News

A federal judge in Texas struck down certain parts of the federal government’s surprise medical billing regulations related to the arbitration process for determining payment for services by out-of-network providers, saying the regulations conflict with the text of the No Surprises Act. 

The Health Resources and Services Administration will distribute $560 million in Provider Relief Fund “Phase 4” payments to providers who experienced revenue losses and expenses related to the COVID-19 pandemic based on changes in operating revenues and expenses from July 1, 2020, to March 31, 2021, the Department of Health and Human Services announced.

The Justice Department joined Minnesota and New York in filing a federal lawsuit to stop UnitedHealth Group from acquiring Change Healthcare, alleging the proposed $13 billion transaction would harm competition in commercial health insurance markets and in the market for a vital technology used to process claims and reduce health care costs.  

Commenting today on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ hospital inpatient prospective payment system final rule for fiscal year 2022, the AHA expressed concern that the rule prioritizes Health Professional Shortage Areas and training time in HPSAs when distributing new graduate medical education slots to teaching hospitals.

The Food and Drug Administration yesterday listed all over-the-cou

The U.S. maternal mortality rate increased to 23.8 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2020 from 20.1 in 2019 as rates for Black and Hispanic women increased, according to data released today by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services yesterday removed the Accountable Care Organization Transformation Track from the Community Health Access and Rural Transformation Model.

AHA is launching a special two-part podcast series featuring guests from the organization’s most downloaded podcasts.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will host a conference call for health care providers Feb. 23 at 2 p.m. ET on the No Surprises Act’s continuity of care, provider directory and public disclosure requirements.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will host a March 1 call for stakeholders on its recent request for information on barriers to accessing health care coverage and services through Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program.

The Federal Communications Commission Friday adopted a notice proposing changes to the Rural Health Care Program, which provides funding to help rural health care providers expand telehealth services.

President Biden released a notice extending the national emergency declaration for the COVID-19 pandemic beyond March 1. The notice will be published in tomorrow’s Federal Register. It does not indicate an end date for the emergency declaration. 

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought many new challenges to America’s health care system. It also has exacerbated existing issues that were already in need of attention before the pandemic. 

A new four-part tool is available to help hospitals and health systems estimate the cost and benefit of interventions to prevent health care-associated infections.

The Department of Homeland Security released a proposed rule that would exclude noncash benefits, such as the Children’s Health Insurance Program and most Medicaid benefits, when making a public charge inadmissibility determination for noncitizens requesting admission to the United States or permanent residency.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has released Medicare payment codes effective Feb. 11 for administering the monoclonal antibody bebtelovimab, effective against the omicron COVID-19 variant.

The Food and Drug Administration announced a Class 1 recall of the E25Bio COVID-19 Direct Antigen Response Test, which was marketed and distributed to U.S. customers without authorization or approval.

The Senate voted 65-27 to pass and send to the president a continuing resolution that would fund federal programs through March 11 to prevent a government shutdown when the current CR expires Feb. 18.

The Senate passed and sent to the president the Dr. Lorna Breen Health Care Provider Protection Act (H.R. 1667), AHA-supported legislation that would authorize grants for programs that offer behavioral health services for front-line health care workers.

The American Organization for Nursing Leadership on April 12 will present its 2022 Lifetime Achievement Award to Maureen Swick, senior vice president and enterprise nurse executive for Atrium Health in Charlotte, N.C.