hospitals

Federal Health Policy Update for June 18

Don’t Miss: 340B Rebate Model pilot program – next steps Stricter rules on CMS’s reviews of new and existing section 1115 Medicaid demonstration programs Changes in health care institution accrediting practices HHS posts mental and behavioral health grant opportunities The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for June 12-18. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Congress Both chambers of Congress will return to session on June 22. The House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee will hold a hearing titled “State Medicaid Program Integrity: Examining Fraud Risks [...]

joe2026-06-18T16:07:51-04:00June 18, 2026|340b, Affordable Care Act, Alternative payment models, hospitals, MACPAC, Medicaid, Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission, Medicaid managed care, Medicaid regulations, Medicare, Medicare regulations, Medicare reimbursement policy, MedPAC|

MACPAC Issues Report to Congress

The Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission has sent its 2026 report to Congress. The report – mandated by Congress – includes recommendations for: overseeing community engagement/work requirements in Medicaid, including MedPAC’s recommendation that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services develop a transparent plan through which it can monitor and evaluate community engagement requirements improving CMS’s oversight of the use of automation in Medicaid prior authorization decisions improving the accountability of states’ Medicaid managed care programs appropriate access to residential treatment services for Medicaid-enrolled youth with special behavioral health needs and disabilities facilitating the transition of children and [...]

joe2026-06-17T09:45:11-04:00June 17, 2026|Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, hospitals, MACPAC, Medicaid, Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission, Medicaid managed care, Medicaid regulations for long-term care|

MedPAC Reports to Congress

The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission has issued its annual report to Congress. This year’s report examines: how Medicare payment incentives affect federal spending and the delivery of care and how those incentives can be improved the challenges beneficiaries encounter when deciding on their enrollment in Medicare how Medicare identifies improper payments – and how it can do so more effectively the association between enrollment in Medicare Advantage plans and provider finances access to selected palliative care services under Medicare’s hospice benefit MedPAC is an independent congressional agency that advises Congress on issues involving Medicare. While its recommendations are not binding [...]

joe2026-06-16T16:58:28-04:00June 17, 2026|hospitals, Medicare, Medicare reimbursement policy|

Federal Health Policy Update for June 11

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for June 5-11. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Don’t Miss: CMS warns more than 500 hospitals for failing to meet price transparency requirements HHS OIG looks at Medicare Advantage rejections of post-acute services Federal court rejects $100,000 H-1B visa fee HHS RFI seeks new approaches, including AI, for treating addiction CMS creates new office to help with tech modernization Congress Some Republican members of Congress continue to plan for a third party-line reconciliation bill to focus on health care affordability. The [...]

joe2026-06-11T16:08:27-04:00June 11, 2026|Alternative payment models, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Congress, hospitals, Medicaid, Medicare, Medicare regulations, Medicare reimbursement policy, MedPAC|

CMS Warns Hospitals About Price Transparency

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has written to more than 500 hospitals, warning them that they are failing to meet federal requirements for price transparency. The letter warns hospitals that they are at risk of fines if they do not publicly provide more and better price information. Some have been told they must submit improvement plans. CMS’s view is that the lack of price transparency prevents consumers from comparing hospitals’ prices for services. Learn more about the CMS warning and find a link to a list of the hospitals that have been warned in the AP article “Trump [...]

joe2026-06-09T17:20:07-04:00June 10, 2026|Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, hospitals|

Federal Health Policy Update for June 4

Don’t miss: CMS publishes new Medicaid work/community engagement requirements Energy and Commerce Committee looks at price transparency in health care An AI executive order and Congress prepares to weigh in Price cut: IDR dispute fee to fall from $115 to $15 per dispute The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for May 29 to June 4. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Medicaid Work Requirements – Interim Final Rule CMS has published an interim final rule with comment period to implement the Medicaid work and community engagement requirements [...]

joe2026-06-04T16:30:46-04:00June 4, 2026|Alternative payment models, Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, CMMI, hospitals, Medicaid, Medicare|

HHS Examines Why Rural Hospitals Close

Why are rural hospitals closing at a much faster rate than their non-rural counterparts? The Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation recently explored this question with an intensive data-based approach that yielded the following conclusions about rural hospital closures between 2012 and 2023 (all bullets are direct quotes from the agency’s report): Rural hospitals face unique challenges that make them especially vulnerable to closure or conversion to outpatient-only facilities. While 8% of rural hospitals have closed or converted since 2010, only 3.5% of urban hospitals have done so during the same [...]

joe2026-05-20T09:01:47-04:00May 21, 2026|hospitals|

Federal Health Policy Update for May 14

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for May 8-14. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Congress The Ways and Means Committee has circulated a discussion draft of a bill that would require non-profit hospitals and health systems to report more of their community benefit-related spending activity. Under the draft bill, non-profit hospitals and health systems would be required to report on charity care spending, their process for patients to apply for financial assistance, and spending associated with community benefits. They also would be required to report on subsidized service lines, community health needs assessments, and more. Affected hospitals and health [...]

joe2026-05-14T15:39:30-04:00May 14, 2026|hospitals, MACPAC, Medicaid, Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission, Medicaid and housing for the disabled, Medicaid managed care, Medicare, Medicare reimbursement policy|

Hospital at Home Proving its Worth?

A new study suggests that hospital at home programs are producing positive results for patients and the health care system. Positive results such as greater comfort for patients, fewer returns to the hospital emergency department within 30 days of discharge, lower in-hospital mortality, reduced costs, and improved outcomes. Serving patients at home also frees hospital beds for sicker patients – an important consideration in communities where hospital occupancy levels are especially high. In hospital at home programs, patients receive acute-care services in their own homes with the help of remote monitoring and home visits by clinicians. One downside so far: [...]

joe2026-05-07T16:56:22-04:00May 12, 2026|hospitals, Medicare, Uncategorized|

LTCH Numbers in Free Fall

The number of long-term care hospitals in the U.S. is falling fast. According to hospital industry sources, more than a quarter of all long-term care hospitals – commonly referred to as LTCHs – have closed over the past decade. Among the reasons for all the closings, according to those same sources, are low Medicare payments; Medicare site-neutral payment policies that limit the kinds of patients for which LTCHs can receive full, LTCH-level payments and not lower reimbursement; and the refusal of some Medicare Advantage plans to include LTCHs in their provider networks. LTCHs traditionally provide acute-care services to patients who [...]

joe2026-04-28T15:25:40-04:00April 29, 2026|hospitals, Medicare reimbursement policy, Uncategorized|