Democrats swept the pair of special elections to fill vacancies in the state Senate and House. With the win in the House special election, Democrats will retain their razor-thin majority in that chamber with 102 Democrats and 101 Republicans. The results in that House race were hardly surprising; the district leans heavily towards the Democrats. In that race, Dan Goughnour got 63% of the vote to defeat the Republican nominee Charles D. Davis. In the Senate special election, the narrow win by James Malone means Democrats flipped the district, last held by former Sen. Ryan Aument, R-Lancaster. Despite that win, Republicans still hold the majority in the state Senate.

On Monday, the Federal Register published two final rules from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) titled “Expansion of Buprenorphine Treatment via Telemedicine Encounter” and “Continuity of Care via Telemedicine for Veterans Affairs Patients.”  Originally scheduled to go into effect on March 21, 2025, the rules were delayed by a “Regulatory Freeze Pending Review.”  Following comments from the public received by the DOJ’s Drug Enforcement Agency, the effective date of both final rules is moved to December 31, 2025.

While not accepting any new applications for this Notice of Funding Opportunity that closed on January 27, HRSA is notifying existing applicants that the expected start date has been changed from May 1 to August 1, 2025.  We anticipate that successful applicants will be notified of grant funding in July 2025.  We plan to fund awards in 12-month budget periods for a total four-year period of performance from August 1, 2025 to July 31, 2029. Please note that the program and awards depend on the appropriation of funds and are subject to change based on the availability and amount of appropriations. HRSA plans to make approximately 50 awards to support rural communities to expand the delivery of health care services. Approximately 40 awards are for the program’s regular track to support rural community identified healthcare needs, and approximately 10 awards under the program’s special track to address to heart disease, cancer, unintentional injury/substance use, chronic lower respiratory disease, stroke, and maternal health

The National Health Service Corps (NHSC) loan repayment programs help repay part of school loan debt in exchange for service in a medically underserved area. Did you know Community Health Centers are automatically approved sites for these programs? The 2025 application is now open, and interested clinicians can now access the Application and Program Guidance documents for the NHSC, Substance Use Disorder, and Rural Community loan repayment programs. The application deadline is May 1. Share this information with your clinicians and clinician candidates!

The Pennsylvania State Board of Medicine finalized the regulations to implement the Physician Assistant modernization bills, Act 78 of 2021 and Act 79 of 2021. The Acts removed unnecessary restrictions on Physician Assistants (PAs), placed decision making with PAs and supervising physician(s), placed a permanent PA representative on the Medical and Osteopathic Boards, allowed the filing of written agreements without needing prior approval of written agreement (states that already allow this do not show an increase in malpractice/reportable events), removed the 100 percent countersignature requirement and allowed supervising physicians to determine need for countersignature, and aligned the supervision requirements under the Medical Board and Osteopathic Board. A summary of the changes in the Medical and Osteopathic Practice Acts after passage of SB 397 and 398 is available on the Pennsylvania Society of Physician Assistants (PSPA) website. Click here for the final rulemaking on IRRC’s website.

The US Food & Drug Administration (FDA) posted information on the flu vaccine composition for the 2025-2026 US flu season. The agency, in consultation with federal partners, reviewed the available data and made its recommendations to manufacturers of the US-licensed influenza vaccines for the production of updated vaccines for the 2025-2026 flu season. Based on this timing, the agency does not anticipate any impact on vaccine supply or timing of availability.

The Trump administration is defending a Biden-era decision to reject drug manufacturer plans that would allow them to discount medicines through a rebate rather than up front under a federal drug discount program. HRSA on Monday doubled down on its argument that implementing a rebate model is inconsistent with the 340B statute and requires approval from the HHS secretary. The agency, however, signaled that it could be open to further consideration of the plan.

The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Innovation Center announced changes to its model portfolio. The Primary Care First and the Making Care Primary models, running through 2026 and 2034 respectively, will now end early on Dec. 31, 2025. Additionally, CMS may reduce the size of the Integrated Care for Kids model and will no longer move forward with the Medicare $2 Drug List and the Accelerating Clinical Evidence Model. Participants involved in these models should expect follow-up communications from CMS on the close-out process. This does not impact the Aledade ACO.