- HHS: Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act: Marketplace Integrity and Affordability
- HRSA Announces Action to Lower Out-of-Pocket Costs for Life-Saving Medications at Health Centers Nationwide
- Public Inspection: HHS: Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act: Marketplace Integrity and Affordability
- Increased Risk of Cyber Threats Against Healthcare and Public Health Sector
- 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; FY 2026 Hospice Wage Index and Payment Rate Update and Hospice Quality Reporting Program Requirements
- 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
- 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
- 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
Resource Provides Virtual to Rural and Remote Health Care Providers
The Rural Telementoring Training Center (RTTC) supports the delivery of effective, high-quality telementoring programs that expand access to care, build cultural proficiency, and improve the quality of health care in rural America. Telementoring, or technology-enabled mentoring, is the use of telecommunication technology to deliver training, education, and support that builds healthcare capacity.
The RTTC helps rural and remote health care providers deliver compassionate, evidence-based care. The RTTC offers free training and technical assistance to organizations for designing, delivering, and evaluating telementoring programs in any of six modalities: Project ECHO, online modules and curricula, webinars, community health clubs, individual consultation, and podcasts.
Rural and remote health care providers connect with educational resources and a network of learning, mentors, and partners helps to grow skills and deliver a new level of care; receive ongoing, interactive learning; network with other professionals; collaborate across disciplines and professions; reduce isolation; and improve patient access to health services.
The RTTC helps to build the rural health care infrastructure thereby ensuring access to high quality care and is part of the movement that is transforming rural health through telementoring
For more information, visit ruraltelementoring.org.
This project is supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under grant number U5ARH39480 and title Rural Telementoring Training Center. This information or content and conclusions are those of the author and should not be construed as the official position or policy of, nor should any endorsements be inferred by HRSA, HHS or the U.S. Government.
New Report: Oral Health in Patients Experiencing Homelessness
The National Network for Oral Health Access (NNOHA) and the National Health Care for the Homeless Council (NHCHC) developed a publication to bring awareness to the intersection of oral health and behavioral health concerns or cognitive impairment in people experiencing homelessness (PEH). The publication shares the impacts of behavioral health illness on oral health and how behavioral health and dental providers can work together to address this intersection in their practices.
New Payment Opportunity for FQHCs/RHCs under the DATA 2000 Waiver Training Payment Program
The Substance Use-Disorder Prevention that Promotes Opioid Recovery and Treatment (SUPPORT) for Patients and Communities Act, Section 6083, made $6 million available to Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) and $2 million available to Rural Health Clinics (RHCs) under the DATA 2000 Waiver Training Payment Program. The program is a collaboration with SAMHSA. HRSA is accepting applications for payment under this new program from FQHCs and RHCs employing buprenorphine waivered providers.
CMS Proposed Rule Could Increase Health Insurance Coverage
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) proposed a series of provisions to expand health coverage access as a third installment of the 2022 Payment Notice. The proposed changes include extending the Health Insurance Marketplace Open Enrollment an additional 30 days to Jan. 15, 2022, and for future years after 2022. In previous years, Dec. 15 was the deadline for Healthcare.gov enrollment. At the last Pennie Board of Directors meeting, it was voted unanimously to end open enrollment for 2022 in line with Healthcare.gov, not to exceed Jan. 31. Additional proposed rules included expanding the current duties of Navigators, creating new special enrollment periods for consumers earning less than 150% of the Federal Poverty Level (about $3,313 for a family of 4), and increasing user fees used to fund the federal and state based marketplaces by 0.5% of consumer premiums.
See the press release for more.
Pennsylvania Governor Signs Bill Revising State Medical Marijuana Law
Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf approved new updates (HB 1024, now Act 24 of 2021) to the five-year-old law that first legalized it. Some changes will continue efforts that began during the pandemic, such as permanently allowing curbside pickup and a three-month supply. Other changes are new, such as allowing caregivers to pick up the drug on behalf of more than one patient. “It’s been five years since Pennsylvania legalized medical marijuana, and in that time the Department of Health has examined the program’s successes and challenges and made important recommendations on improving the law,” Wolf said in a statement.
The new law adds cancer remission therapy and neuropathies of the central nervous system to the list of medical conditions eligible for medical marijuana, and it expands the number of research facilities that study patient response to the drug. While the state law extends access to medical marijuana, a June 2 informational bulletin to the state from the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) discusses a new condition on grant awards from SAMHSA that requires organizations receiving SAMHSA funding, in order to continue serving individuals using medical marijuana for a mental or substance use disorder, to “document the client’s understanding of the risks of marijuana use and willingness to work toward other, evidence-based alternatives to treat their mental and substance use disorder.”
Pennsylvania Nurse Licensure Compact Signed into Law
Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf signed SB 115, which authorizes Pennsylvania to join the Nurse Licensure Compact (NLC). To date, 34 states are part of the NLC, which recognizes mutual agreement in the requirements of the professional licensure of nurses and reciprocity of license transfer between member states. In 2016, Gov. Wolf signed Act 112 into law which authorized the Commonwealth to join the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact (IMLC). Like the NLC, the IMLC recognizes mutual agreement in the requirements for physician licensing and provides the benefit of easier transfer of licenses from states within the compact.
Rural Healthy People 2030 Survey Open for Input!
The Southwest Rural Health Research Center at Texas A&M University with funding support from the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy is conducting a survey as part of Rural Healthy People 2030 – a project designed to understand the most important health priorities for rural Americans. This once in a decade survey allows individuals who care about rural health like you to voice your opinions on important topics for the health of rural individuals in the United States. The study should take no longer than 15 minutes.
Follow this link to the Survey:
Take the Survey
CMS is proposing Medicare payment rates for hospital outpatient and Ambulatory Surgical Center (ASC) services.
The Calendar Year (CY) 2022 Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) and ASC Payment System Proposed Rule is published annually. Statute requires the final rule display by November 1. The rule addresses the Inpatient Only and ASC Covered Procedures lists, using 2019 claims data for payment rates, seeking comment on remote mental health services made eligible for payment during the Public Health Emergency, a new quality measure on vaccination rates for front line health workers, seeking comment to advance health equity through new rural emergency hospitals, and updating policies related to CMMI’s Radiation Oncology Model.
Below are three links with information relating to the long anticipated OPPS_ASC Proposed Rule which was released by CMS and is scheduled to be published in the Federal Register on August 4, with a 60 day comment period.
Web links
Federal Registrar: https://www.federalregister.gov/public-inspection/current
Press Release: https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/press-releases/cms-proposes-rule-increase-price-transparency-access-care-safety-health-equity
2021 Dental HPV Toolkit Now Available
The Massachusetts Oral HPV Task Force developed the first dental toolkit in 2016 to improve HPV knowledge at the dentist. Since then, it has been used in dental outreach across Massachusetts and has been successfully adapted in seven states. The toolkit has now been redesigned to reflect feedback from users and updated to provide the most up-to-date recommendations. It also includes internal training materials on how to recommend the HPV vaccine, as well as in-office communication materials.
How Do We Integrate COVID-19 Vaccination into Primary Care?
As the nation’s COVID-19 vaccination campaign enters a new, more challenging phase, primary care providers will be key to reaching many of the millions of Americans who have not yet gotten their shots. In a new feature, the Commonwealth Fund offer lessons gleaned from interviews with primary care providers on how to integrate COVID-19 vaccination into their day-to-day work. Practices have faced many challenges, but many have also devised creative ways to assess and meet vaccine demand and respond to patients’ questions and concerns. A recent poll found that 53 percent of unvaccinated people prefer to be vaccinated in their personal doctor’s office. Learn how we can make that an easier option for more Americans.