Federal Health Policy Update for May 28
The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for May 22-28. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Congress When Congress returns from the Memorial Day recess next week, lawmakers will [...]
HHS Advisory Committee Holds First Meeting
An advisory panel created by the Department of Health and Human Services to advise the agency on how to improve the financing and delivery of health care by Medicare, Medicaid, and the Children’s Health Insurance Program and through the health [...]
Federal Health Policy Update for May 21
The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for May 15-21. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Congress The House Ways and Means Committee marked up several health care bills [...]
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 [...]
CMS Sets Final ACA Terms for 2027
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has issued its annual “Notice of Benefit and Payment Parameters for 2027; Basic Health Program,” which governs health plans offered through the federal health insurance exchange and state exchanges as established under the [...]
MACPAC Seeks Guardrails for AI Use in Medicaid Prior Authorization
While acknowledging the potential value of the use of AI in facilitating Medicaid prior authorization decisions, the agency that advises Congress on Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program policy will recommend to Congress that the programs erect guardrails to protect [...]
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 [...]
A Closer Look at the Proposed Drug Prior Authorization Regulation
Last month, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services proposed new requirements for the prior authorization of drugs for patients served by Medicare Advantage, Medicaid, CHIP, and qualified health plans in the federal marketplace. This proposal represented a next step [...]
MACPAC Meets
Members of the Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission met last week in Washington, D.C. During the course of the deliberations, MACPAC’s staff made the following presentations to the commissioners: Automation in Medicaid Prior Authorization: Recommendations Exploring the Role [...]
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, [...]
