Bulletin Board
Bulletin Board
HHS to Attack Overprescribing of Psychiatric Drugs
The Department of Health and Human Services is launching a campaign to reduce the frequency with which providers prescribe drugs for patients with behavioral health challenges. The new campaign, announced earlier this week, will seek to analyze prescribing patterns for psychiatric drugs, evaluate those that are and are not effective, and advocate greater use of alternative, non-medication-based treatments. To support this effort, HHS plans to develop new policies and promote and support more education and outreach. HHS also has issued two sets guidelines, developed by its Substance Abuse and Mental [...]
States Continue to Work on Medicaid Eligibility Changes
With last year’s budget reconciliation bill – also known as H.R. 1 and the “Big Beautiful Bill Act” – requiring most Medicaid beneficiaries to have jobs or participate in community engagement activities beginning next year, the states continue to develop and refine the policies and practices they will need to implement and enforce the new requirements. The KFF has surveyed state Medicaid officials to identify what the states are doing and how they are doing it. Among Kaiser’s findings: Three states intend to implement the new Medicaid work requirements this [...]
Federal Health Policy Update for April 30
The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for April 24-30. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Congress Yesterday, House Republicans adopted the Senate’s budget resolution, clearing the way for the party-line reconciliation process to move into the drafting phase. The limited budget resolution for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection instructs the Senate Judiciary and Homeland Security committees to write legislation by May 15. Today, the House passed the Senate’s spending bill to fund [...]
Some States Seek to Expand Medicaid Work Requirements
While last year’s H.R. 1, often referred to as the “One Big Beautiful Act Bill,” introduced a requirement that Medicaid applicants document that they have worked, attended school, or participated in some form of community engagement for one month as a condition of eligibility for the program, a few states are looking to make that requirement more rigorous. Indiana, for example, has turned that one-month requirement into three months and Missouri, Arizona, and Kentucky are considering increasing the requirement as well. Missouri officials are even proposing a constitutional amendment that [...]
Feds End Support for Fentanyl Test Strips
The federal government will no longer help states pay for fentanyl test strips. This was among several messages included in a “Dear Colleague” letter sent late last week by the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to state health departments and federal grant recipients. The decision, according to the letter, is consistent with the agency’s indication last year about its “… clear shift away from harm reduction and practices that facilitate illicit drug use…” SAMHSA’s action reflects a view within the administration and Department of Health and [...]