On September 9, 2024, the US Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS), Labor, and the Treasury (collectively, the Departments) finalized a rule titled Requirements Related to the Mental Health Parity and Addiction...more
House Education & the Workforce Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions Subcommittee Holds Hearing on ERISA’s 50th Anniversary. Members and witnesses assessed how the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA)...more
9/16/2024
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Congressional Committees ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Final Rules ,
GAO ,
Healthcare Reform ,
HRSA ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Medicare ,
Mental Health ,
Mental Health Parity Rule ,
MHPAEA ,
New Legislation ,
NQTLs ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
U.S. House
Congress Returns. The House and Senate will be back in session on September 9, 2024, with a joint focus on completing consideration of a continuing resolution (CR) to maintain government funding beyond the end of fiscal year...more
9/6/2024
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Congressional Committees ,
DEA ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Reproductive Healthcare Issues ,
Roe v Wade ,
SCOTUS ,
Telehealth
CMS Finalizes New TCET Pathway. The final procedural notice, effective immediately, creates a new pathway that uses existing national coverage determination and coverage with evidence development (CED) processes to expedite...more
On August 1, 2024, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) posted the Hospital Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS) final update for fiscal year (FY) 2025, along with proposed policy and regulation changes....more
Senate HELP Committee Marks Up Public Health Program Reauthorizations. The bills would reauthorize several programs related to older adults, individuals with developmental disabilities and individuals with traumatic brain...more
House Oversight and Accountability Committee Holds Hearing on PBMs. Republicans and Democrats shared concerns about the role and practices of PBMs. While generally supportive of free market principles, Republicans criticized...more
Senate HELP Committee Holds Hearing on Medical Debt. The hearing examined the negative impacts of medical debt and explored potential solutions to address the growing issue. Senators and witnesses highlighted the disparity...more
7/15/2024
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Congressional Committees ,
Data Privacy ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
HELP ,
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New Legislation ,
ONC ,
Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Physician Fee Schedule ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Senate Committees ,
U.S. House
House Ways & Means Health Subcommittee Holds Hearing on Value-Based Care. The hearing examined the challenges and opportunities associated with delivering better health outcomes and Medicare savings through value-based care....more
7/1/2024
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Congressional Committees ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
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New Legislation ,
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Senate Committees ,
Telehealth ,
U.S. House
Senate Finance Committee Holds Hearing on Disability Benefits. The hearing discussed ways to improve work incentives for those on Social Security disability programs. Senators and witnesses noted that there are currently...more
House Energy & Commerce Committee Advances 13 Health Bills. The bipartisan legislation dealt with public health, Medicaid fraud and some small telehealth bills, but not the Medicare extension legislation that the committee is...more
House Oversight Subcommittee Hearing with Fauci. The hearing aimed to gather more information on the response to the COVID-19 pandemic by Anthony Fauci, MD, former National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases...more
6/7/2024
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
HELP ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
New Legislation ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Section 340B ,
Senate Committees ,
U.S. House
House Energy & Commerce Committee Hearing on FDA. The hearing examined the US Food & Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) regulation of drugs, biologics and devices.
House Budget Committee Hearing on Healthcare Monopolies. The...more
House Energy & Commerce Health Subcommittee Advances 21 Bills. The markup included legislation around telehealth, Medicaid, workforce and rare diseases. Of note, the subcommittee advanced a bill that included an extension of...more
5/20/2024
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Laboratory Developed Tests ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Medicare Payment Reform ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Senate Committees ,
U.S. House
May 11, 2024, marked one year since the end of the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE), and not much has changed in Medicare telehealth policy. We are still operating under temporary waivers and flexibilities and, as a...more
5/15/2024
/ Controlled Substances ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
DEA ,
Electronic Prescribing ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Savings Accounts ,
Healthcare ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Life Sciences ,
Mental Health ,
Patient Access ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Public Health Emergency ,
Telehealth ,
Telemedicine
House Ways & Means Committee Marks Up Telehealth and More. The bills considered in the markup support expanding access to telehealth as well as access to healthcare in rural areas. All six bills passed out of the committee,...more
5/13/2024
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Drug Pricing ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Medicare ,
Medicare Advantage ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Senate Committees ,
U.S. House
House Energy & Commerce Health Subcommittee Holds Legislative Hearing on Improving Medicaid Access. Daniel Tsai, deputy administrator and director of the Center for Medicaid and CHIP Services (CMCS), testified. Members...more
5/6/2024
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) ,
DACA ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Final Rules ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
New Legislation ,
New Regulations ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Senate Committees ,
U.S. House
A Quiet Healthcare Week on Capitol Hill. Congress was largely in recess this week, although the Senate returned briefly to complete consideration of a long-awaited foreign aid bill. Both chambers will return to session the...more
4/26/2024
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
HRSA ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Nursing Homes ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Section 340B ,
Senate Committees ,
Skilled Nursing Facility ,
U.S. House
House Energy & Commerce Health Subcommittee Holds Hearing on Cybersecurity. During the hearing, there was bipartisan concern about UnitedHealth Group’s response to the Change Healthcare cyberattack and consensus around the...more
4/18/2024
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Cybersecurity ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Drug Pricing ,
GAO ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
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Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Medicare Advantage ,
Payment Systems ,
Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Senate Committees ,
U.S. House
Senate Finance Health Subcommittee Holds Roundtable on Substance Use Disorder Care. Panelists and members discussed how to improve treatment in federal health programs.
House Energy & Commerce Health Subcommittee Holds...more
4/15/2024
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Chronic Care Managment (CCM) ,
Federal Health Care Programs (FHCP) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS) ,
Long-Term Care ,
Medicare ,
Proposed Rules ,
Prospective Payment System (PPS) ,
Substance Abuse ,
Telehealth
Senate HELP Committee Holds Field Hearing on Private Equity. In the hearing, held at the Massachusetts State House, members discussed the impact of private equity ownership on patients, providers, quality of care and...more
4/8/2024
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Congressional Committees ,
Final Rules ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
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Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
New Legislation ,
Payment Systems ,
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U.S. House
Appropriations Update. On March 20, Congress released bill text for the second (and final) tranche of fiscal year (FY) 2024 appropriations bills, which include: Defense, Financial Services, Homeland Security, Labor-HHS,...more
Appropriations Update. On March 3, Congress released bill text for the CAA, 2024, which includes funding for six of the 12 appropriations bills: Agriculture-FDA, Military Construction-VA, Energy-Water, Transportation-HUD,...more
3/11/2024
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Drug Pricing ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
HELP Act ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Medicare ,
Medicare Advantage ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Private Equity ,
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Senate Committees ,
U.S. House
Appropriations Update. As appropriators continue to finalize the 12 funding bills for fiscal year (FY) 2024 – which began on October 1, 2023 – a series of stopgap CRs have been needed to avoid a government shutdown. This...more
3/4/2024
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Healthcare ,
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Payment Systems ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Prescription Drugs ,
SAMHSA ,
Senate Banking Committee ,
Senate Committees
IT’S SHUTDOWN WEEK . . . AGAIN -
Stop us if you’ve heard this one before. Congress returns to session this week, with precious little time to avert a looming partial government shutdown at midnight on Friday. After...more
2/27/2024
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Senate Committees ,
U.S. House