COVID-19

Federal Health Policy Update for Thursday, June 10

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as of 3:00 p.m. on Thursday, June 10. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. White House Health Policy News The White House has released a memo titled “What We Urge You To Do To Protect Against The Threat of Ransomware.” This memo addresses the growing number and size of ransomware incidents and calls upon government and the private sector to take steps to protect their organizations from this growing threat. The memo also outlines the federal government’s recommended best practices. Find the [...]

iqtsupport2021-06-10T17:25:42-04:00June 10, 2021|Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Coronavirus, COVID-19, Medicare, Medicare reimbursement policy|

Health Policy Update for Tuesday, June 8

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as of 2:45 p.m. on Tuesday, June 8. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. White House Health Policy News The White House, HHS, HHS’s Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response, and the FDA have announced a series of policy recommendations to address vulnerabilities in U.S. pharmaceutical supply chains. Under one of these recommendations, HHS, under the Defense Production Act and building on current public-private partnerships, will establish a public-private consortium for advanced domestic manufacturing of essential medicines production. The [...]

iqtsupport2021-06-08T17:24:26-04:00June 8, 2021|Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Coronavirus, COVID-19, Medicaid, Medicare, Medicare regulations|

Medicaid Enrollment Continues to Rise

Medicaid enrollment in 36 states rose 17.7 percent from February 2020 to March 2021. Leading the way were two Medicaid expansion states, Utah and Nebraska, which saw their Medicaid enrollment increase 37.6 percent and 30.9 percent, respectively.Other states with major increases in Medicaid enrollment were Missouri (26.5 percent), Illinois (26.3 percent), and Indiana (25.7 percent). The increases appear to have been driven by pandemic-related job losses and the accompanying economic downturn. Learn more about where and why Medicaid enrollment is rising from the article “What is Happening With Medicaid Enrollment in Q1 of 2021?” on the web site of the [...]

iqtsupport2021-06-08T06:00:02-04:00June 8, 2021|Coronavirus, COVID-19, Medicaid|

Federal Health Policy Update for Thursday, June 3

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as of 2:30 p.m. on Thursday, June 3. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. White House Health Policy News Late last week the Biden administration released its proposed FY 2022 budget. Most of the health care provisions had already been disclosed and discussed prior to the formal budget release. For additional information about the proposed budget, see the following resources: A budget in brief document. An OMB summary. An OMB budget fact sheet. COVID-19 President Biden announced a “National Month of Action” [...]

iqtsupport2021-06-03T17:30:36-04:00June 3, 2021|Coronavirus, COVID-19, MACPAC, Medicaid, Medicare, Medicare regulations, Medicare reimbursement policy, MedPAC|

Federal Health Policy Update for Tuesday, May 25

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as of 2:45 p.m. on Tuesday, May 25. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. The White House COVID-19 The White House has posted a transcript of the May 21 press briefing by its COVID-19 response team and public health officials. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services COVID-19 CMS has updated its list of blanket waivers issued in response to the COVID-19 emergency with an updated question explaining that the agency is extending the submission deadline for new and existing Medicare graduate medical [...]

iqtsupport2021-05-25T17:07:24-04:00May 25, 2021|Coronavirus, COVID-19|

Federal Health Policy Update for Friday, May 14

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as of 2:30 p.m. on Friday, May 14. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. The CDC and Mask Guidance The CDC has updated its guidance on when people who have been vaccinated against COVID-19 do and do not need to wear masks and when they do and do not need to seek testing when they believe they have been exposed to someone with the virus. This is the guidance that was released amid a great deal of public attention on Thursday. The [...]

iqtsupport2021-05-14T16:26:03-04:00May 14, 2021|Coronavirus, COVID-19, Medicaid, Medicare|

Federal Health Policy Update for Wednesday, May 12

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as of 2:45 p.m. on Wednesday, May 12. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. The White House COVID-19 The White House has announced additional efforts to encourage people to get vaccinated against COVID-19, including free rides to vaccination sites from Lyft and Uber, vaccination clinics at community colleges, and additional resources for states’ community outreach efforts. This will include funding for FEMA for phone banks, door-to-door canvassing, and pop-up vaccination clinics in workplaces and churches. See the White House fact sheet for [...]

iqtsupport2021-05-12T17:06:06-04:00May 12, 2021|Coronavirus, COVID-19, Medicare|

Federal Health Policy Update for Monday, May 10

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as of 2:15 p.m. on Monday, May 10. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. The White House COVID-19 The White House has posted a transcript of the May 7 press briefing by its COVID-19 response team and public health officials. Department of Health and Human Services COVID-19 HHS and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) have announced a joint-agency effort to increase access to COVID-19 prevention and treatment services, including testing and vaccinations, among disproportionately affected communities, including among HUD-assisted [...]

iqtsupport2021-05-10T17:02:49-04:00May 10, 2021|Coronavirus, COVID-19, Medicare reimbursement policy|

Medicaid Enrollment Rises During Pandemic, But…

As expected, Medicaid enrollment has risen during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a report published on the JAMA Network. But necessarily for the reason that might be expected. According to the report, Medicaid enrollment rose from 48.2 million to 51.8 million between January 2019 and September 2020, or 1.6 percent, in Affordable Care Act Medicaid expansion states and from 17.2 million to 18.8 million, or 1.4 percent, in non-Medicaid expansion states.While a natural assumption would be that growth in Medicaid enrollment would track growth in pandemic-caused growth in unemployment, the analysis found the opposite to be true: “…enrollment growth was [...]

iqtsupport2021-05-07T06:00:40-04:00May 7, 2021|Coronavirus, COVID-19, Medicaid|

Federal Health Policy Update for Wednesday, May 5

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as of 2:45 p.m. on Wednesday, May 5. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. The White House COVID-19 The White House has posted a transcript of the May 5 press briefing by its COVID-19 response team and public health officials. Department of Health and Human Services COVID-19 HHS has created a web page for its new COVID-19 Coverage Assistance Fund through which providers can be reimbursed for the cost of administering COVID-19 vaccines to the uninsured and to those whose health insurance [...]

iqtsupport2021-05-05T17:25:41-04:00May 5, 2021|Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Coronavirus, COVID-19, MACPAC, Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission, Medicare regulations, Medicare reimbursement policy, post-acute care|