MLN Connects

Federal Health Policy Update for November 16

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for November 10-16. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Congress This week Congress passed another continuing resolution (CR) to fund the federal government beyond Friday, when the current CR expires. This bill establishes two separate deadlines for lawmakers to pass certain spending bills so they can avoid an omnibus bill that includes all 12 appropriations bills. Congress must pass four of the spending bills by January 19 and the other bills by February 2. The Labor, HHS, and Education bill, one of [...]

Federal Health Policy Update for November 9

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for November 3-9. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Congress Senate Finance Committee Earlier this week the Senate Finance Committee passed the Better Mental Health Care, Lower-Cost Drugs, and Extenders Act of 2023. The bill, which passed out of the committee by a vote of 26-0, would: eliminate $16 billion in cuts to Medicaid DSH for 2024 and 2025; soften the 2024 cut to Medicare physician payments by reducing the conversion factor by 2.15 percent rather than the 3.4 percent that CMS [...]

iqtsupport2023-11-09T15:41:22-05:00November 9, 2023|340b, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, health equity, hospitals, MACPAC, Medicaid, Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission, Medicaid disproportionate share, Medicaid DSH, Medicare, Medicare regulations, Medicare reimbursement policy, MedPAC|

Federal Health Policy Update for November 2

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for October 27 – November 2. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. 340B Remedy Payments Late Thursday afternoon CMS published its final Medicare remedy for underpayments for 340B prescription drugs that was implemented in 2018 but rejected by the Supreme Court last year. According to the regulation, 340B remedy payments to hospitals will be made after this rule takes effect, which is 60 days after it is officially published in the Federal Register; publication is scheduled for November 16. The final regulation [...]

iqtsupport2023-11-02T18:01:15-04:00November 2, 2023|340b, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, COVID-19, hospitals, Medicaid, Medicare, Medicare post-acute care, Medicare reimbursement policy|

Federal Health Policy Update for October 26

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for October 20-26. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Congress More than three weeks after House Republicans voted Rep. Kevin McCarthy (CA) out of the speaker’s office, the House has elected Rep. Mike Johnson (LA) to the position. Speaker Johnson is a social conservative and has pushed for cuts to Medicare and Medicaid, including plans to roll back Medicaid expansion in 2019. The Speaker has said he intends for the House to take up as many FY 2024 spending bills as possible [...]

iqtsupport2023-10-26T15:51:16-04:00October 26, 2023|340b, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Congress, Medicaid, Medicaid disproportionate share, Medicaid DSH, Medicaid DSH allotments, Medicare, Medicare reimbursement policy, MedPAC|

Federal Health Policy Update for October 19

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for October 13-19. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Congress At this moment there is still no Speaker of the House of Representatives. After 20 and then 22 House Republicans voted against Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) on Tuesday and Wednesday this week, Mr. Jordan has joined others, including senior Democrats, in supporting a plan to expand the powers of the temporary speaker, Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-NC). Mr. Jordan remains the speaker designee, an option that will enable him to continue to seek [...]

iqtsupport2023-10-19T15:01:13-04:00October 19, 2023|Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, CMMI, COVID-19, health equity, hospitals, Medicaid, Medicaid disproportionate share, Medicaid DSH, Medicaid DSH allotments, Medicare, Medicare post-acute care, Medicare reimbursement policy, Telehealth|

Federal Health Policy Update for October 12

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for October 6-12. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. No Surprises Act CMS has reopened the federal independent dispute resolution (IDR) portal for the initiation ofnew single disputes, including single disputes involving bundled payment arrangements, but parties still cannot initiate new disputes involving air ambulance services and batched disputes for air ambulance and non-air ambulance items and services. IDR portal functionalities related to previously initiated batched disputes also are unavailable. Learn more about this action from this CMS announcement, which includes an [...]

iqtsupport2023-10-12T14:42:15-04:00October 12, 2023|COVID-19, health equity, MACPAC, Medicaid, Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission, Medicare, Medicare post-acute care, Medicare reimbursement policy, MedPAC, social determinants of health, Telehealth|

Federal Health Policy Update for October 5

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for September 29 to October 5. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Congress Last Saturday, Congress passed a 45-day continuing resolution (CR) to fund the federal government through November 17. Part of that limited CR includes a delay of the scheduled $8 billion cut to Medicaid DSH allotments to states through the end of the CR. The bill also extends funding for community health centers and the National Health Services Corps for the same length of time. Congress will have to act [...]

iqtsupport2023-10-05T14:53:32-04:00October 5, 2023|Alternative payment models, Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, CMMI, Congress, COVID-19, health equity, hospitals, Medicaid, Medicaid disproportionate share, Medicaid DSH, Medicaid DSH allotments, Medicare, Medicare regulations, Medicare reimbursement policy, MedPAC|

Federal Health Policy Update for September 28

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for September 22-28. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. The White House President Biden has signed H.R. 2544, the Securing the U.S. Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network Act, which provides for awarding multiple grants, contracts, or cooperative agreements to operate the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network. Congress Congressional leaders have not come to agreement on how to avert a federal government shutdown this weekend. While Senate leaders introduced a continuing resolution that would fund the government through November 17, that bill has [...]

iqtsupport2023-09-28T16:38:25-04:00September 28, 2023|Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Congress, COVID-19, health equity, MACPAC, Medicaid, Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission, Medicaid disproportionate share, Medicaid DSH, Medicaid DSH allotments, Medicare, Telehealth|

Federal Health Policy Update for September 21

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for September 15 - 21. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Congress With only nine days left in the current federal fiscal year, Congress still has not agreed on any kind of spending bill to keep the federal government operating past September 30. If the federal government shuts down, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will “use the full extent of the authority under the Antideficiency Act (ADA) to maintain existing HHS activities…” In previous shutdowns, Medicare has continued to [...]

iqtsupport2023-09-21T15:37:11-04:00September 21, 2023|Alternative payment models, Congress, COVID-19, Medicaid, Medicare, Medicare reimbursement policy|

Federal Health Policy Update for September 14

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for September 8-14. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services CMS has posted a guide providing details about how it calculates scores for its Merit-Based Incentive Payment System in the 2023 performance year. Find the guide by going here, scrolling down to “Full Resource Library,” and clicking “2023 Traditional MIPS Scoring Guide” for a direct download of the guide. CMS has posted a notice about a data breach at a CMS contractor, Maximus Federal Services, Inc. (Maximus), [...]

iqtsupport2023-09-14T16:59:54-04:00September 14, 2023|Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, COVID-19, hospitals, Medicare|