- Eight Hospitals Selected for First Cohort of Rural Hospital Stabilization Program
- Announcing the 2030 Census Disclosure Avoidance Research Program
- CMS: Medicare Program; Hospital Inpatient Prospective Payment Systems for Acute Care Hospitals and the Long-Term Care Hospital Prospective Payment System and Policy Changes and Fiscal Year 2026 Rates; Requirements for Quality Programs; and Other Policy Changes; Correction
- CMS: Medicare Program; Hospital Inpatient Prospective Payment Systems for Acute Care Hospitals and the Long-Term Care Hospital Prospective Payment System and Policy Changes and Fiscal Year 2026 Rates; Requirements for Quality Programs; and Other Policy Changes; Correction
- CMS: Medicare and Medicaid Programs; Contract Year 2026 Policy and Technical Changes to the Medicare Advantage Program, Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit Program, Medicare Cost Plan Program, and Programs of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly; Correction
- CMS: Medicare and Medicaid Programs; Contract Year 2026 Policy and Technical Changes to the Medicare Advantage Program, Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit Program, Medicare Cost Plan Program, and Programs of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly; Correction
- 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
- CMS: Medicare and Medicaid Programs; CY 2025 Payment Policies Under the Physician Fee Schedule and Other Changes to Part B Payment and Coverage Policies; Medicare Shared Savings Program Requirements; Medicare Prescription Drug Inflation Rebate Program; and Medicare Overpayments; and Appeal Rights for Certain Changes in Patient Status; Corrections and Correcting Amendment
- CMS: Medicare and Medicaid Programs; CY 2025 Payment Policies Under the Physician Fee Schedule and Other Changes to Part B Payment and Coverage Policies; Medicare Shared Savings Program Requirements; Medicare Prescription Drug Inflation Rebate Program; and Medicare Overpayments; and Appeal Rights for Certain Changes in Patient Status; Corrections and Correcting Amendment
- VA: Staff Sergeant Fox Suicide Prevention Grant Program Funding Opportunity
- State: 60-Day Notice of Proposed Information Collection: J-1 Visa Waiver Recommendation Application
Annual America’s Health Rankings Report Reveals Concerning Trends
United Health Foundation release of America’s Health Rankings 2023 Annual Report, shows eight chronic conditions have reached the highest prevalence in the report’s history. These include arthritis, asthma, cancer, cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), chronic kidney disease (CKD), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), depression, and diabetes.
The report, produced in partnership with the American Public Health Association, provides the longest running state-by-state analysis of the nation’s health, providing a comprehensive look at the health of Americans across 87 measures of health from 28 data sources. The report found that between 2021 and 2022, for example, depression rates grew to 21.7%, impacting close to 54.2 million people. Similarly, prevalence of diabetes rose to 11.5%, or 31.9 million adults. The report also examines disparities, finding, for example, that emergency room visits caused by asthma were 2.5 higher among Black adults compared to white adults, that diabetic Black and Hispanic adults were also less likely than white adults to have their A1c levels under control, and that depression rates were 2.4 times higher among LGBTQ+ people compared to straight people.
Pennsylvania’s “Bridges to Success” Aims to Address Health-Related Social Needs
The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services (DHS) is developing an 1115 Medicaid program, Bridges to Success: Keystones of Health for Pennsylvania (Keystones of Health). DHS hopes to use this program to make health care more accessible, improve quality of care and services, and design and evaluate innovative strategies in health care to help people live healthier lives. DHS’ goal and vision for the waiver is to address Pennsylvania’s Medicaid participants’ health-related social needs with interventions that are both lifesaving and cost saving. Keystones of Health will focus on four key areas: reentry from correctional facilities; housing supports; food and nutrition supports; and multi-year continuous eligibility for children up to age six. Visit the Keystones of Health webpage for more details, including an opportunity to submit comments.
Pennsylvania University Moving Forward with Planned Medical School
Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) recently hired a dean for a proposed medical school that would be a first among Pennsylvania’s 10 state-owned universities. IUP’s proposed medical school is aimed at drawing students from rural areas, who in turn are considered more likely to remain in rural areas.
HRSA Updated Unmet Need Scores Now Available
In December 2022, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) released the Unmet Need Score map tool to provide information about the need for Health Center Program services by ZIP code. HRSA recently updated the data for the 28 health determinant and health status measures that factor into Unmet Need Scores (UNS). Find details about the data sources and calculation methodology in the UNS and Service Area Status (SAS) Resource Guide (PDF).
HRSA recommends using the tool to explore proposed service areas and do strategic planning.
Report: Pennsylvania One of Three States with Rise in Uninsured Kids
A new report from Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children shows that the commonwealth is one of three states where the number of uninsured children increased in 2022 – with 145,000 uninsured children in the state, including nearly 6,000 in Allegheny County. Read more.
New Teledentistry Toolkit Available from CareQuest
The CareQuest Institute for Oral Health released a new resource, “Teledentistry Regulation and Policy Guidance: A Toolkit to Promote Access and Quality Care Through Teledentistry.” This resource identifies primary considerations for regulators and policymakers regarding teledentistry and includes key recommendations.
American Academy of Pediatrics Launches New Fluoridation Webpage
The American Academy of Pediatrics recently launched a new fluoridation webpage. It provides numerous downloadable resources for health professionals and families and tackles frequently asked questions including questions rooted in misinformation. The new webpage also includes videos about fluoridation, infographics, and posters that are able to be printed.
Updated Pennsylvania State Health Assessment Report Published
The Pennsylvania Department of Health Office of Operational Excellence recently published the updated 2023 Pennsylvania State Health Assessment (SHA). The report, “The State of Our Health: A Statewide Health Assessment of Pennsylvania,” was first published in August 2023. The report highlights the need for more dentists in Pennsylvania, especially for those enrolled in Medicaid. It also touches on the importance of oral health and dental caries as one of the most chronic diseases in the country. Thanks to the Pennsylvania Department of Health for including PA Coalition for Oral Health as a stakeholder for this important report.
Listen to ‘Tradeoffs’: How the Loss of a Rural Hospital Compounds the Collapse of Care
The share of rural Americans who live in communities without a hospital grows each year. It’s part of an ongoing collapse in rural health care that has persisted for decades and isn’t improving, despite regulatory efforts to shore up small-hospital finances.
Since 2010, about 150 rural hospitals have shuttered and hundreds more have slashed services, leaving a growing number of America’s 60 million rural residents in health care deserts.
In this 2020 encore episode of the “Tradeoffs” podcast, Dan Gorenstein talks with KFF Health News chief rural health correspondent Sarah Jane Tribble about her yearlong effort to document the collapse of one rural Kansas community hospital. Nearly six years later, the residents of Fort Scott, Kansas, still live without a local hospital, a reality visited upon dozens more small towns in the years since.
“We’re talking about millions of lives affected by the kind of health care delivery that’s in these communities,” Tribble said. “Rural America, on a whole, is poorer, sicker and older than urban America. People whose lives are affected daily by chronic health issues.”
Listen to the episode here.
The Philadelphia Fed: Advancing an Inclusive and Resilient Region, Together
The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia has created innovative programs to grow community capacity, share best practices, and foster the local connections essential to sustaining and expanding our progress in the future.
Below are just a few examples of this, which we look forward to building on in 2024:
- The Anchors for Equity Research in Action Lab is exploring how anchor institutions, namely hospitals and higher education institutions, can align their business practices with community development goals, promoting inclusive economic growth and enhancing opportunities for underrepresented groups. We’re excited to support inaugural communities in Scranton, PA, and Atlantic City, NJ, as they partner with anchors to address local workforce challenges in 2024.
- The Reinventing Our Communities (ROC) Cohort Program will launch in 11 communities across nine states in early February. The yearlong program encourages strong local economies by helping communities across the U.S. address structural racism and barriers to economic mobility. Cohorts of cross-sector community leaders participate in workshops and peer learning to gain skills and create a tailored racial equity plan to address local challenges.
- The Worker Voices Project has provided new insights into how job seekers and workers in lower-wage roles navigated the labor market at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and through the recovery — and how it changed what they expect from a job. Learning about these workers’ firsthand experiences gives us a deeper understanding of economic conditions and labor market dynamics.