Medicaid state plan amendments

Federal Health Policy Update for May 8

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for May 2-8. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Congress Reconciliation Over the past several days the political gravity surrounding Medicaid cuts has begun to shift slightly. Moderate Republicans have been pushing back more forcefully and more loudly against such cuts, with some saying they will not support more than work requirements and increased enforcement checks for eligibility. Opposition to most Medicaid cuts led the Energy and Commerce Committee to delay a markup of its reconciliation bill planned for this week to [...]

joe2025-05-08T16:50:48-04:00May 8, 2025|Accountable Care Organization, Alternative payment models, Congress, Medicaid, Medicaid managed care, Medicaid regulations, Medicare, Medicare reimbursement policy|

Federal Health Policy Update for May 1

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for April 25 – May 1. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Congress Reconciliation The House and Senate returned to Washington D.C. this week and House committees have begun marking up reconciliation legislation for submission to the House Budget Committee by May 9. The Energy and Commerce Committee is expected to seek nearly $550 billion in cuts to Medicaid spending and the most likely targets for cuts continue to be work requirements for Medicaid eligibility; more frequent review of Medicaid eligibility; reducing the federal [...]

joe2025-05-01T15:33:24-04:00May 1, 2025|Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Congress, MACPAC, Medicaid, Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission, Medicare, Medicare disproportionate share, Medicare DSH, Medicare post-acute care, Medicare regulations, Medicare reimbursement policy, Telehealth|

Federal Health Policy Update for April 17

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for April 11-17. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. The White House President Trump signed an executive order titled “Lowering Drug Prices by Once Again Putting Americans First” that directs the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services to take steps to lower prescription drug costs for patients. The order addresses several prescription drug-related policies, including: the Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program seeking better Medicare prices for drugs not subject to the Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program accelerating FDA drug [...]

joe2025-04-17T17:14:31-04:00April 17, 2025|340b, Accountable Care Organization, ACO, Alternative payment models, Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, CMMI, Congress, hospitals, MACPAC, Medicaid, Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission, Medicare, Medicare reimbursement policy|

Federal Health Policy Update for April 10

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for April 4-10. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Congress The House today passed the budget resolution passed by the Senate last week. Passage of the same budget resolution by both chambers now enables Congress to begin work on a reconciliation bill to enact President Trump’s priorities on tax cuts, border security, and energy policies. Until this morning, more than a dozen Republican House members had opposed the Senate-passed budget resolution because they believed the Senate’s budget did not require enough spending [...]

joe2025-04-10T16:05:02-04:00April 10, 2025|Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, hospitals, Medicaid, Medicaid managed care, Medicaid regulations, Medicare, Medicare regulations, Medicare reimbursement policy|

Federal Health Policy Update for April 3

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for March 28 through April 3. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Congress - Reconciliation Yesterday, Senate Republicans released their new budget resolution as they try to create a single budget resolution that can pass the House and Senate – a necessary step before the chambers can pass a reconciliation bill. The new resolution includes the following instructions: The Senate Finance Committee can increase the deficit no more than $1.5 trillion over 10 years. This assumes use of the “current policy baseline” [...]

joe2025-04-03T14:39:43-04:00April 3, 2025|Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, MACPAC, Medicaid, Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission|

Federal Health Policy Update for March 20

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for March 14-20. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. The White House The White House has rescinded Executive Order 13994 of January 21, 2021, titled “Ensuring a Data-Driven Response to COVID-19 and Future High-Consequence Public Health Threats.” In response to this action, CMS rescinded its November 22, 2022 memo “The Importance of Timely Use of COVID-19 Therapeutics,” the purpose of which, according the memo, was “…to highlight the importance of providing timely access to available COVID-19 therapeutics to patients who test positive [...]

joe2025-03-20T16:00:25-04:00March 20, 2025|340b, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Medicaid, Medicaid disproportionate share, Medicaid DSH, Medicaid DSH allotments, Medicare, Medicare disproportionate share, Medicare DSH, Medicare post-acute care, Medicare regulations, Medicare reimbursement policy, MedPAC|

CMS Speeds Up Medicaid Review Process

The federal government has greatly increased the speed with which it is reviewing and approving state applications to modify their Medicaid programs. Most often, such applications involve Medicaid state plan amendments and section 1915 waiver requests. According to a recent post on the CMS blog (in CMS’s own words), Between calendar years 2016 and 2018, there was a 16 percent decrease in the median approval time for Medicaid SPAs [note: state plan amendments]. Seventy-eight percent of SPAs were approved within the first 90 day review period during calendar year 2018, a 14 percent increase over 2016. Between calendar year 2016 [...]

iqtsupport2019-05-14T06:00:36-04:00May 14, 2019|Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Medicaid|

CMS Unveils Medicaid “Scorecard”

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services had introduced a new “Medicaid scorecard” that the agency says it hopes will “…increase public transparency about the programs’ administration and outcomes.” The scorecard, now posted on the Medicaid web site, presents information and data from the federal government, and reported voluntarily by the states, in three areas: state health system performance, state administrative accountability, and federal administrative accountability. The scorecard currently offers information on selected health and program indicators. Visitors can see comparative data between states and also extensive information about individual state Medicaid programs, including eligibility criteria, enrollment, quality performance, and [...]

iqtsupport2018-06-26T06:00:20-04:00June 26, 2018|Medicaid|