Congress

State-by-State Medicaid Data

New resources published by the Commonwealth Fund share information on the role of Medicaid in serving the U.S. population on a state-by-state basis. The one-page fact sheets – one for each state – share data about how many people in each state are covered by Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP); how many are dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid; how many adults participate in Medicaid as a result of Affordable Care Act Meedicaid expansion; how much money each state’s Medicaid program receives from the federal government – and the share of each state’s Medicaid spending that federal [...]

joe2025-02-04T14:46:40-05:00February 5, 2025|Affordable Care Act, Congress, Medicaid|

Health Policy Update for January 30

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for January 24-30. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Introduction With the pause in external communication that the new administration imposed on HHS last week, including announcements, advisories, regular publications, and web site updates, there has been very little public communication from or activity involving HHS in the past week, including no new regulations or grant or meeting notices. The Administration Earlier in the week the federal Office of Management and Budget (OMB) announced a temporary pause on agency grant, loan, and [...]

joe2025-01-30T21:28:45-05:00January 30, 2025|Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Congress, Federal Update, Medicaid, Medicaid disproportionate share, Medicaid DSH, Medicaid DSH allotments, Medicare, Pennsylvania Update|

Federal Health Policy Update for January 23

The Administration Public Communication The new administration has directed HHS to pause all external communications, including announcements, advisories, regular publications, and web site updates. According to a published report, "HHS has issued a pause on mass communications and public appearances that are not directly related to emergencies or critical to preserving health," a spokesperson wrote in an email. "This is a short pause to allow the new team to set up a process for review and prioritization. There are exceptions for announcements that HHS divisions believe are mission critical, but they will be made on a case-by-case basis." The directive [...]

Federal Health Policy Update for January 16

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for January 11-17. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Congress House Budget Committee Republican members of the House Budget Committee have circulated a list of possible policy changes that would reduce federal spending by between $5.3 trillion and $5.7 trillion over a period of ten years. Up to $3.4 trillion of those possible cuts could include reductions in federal health care spending. The health care cuts the document lists (all figures are ten-year reductions) are: Medicare introducing Medicare site-neutral outpatient payments - [...]

House Committee Mulls Possible Health Care Cuts

Republican members of the House Budget Committee have circulated a list of possible policy changes that would reduce federal spending between $5.3 trillion and $5.7 trillion over a period of ten years. Up to $3.4 trillion of those possible cuts could include reductions in federal health care spending. The health care cuts the document lists (all figures are ten-year reductions) are: Medicare introducing Medicare site-neutral outpatient payments - $146 billion reducing Medicare disproportionate share (Medicare DSH) uncompensated care payments - $229 billion reducing Medicare bad debt reimbursement - $42 billion extending the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013 budget sequestration that [...]

joe2025-01-14T15:44:54-05:00January 15, 2025|Affordable Care Act, Congress, deficit reduction, Federal Update, hospitals, Medicaid, Medicare, Medicare bad debt reimbursement, Medicare cuts, Medicare disproportionate share, Medicare DSH, Medicare reimbursement policy, Pennsylvania Update|

Federal Health Policy Update for January 9

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for January 4-10. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Congress Congressional leaders continued to refine their committee membership for the 119th Congress. In the past week, the following additions were made to committees with jurisdiction over health care matters: The House Energy and Commerce Committee has added six new Democratic members to the committee: Reps. Kevin Mullin (CA), Troy Carter (LA), Jennifer McClellan (VA), Greg Landsman (OH), Jake Auchincloss (MA), and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY). The House Ways and Means Committee has added [...]

joe2025-01-09T15:02:36-05:00January 9, 2025|Alternative payment models, Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, CMMI, Congress, Federal Update, Medicaid, Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission, Medicare, Medicare reimbursement policy|

Federal Health Policy Update for January 3

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for December 20 through January 3. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Congress The 119th Congress convened today to swear in new members and members of the House of Representatives have re-elected Rep. Mike Johnson (R-LA) as Speaker. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services CMS has published a solicitation for up to 10 additional hospitals from eligible low population density states to participate in its Rural Community Hospital Demonstration program. The Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement and Modernization Act of 2003 directed the agency [...]

joe2025-01-03T15:27:26-05:00January 3, 2025|Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, CMMI, Congress, Federal Update, hospitals, Medicaid, Medicare, Medicare regulations, Pennsylvania Update, Telehealth|

Federal Health Policy Update for December 19

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for December 13-19. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Congress Funding for the operation of the federal government will expire tomorrow, December 20, unless Congress passes a funding bill. Earlier this week, congressional leaders agreed on a continuing resolution that included a number of health care priorities, including relief from scheduled Medicaid DSH cuts, relief for Medicare physician payment cuts, extension of telehealth flexibilities, extension of the Acute Hospital Care at Home program, a number of changes in the practices of pharmacy [...]

MACPAC Meets

Members of the Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission met publicly last week in Washington, D.C. The following is MACPAC’s own summary of its meeting. The MACPAC December 2024 meeting began with a discussion on accountability in Medicaid managed care, which is the predominant delivery system in Medicaid. MACPAC will examine the tools the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and state Medicaid agencies use to manage managed care organizations’ (MCOs) performance and hold plans accountable to contractual obligations. Staff presented findings from MACPAC’s review of federal policy and a 40-state review of accountability tools as described in [...]

joe2024-12-17T15:23:53-05:00December 18, 2024|Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Congress, hospitals, MACPAC, Medicaid, Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission, Medicaid regulations|

Federal Health Policy Update for December 12

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for December 6-12. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Congress Funding the Federal Government With funding for the federal government set to expire in eight days, Congress is still negotiating the details of the next continuing resolution. Speaker Johnson has indicated that the next continuing resolution will extend until an unspecified date in March. Last week, the House majority and House minority exchanged proposals for additional items to include in the next continuing resolution and both parties listed health care extenders – [...]

joe2024-12-12T16:16:50-05:00December 12, 2024|340b, Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, CMMI, Congress, COVID-19, Federal Update, hospitals, Medicaid, Medicaid disproportionate share, Medicaid DSH, Medicaid DSH allotments, Medicare, Medicare regulations, Medicare reimbursement policy|