340B – Page 3 – DeBrunner & Associates

FEDERAL HEALTH POLICY UPDATE FOR THE WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 12-16

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for the week of September 12-16. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. No Surprises Act The Department of Health and Human Services, the federal Office of Personnel Management, the Internal Revenue Service, the Department of the Treasury, the Department of Labor, and the Employee Benefits Security Administration have issued a request for information (RFI) seeking stakeholder comment on how to implement the No Surprises Act’s requirement that health care providers and payers give explanations of benefits and good-faith estimates of costs for [...]

iqtsupport2022-09-19T16:10:33-04:00September 19, 2022|340b, Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, COVID-19, health equity, hospitals, Medicaid, Medicare, Medicare regulations, Medicare reimbursement policy, MedPAC, Telehealth|

Federal Health Policy Update for Wednesday, July 20

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as of 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday, July 20. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. White House The White House COVID-19 response team has briefed the press about the administration’s latest efforts in the response to COVID-19. Find a transcript of that teleconference briefing here. COVID-19 Public Health Emergency HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra has renewed the COVID-19 public health emergency effective July 15. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services CMS has released its proposed Medicare outpatient prospective payment system regulation for calendar year 2023. [...]

iqtsupport2022-07-20T16:23:46-04:00July 20, 2022|340b, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, COVID-19, MACPAC, Medicaid, Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission, Medicare, Medicare post-acute care, Medicare regulations, Medicare reimbursement policy, MedPAC, Telehealth|

Federal Health Policy Update for Tuesday, June 21

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as of 2:45 p.m. on Tuesday, June 21. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services The Supreme Court has ruled that CMS acted inappropriately when it reduced 340B payments to hospitals. In a unanimous decision, the court found that the law creating the program gives the federal government two ways to set 340B payments for outpatient drugs for qualified providers and that the manner in which CMS cut those payments in 2018 followed neither. Learn more from [...]

iqtsupport2022-06-21T17:24:52-04:00June 21, 2022|340b, Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, COVID-19, Medicaid, Medicare, Medicare regulations, Medicare reimbursement policy, MedPAC|

Supreme Court Rejects 340B Payment Cuts

The federal government had no business cutting section 340B payments to hospitals in the manner it did, the Supreme Court has ruled. In an unanimous decision, the court found that the law creating the program gives the federal government two ways to set 340B payments for outpatient drugs for qualified providers and that the manner in which the Department of Health and Human Services cut those payments in 2018 followed neither. Hospital groups estimate that the 340B payment cut amounted to about $1.6 billion annually. Learn more about the high court ruling in the Healthcare Dive article “Hospitals win SCOTUS [...]

iqtsupport2022-06-16T06:00:11-04:00June 16, 2022|340b|

Federal Health Policy Update for Tuesday, March 22

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as of 2:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 22. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Provider Relief Fund As of March 22 at 11:59 p.m. (eastern) the HRSA (Health Resources and Services Administration) COVID-19 Uninsured Program will stop accepting claims for testing and treatment due to lack of funds and on April 5 at 11:59 p.m. (eastern) the HRSA COVID-19 Uninsured Program and COVID-19 Coverage Assistance Fund will stop accepting vaccination claims due to a lack of funds. HRSA has released additional information [...]

iqtsupport2022-03-22T20:50:28-04:00March 22, 2022|340b, Accountable Care Organization, ACO, Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, CMMI, health equity, MACPAC, Medicaid, Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission, Medicare reimbursement policy, Telehealth|

Federal Health Policy Update for Thursday, March 10

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as of 2:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 10. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. White House The White House has posted a transcript of the March 2 press briefing given by its COVID-19 response team to outline the administration’s National COVID-19 Preparedness Plan. 340B Eligibility Protection and Telehealth Extensions in the Omnibus Spending Bill Providers that feared they might lose their eligibility to continue participating in the 340B prescription drug discount program because they have fallen below that program’s Medicare disproportionate share [...]

iqtsupport2022-03-10T17:37:25-05:00March 10, 2022|Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Congress, Coronavirus, COVID-19, MACPAC, Medicaid, Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission, Medicaid managed care, Medicare, Medicare disproportionate share, Medicare DSH, Medicare reimbursement policy, MedPAC, Telehealth|

Federal Health Policy Update for Wednesday, October 6

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as of 2:15 p.m. on Wednesday, October 6. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Provider Relief Fund: Reminder That Applications Are Now Being Accepted The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) has opened its portal for providers to apply for $25.5 billion in health care relief funds, including $8.5 billion in American Rescue Plan resources for providers that serve rural patients covered by Medicare, Medicaid, or the Children’s Health Insurance Program and $17 billion for Provider Relief Fund Phase 4 grants for [...]

iqtsupport2021-10-06T19:24:30-04:00October 6, 2021|340b, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Coronavirus, COVID-19, hospitals, MedPAC|

Federal Health Policy Update for Friday, July 2

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as of 2:45 p.m. on Friday, July 2. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Supreme Court The Supreme Court has announced that it will hear a case in its next term challenging cuts in 340B payments and another involving Medicare disproportionate share. White House The White House has posted a transcript of the July 1 press briefing given by its COVID-19 response team and public health officials. The transcript includes the announcement that the federal government will be launching surge response teams [...]

iqtsupport2021-07-05T22:53:55-04:00July 5, 2021|340b, Coronavirus, COVID-19, Medicare disproportionate share, Medicare DSH|

Federal Health Policy Update for Tuesday, June 15

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as of 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday, June 15. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Provider Relief Fund Late last week HHS announced that it has increased the amount of time providers will have to report information and extended key deadlines for expending Provider Relief Fund payments for recipients that received payments after June 30, 2020. The revised reporting requirements will be applicable to providers that received one or more payments exceeding, in the aggregate, $10,000 during a single payment-received period from the [...]

iqtsupport2021-06-15T17:31:26-04:00June 15, 2021|Coronavirus, COVID-19, MACPAC, MedPAC|

Court Supports HHS on 340B Cut

The federal government may institute a nearly 30 percent cut in payments to some hospitals for prescription drugs, a federal court has ruled. The cut, to the 340B program, was first proposed in 2017 the Department of Health and Human Services but has been blocked by the courts ever since. Last week, though, a federal appeals court paved the way for the reduction. Hospitals that serve especially large numbers of low-income patients participate in the federal 340B prescription drug discount program, which gives them discounts on prescriptions they distribute to low-income outpatients. Under the program, participating hospitals are then supposed [...]

iqtsupport2020-08-05T06:00:09-04:00August 5, 2020|340b|