COVID-19

Health Policy Update for Friday, April 16

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as of 2:45 p.m. on Friday, April 16. The White House COVID-19 The White House announced $1.7 billion in new federal spending from the American Rescue Plan to help states and other jurisdictions improve their detection, monitoring, and mitigation of COVID-19 variants. This $1.7 billion includes $1 billion to expand genomic sequencing; $400 million to support innovation initiatives, including the launch of new innovative Centers of Excellence in Genomic Epidemiology; and $300 million to build and support a National Bioinformatics Infrastructure.The first pool of funding will be distributed [...]

iqtsupport2021-04-17T10:18:11-04:00April 17, 2021|Coronavirus, COVID-19|

Federal Health Policy Update for Wednesday, April 14

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as of 2:45 p.m. on Wednesday, April 14. Temporary Halt to Use of the Johnson & Johnson Janssen Vaccine The White House held a press briefing on Tuesday, April 13 during which the White House press secretary, its COVID-19 response coordinator, and Dr. Anthony Fauci discussed the decision to halt administration of the Johnson & Johnson (Janssen) vaccine until its safety can be further examined. Learn more from a transcript of that briefing. Representatives of the FDA and CDC briefed the news media on the situation involving the [...]

iqtsupport2021-04-14T17:11:09-04:00April 14, 2021|Coronavirus, COVID-19, Medicaid, Medicare|

Health Policy Update for Monday, April 12

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as of 2:30 p.m. on Monday, April 12. The White House COVID-19 The White House has posted a transcript of the April 12 press briefing provided by its COVID-19 response team and public health officials. Health Policy and Budget News The Biden administration has released its proposed FY 2022 discretionary budget, which addresses, among other things, many aspects of health care policy. Find the news release announcing the proposed budget here and the budget document itself here. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services COVID-19 CMS has updated its [...]

iqtsupport2021-04-12T17:29:32-04:00April 12, 2021|Coronavirus, COVID-19, MACPAC|

Health Policy Update for Thursday, April 8

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as of 2:45 p.m. on Thursday, April 8. Provider Relief Fund The Provider Relief Fund web page has been updated to announce a webinar next Tuesday, April 13 about the HRSA COVID-19 uninsured program under which participating providers are reimbursed at Medicare rates for testing, treating, and administering COVID-19 vaccines to uninsured individuals. Go here for further information (in the shaded box labeled “update”). Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services COVID-19 CMS has added 24 new audiology and speech language pathology services to its list of telehealth services [...]

iqtsupport2021-04-08T17:26:05-04:00April 8, 2021|Coronavirus, COVID-19, Medicare post-acute care, Medicare regulations, Medicare reimbursement policy|

Health Policy Update for Wednesday, April 7

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as of 2:45 p.m. on Wednesday, April 7. The White House Health Policy News President Biden’s first budget proposal is expected to be released this Friday, April 9. It could have important policy implications for health care providers of all types. COVID-19 The White House has posted a transcript of the April 7 press briefing provided by its COVID-19 response team and public health officials. Federal Emergency Management Agency FEMA has published a notice titled “Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic: Safe Opening and Operation Work Eligible for Public Assistance;” the announcement “…defines the framework, [...]

iqtsupport2021-04-07T21:32:50-04:00April 7, 2021|Coronavirus, COVID-19|

Health Policy Update for Monday, April 5

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as of 2:30 p.m. on Monday, April 5. The White House COVID-19 The White House has posted a transcript of the April 5 press briefing provided by its COVID-19 response team and public health officials. Provider Relief Fund HHS has removed the following question and answer from its Provider Relief Fund FAQ. Are there any restrictions on how hospitals that receive Medicaid disproportionate share hospital (DSH) payments can use Provider Relief Fund General and Targeted Distribution payments? (Added 2/24/2021) Yes. Providers may not use PRF payments to reimburse expenses or losses that [...]

iqtsupport2021-04-05T17:20:29-04:00April 5, 2021|Coronavirus, COVID-19|

Health Policy Update for Thursday, April 1

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as of 2:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 1. Medicare Accelerated and Advance Payments Program In the latest edition of its online publication MLN Connects, CMS has published information about repayment of money health care providers received under its COVID-19 Accelerated and Advance Payments Program. Those repayments began on March 30. For further information, see the MLN Matters article “Repayment of COVID-19 Accelerated and Advance Payments Began on March 30, 2021.” The White House COVID-19 The White House has posted a transcript of the March 31 press briefing provided by its COVID-19 response [...]

iqtsupport2021-04-01T18:01:20-04:00April 1, 2021|Coronavirus, COVID-19, Medicare reimbursement policy|

Health Policy Update for Tuesday, March 30

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as of 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 30. Medicare Sequestration In anticipation of possible congressional action to extend the two percent sequester reduction suspension, CMS has instructed the Medicare Administrative Contractors (MACs) to hold all claims with dates of service on or after April 1, 2021 for a short period without affecting providers’ cash flow. This will minimize the volume of claims the MACs must reprocess if Congress extends the suspension. The MACs will automatically reprocess any claims paid with the reduction applied if necessary. The White House [...]

iqtsupport2021-03-30T17:20:36-04:00March 30, 2021|Coronavirus, COVID-19|

Health Policy Update for Friday, March 26

Beginning this week, DeBrunner & Associates is expanding its regular updates to encompass a broader scope of federal health policy endeavors to include other matters of importance to providers. Feel free to share this newsletter with others in your organization or to send us the email addresses of those you think might be interested and we will send it directly to them. The following is the latest such information from the federal government as of 2:30 p.m. on Friday, March 26. The White House COVID-19 With funding in large part from the American Rescue Plan, the White House announced that [...]

iqtsupport2021-03-26T17:12:30-04:00March 26, 2021|Coronavirus, COVID-19, Medicare regulations, Medicare reimbursement policy|

Federal Health Policy Update for Wednesday, March 24

Beginning today, DeBrunner & Associates is expanding its regular updates to encompass a broader scope of federal health policy endeavors to include other matters of importance to providers. Feel free to share this newsletter with others in your organization or to send us the email addresses of those you think might be interested and we will send it directly to them. The following is the latest such information from the federal government as of 2:45 p.m. on Wednesday, March 24. Congress The temporary delay of implementation of the Medicare two percent sequester expires at the end of the month and [...]

iqtsupport2021-03-25T08:51:40-04:00March 25, 2021|Affordable Care Act, Coronavirus, COVID-19|