Bulletin Board
Bulletin Board
CMS Introduces New Approach to Medicaid Block Grants
States would be able to convert part of their Medicaid programs into block grants under a new program introduced by the federal government. The program, which the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services calls “Healthy Adult Opportunity,” would encompass services only for adults under the age of 65 who are not eligible for Medicaid because of disability or the need for long-term care, services, and supports and who are not otherwise eligible for the pre-Affordable Care Act Medicaid program. Under the program, states can develop either a total expenses model [...]
Supreme Court Lifts Public Charge Rule Ban
The U.S. can now reject visa and green card applicants based on their financial prospects after a new Supreme Court ruling this week. This ruling has potential long-term implications for health care providers. Last August a new Department of Homeland Security regulation took effect that authorized the federal government to reject immigrants’ applications for visas and green cards if their financial situation and employment prospects suggested that they might become a “public charge” and dependent on government safety-net programs like Medicaid and food stamps. A number of groups sued to [...]
GAO Finds Obstacles to Treatment for Opioid Abuse
Several obstacles get in the way of Medicaid patients receiving treatment for opioid use and addiction. So concludes the U.S. Government Accountability Office in a recent study. According to the GAO, the barriers to Medicaid patients receiving medication-assisted treatment for opioid use and addiction – a combination of behavioral therapy and certain medications – include: The failure of state Medicaid programs to cover such services. GAO found that 40 percent of state Medicaid programs do not cover certain drugs widely used to treat opioid addiction. Prior authorization requirements can slow [...]
340B Doesn’t Drive Up Hospital Drug Spending, MedPAC Says
Hospitals do not prescribe more expensive drugs because they know the 340B program will help pay for them. That is the conclusion drawn in a recent analysis by the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission. Prescription drug spending has risen markedly in recent years and the pharmaceutical industry maintains that part of that increase can be attributed to hospitals that participate in the section 340B prescription drug discount program, which requires pharmaceutical companies to give discounts to hospitals and other selected providers that care for especially large numbers of low-income patients. A [...]
MedPAC Meets
Last week the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission met in Washington, D.C. to discuss a number of Medicare payment issues. The issues on MedPAC’s January agenda were: The Medicare prescription drug program (Part D): status report and options for restructuring Redesigning the Medicare Advantage quality program: initial modeling of a value incentive program Hospital inpatient and outpatient payments Physician payments Outpatient dialysis payments Skilled nursing facility, home health, inpatient rehabilitation facility, and long-term-care hospital payments Hospice and ambulatory surgery center payments The 340B program ACO beneficiary assignment MedPAC is an independent congressional [...]