On June 4, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced that they are accepting applications for the Performance Year 1 cohort of the Direct Contracting Professional and Global Options. Direct Contracting is intended to test whether the risk-based payment strategies available under the model align financial incentives and offer model participants (Direct Contracting Entities or DCEs). Each DCE must contract with Direct Contracting Participant Providers, which may include, but are not limited to, physicians or other practitioners in group practice arrangements, networks of individual practices of physicians or other practitioners, hospitals employing physicians or other practitioners, Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), Rural Health Clinics (RHCs), and Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs). Applications for Performance Year 1 are due by July 6, 2020, for a start date of April 1, 2021. Find more information here.
Major Depression, Treatment Receipt, and Treatment Sources Among Non-Metropolitan and Metropolitan Adults
Major depression remains a relatively common health problem, but little is known about the prevalence of major depression and its treatment in non-metropolitan areas as compared to metropolitan areas. Using 2017 data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health researchers at the Rural and Underserved Research Center estimated and compared between non-metropolitan and metropolitan adults the prevalence of depression, receipt of treatment for depression, and sources of treatment for depression. Read more here.
CDC: Trends in Occupational Lung Diseases
In its Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) examined deaths due to pneumoconiosis – preventable occupational lung disease caused by inhaling dust particles such as coal or mineral dust. From 1968 to 2000, death rates for all pneumoconioses decreased, though preventable deaths continue to occur. Read more here.
#WellChildWednesdays @HRSAgov
Last month, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention assessed the impact of the pandemic on pediatric vaccinations and found a noticeable decline beginning in the week after the national emergency declaration. To help remind parents and caregivers of the need to protect children from preventable disease such as measles, the Maternal and Child Health Bureau at the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) will be releasing social media messages with the hashtag #WellChildWednesdays. Messages will address well visits, immunizations, adolescent and young adult care, and nutrition, safety, and mental health as topics to be discussed with pediatric providers.
HRSA on Child Poverty and Mental Health.
A new study published in the Journal of Children and Poverty finds an association between family economic hardship and child mental health conditions. Researchers at the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) based the study on data from the 2016 and 2017 National Surveys of Children’s Health, which is a nationally representative survey of U.S. Children ages 0 to 17. Read more here.
The Hidden Pandemic Behind COVID-19
Cases of domestic violence, child abuse and sexual exploitation in the time of COVID-19 appear to have risen in emergency rooms and health clinics across the country since March. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has published a 4-page document entitled Intimate Partner Violence and Child Abuse Considerations During COVID-19 with hyperlinks to relevant SAMHSA and non-SAMHSA resources. If you would like to view the HRSA webinar on this subject, access the recording by registering with this link. This will redirect you to the recording where you can watch the full session and download the slide presentation and resources shared. For audio replay, please use the line 866-360-7719, with passcode 52020. Read more here.
U.S. Coronavirus Death Toll Surpasses U.S. Service Member Deaths during World War I
As of Tuesday, the death toll in the U.S. from the coronavirus surpassed 116,700, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University, a count roughly 200 more than the 116,516 U.S. service members who died in World War I, according to Department of Veterans Affairs data. Deaths from COVID-19 in the U.S. had already topped all U.S. deaths from every war since the 1950 start of the Korean War. And deaths from COVID-19 already surpassed those from the 1968 pandemic, which claimed 100,000 lives.
HHS Issues Broad Definition for Provider Relief Fund Payments
On June 2, the Department of Health and Human Services released an FAQ that defines the types of expenses that are considered “attributable to the coronavirus,” and therefore an allowable use of Provider Relief Fund (PRF) funding. In addition to standard types of expenses (e.g., supplies, equipment, training, payroll), PRF funds may be used for: rent or mortgage payments; lease payments on equipment and “acquiring additional resources, including facilities, equipment, supplies, healthcare practices, staffing and technology to expand or preserve care delivery.” Allowable expenses must have been incurred after January 1, 2020, but there is currently no end date on such expenses. Read the PRF FAQs.
2020 UDS Manual Now Available
The 2020 Uniform Data System (UDS) Manual provides health centers with detailed instructions to complete all of the required data tables related to patients, operations and clinical performance. The 2020 UDS data reporting period for Health Center Program awardees and look-alikes will be open from Jan. 1 through Feb. 15, 2021. Key reporting changes include:
- Addition of HIV screening measure (CMS349v2)
- Addition of prescription for Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) International Classification of Diseases (ICD) 10 codes and Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) codes
- Revision of Appendix D to capture information on prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs) and social determinants of health
- Inclusion of COVID-19 ICD-10 and CPT clinical codes, as well as codes for acute respiratory illness due to COVID-19
See Program Assistance Letter (PAL) 2020-04 for a complete overview of approved CY 2020 UDS changes. Also available is the 2020 Uniform Data System (UDS) Reporting Changes TA Webinar Presentation and On Demand Recording.
Income and Eligibility for Health Insurance
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), signed into law on March 27, provided for payments of up to $1,200 for every adult and $500 per dependent child. This stimulus payment does not count as income for Medicaid/CHIP or Advance Premium Tax Credit (APTC) determinations. It should also not be reported on any application for assistance. Some other points to keep in mind:
- Regular unemployment is always counted as income.
- The extension of unemployment of up to 39 weeks and the expansion of unemployment to new populations is counted as income.
- The additional $600/week supplemental unemployment benefit ends July 31, 2020; this benefit does not count toward Medicaid/CHIP but DOES COUNT toward income for Marketplace Coverage and APTC eligibility.
While the Federal government has not issued a special enrollment period or opened the Marketplace due to the pandemic, consumers who have lost coverage may qualify for a special enrollment period. See the Special Enrollment Period Reference Guide for more information.