 who are Medicaid eligible, uninsured, underinsured or are American Indian or Alaska Natives.  This guide from the National Academy for State Health Policy explains current gaps in vaccine access for children and how states are addressing barriers to enrollment and cost burdens for providers. 

The new page from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention provides data for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) at the national, state, and county levels. Data show how COPD prevalence and death rates have changed over time and across different U.S. geographic locations. The percentage of adults in rural areas diagnosed with COPD is nearly double the percentage in large metropolitan areas. 

CMS released the (FY) 2023 Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS) and Long-Term Care Hospital (LTCH) Prospective Payment System (PPS) final rule on August 1, 2022. The rule establishes fee-for-service payment rates and policies for inpatient hospitals and LTCHs. For FY 2023, the hospital payment rate will increase by 4.3% resulting in a $2.6 billion hospital payment increase for FY 2023. CMS finalized graduate medical education policies to increase flexibilities for rural hospitals participating in residency training through rural track programs. Finally, the rule also builds on key CMS priorities to advance health equity. Policy efforts include three new health equity-focused measures in the Inpatient Quality Reporting program and a focus on improving maternal health outcomes with the establishment of a “Birthing-Friendly” hospital designation. The final rule will be effective on January 1, 2023.

CMS released final rules for Skilled Nursing Facilities (SNF), Inpatient Rehabilitation Facilities (IRF), Inpatient Psychiatric Facilities (IPF), and Hospices. Each rule updates Medicare payment and quality measurement policies for Fiscal Year (FY) 2023, which begins October 1. Average payments for rural SNFs, IRFs, IPFs, and hospices in FY 2023 are projected to increase by 2.5%, 3.1%, 2.9 %, and 3.8%, respectively, compared to FY 2022.