- 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
New Policy Brief Published on Rural Hospital Emergency Designation
The National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services (NACRHHS) published their October 2021 Policy Brief on the new provider designation, the Rural Emergency Hospital.
In December 2020, Congress passed the Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA) of 20211 (Public Law 116-260), which, in Section 125, created a new Medicare provider type called the Rural Emergency Hospital (REH). The REH will be a new rural hospital type that does not provide inpatient care but will provide 24-hour emergency services. By creating the REH, Congress has established the first new rural provider type in over 20 years since the Critical Access Hospital (CAH) was created in 1997 under the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 (Public Law 105-33). The REH comes as a response to an ongoing period of hospital closures in rural communities and to the concerns of access to emergency services in rural areas. In the brief, the Committee notes the implications the REH program to offer an innovative way for rural communities to integrate care and services sectors.
New Resource-Cancer Genetics/Genomics Toolkit for Health Care Providers in Pennsylvania
The Genetic/Genomics Workgroup of the Pennsylvania Cancer Coalition (PCC) has created a multi-component Genetics/Genomics Toolkit to provide health care professionals with the requisite tools to integrate hereditary cancer risk assessment into practice. At: Pennsylania Cancer Coalition Genetics/Genomic Toolkit for Healthcare Providers please find practical information on the role of genetics in care, increase recognition and the appropriate referral of individuals at risk for hereditary cancer syndromes, and learn how to talk with individuals about risk factors.
CMS Announces COVID-19 Vaccine, Testing, and Counseling Policies
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced that CMS is now requiring states to cover COVID-19 vaccine counseling visits in which health care providers talk to families about the importance of kids’ vaccination. CMS will now consider certain COVID-19 vaccine counseling visits for children and youth to be COVID-19 vaccine administration, for which state expenditures can be federally matched at 100% through the last day of the first quarter that begins one year after the end of the COVID-19 public health emergency, under the American Rescue Plan (ARP). CMS will match COVID-19 vaccine counseling-only visits at the ARP 100% federal match rate only when they are provided to children and youth under age 21 as part of the Medicaid Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnostic and Treatment (EPSDT) benefit.
In addition, to expand access to and affordability of at-home COVID-19 tests, the Department of Health and Human Services together with the Departments of Labor and the Treasury will issue guidance by January 15 to clarify that individuals who purchase over-the-counter COVID-19 diagnostic tests will be able to seek reimbursement from their group health plan or health insurance issuer and have insurance cover the cost during the COVID-19 public health emergency.
Finally, CMS issued a news alert encouraging those with Medicare who are fully vaccinated to get a booster dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. People with Medicare pay nothing when they get the COVID-19 vaccine and booster and there is no applicable copayment, coinsurance or deductible.
A press release is attached and available at: https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/press-releases/biden-harris-administration-makes-100-federal-medicaid-matching-funds-available-state-expenditures.
A news alert regarding the Medicare Booster is attached and available at: https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/news-alert/cms-encourages-people-medicare-get-covid-19-vaccine-booster-shot.
To view the announcement regarding at-home COVID-19 tests, please visit: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/12/02/fact-sheet-president-biden-announces-new-actions-to-protect-americans-against-the-delta-and-omicron-variants-as-we-battle-covid-19-this-winter/.
If you have any questions, please contact the CMS Office of Legislation. Thank you.
Oral Health and Health Equity Infographic Available
The National Institute for Health Care Management (NIHCM) Foundation created an infographic highlighting the challenges to achieving optimal oral health. NIHCM identifies opportunities for advancing health equity moving forward. Gum disease remains one of the most prevalent chronic diseases in the United States with 46% of adults over 30 showing symptoms. Although significant improvements have been made to improve oral health in America, many people still experience barriers to preventive or essential dental care. Black Americans, Latinos, and Native Americans, as well as low-income populations, children and pregnant people are at greater risk of oral health diseases. The disparities experienced by these populations have only been exacerbated by the pandemic.
Application Process Open! PA Primary Care Loan Repayment Program
The Pennsylvania Department of Health is pleased to announce the opening of the Pennsylvania Primary Care Loan Repayment Program (LRP) Practitioner Application.
The LRP provides grant funding for educational loan repayment to primary care practitioners serving medically underserved populations. Educational loan repayment is an incentive to recruitment and retention of practitioners for service in federally designated Health Professional Shortage Areas and other underserved communities:
- The Request for Applications (RFA) #67-137 is attached for your reference. Copies of RFA#67-137 can be downloaded from https://www.health.pa.gov/topics/Health-Planning/Pages/Loan-Repayment.aspx
- Applications are being accepted from December 1, 2021 until 11:59 pm January 12, 2022.
- Program information, application procedures and application instructions are found in RFA#67-137.
- All applications must be submitted via the Loan Repayment Program’s web-based application through the link on the above website.
Questions regarding this RFA must be submitted via email to loanrepayment@pa.gov on or before December 15, 2021. No questions will be answered via phone or e-mail. Answers to all question submitted by December 15 will be posted on the above website by December 29, 2021 and will be considered an addendum to the RFA.
USDA Begins Accepting Applications for $1.15 Billion in Loans and Grants to Help People Living in Rural Communities Get Access to High-Speed Internet
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack announced the Department has begun accepting applications for up to $1.15 billion in loans and grants to help people in rural areas get access to high-speed internet. This announcement comes on the heels of the recently enacted Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) which provides another nearly $2 billion in additional funding for the ReConnect program. USDA anticipates issuing a new Notice of Funding Opportunity to make the additional funds in the IIJA available in 2022.
Read the full news release here.
New HHS Initiative Launched to Improve Outcomes Via Primary Care
The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) is among federal partners and stakeholders that have joined a new initiative to strengthen primary health care nationwide. The effort, launched by the HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health (OASH), follows a National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine report that documented the weakening of primary care and called upon the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to take a leadership role in ensuring high-quality primary care for all. Judith Steinberg, MD, MPH, a leader in primary healthcare transformation and former chief medical officer at HRSA Bureau of Primary Health Care (BPHC), will lead development of an HHS plan to strengthen primary healthcare with the aim of improving health outcomes and advancing health equity.
The plan, which will be presented to HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra for his review, will include the role of HHS in leading this effort and specific actions to be taken across HHS.
Court Rules in Favor of Pennsylvania in Two Separate HealthChoices Award Protests
The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania upheld on November 17, 2021, the state’s decision to deny protests filed by Aetna Better Health of Pennsylvania and Centene/Pennsylvania Health & Wellness after the two plans failed to win contracts in the state’s recent Medicaid managed care procurement. Rulings on protests from Gateway Health Plan and UnitedHealthcare have not been released publicly.
Implementation of the new contracts, originally slated for January 1, 2021, had been suspended until the protests are resolved.
DEA Considering Regulation of Telepharmacy Practice
Advanced notice of proposed rulemaking from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) seeks to obtain further information regarding the practice of telepharmacy, which is not specifically defined by the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) or DEA regulations. DEA is considering implementing regulations regarding telepharmacy and seeks to be fully informed about the practice, industry and state regulations.
Comments are due by Jan. 18, 2022.
NOW OPEN 2022 NHSC Loan Repayment Programs
Application closes on December 16, 2021 at 7:30 PM ET
A historic $800 million in American Rescue Plan funding will allow HRSA to award more applicants than ever before. Last year, every eligible applicant received an award.
About the programs:
- The NHSC Loan Repayment Program awards up to $50,000 in exchange for a two-year commitment to provide primary medical, dental or mental/behavioral health care at approved sites in high-need, underserved areas.
- The NHSC Substance Use Disorder Workforce Loan Repayment Program provides up to $75,000 in exchange for a three-year commitment to health care professionals who provide substance use disorder treatment services.
- Providers in rural communities may apply to the NHSC Rural Community Loan Repayment Program, which awards up to $100,000 for three years of service.
More Information
For additional information, including eligibility and program fact sheets, visit the NHSC LRP website. Find NHSC-approved sites on the Health Workforce Connector.