As the 2025 Arizona Legislative Session winds down, Governor Katie Hobbs has signed and vetoed a slew of bills, many of which relate to Arizona healthcare.
On Monday and Tuesday, Governor Hobbs vetoed 48 bills sent to her desk by the Republican-controlled legislature. One such bill, proposed by Senator Wendy Rogers (R-Flagstaff) would...
The House and Senate Health and Human Services (HHS) Committees reviewed bills on healthcare at the Arizona State Legislature this week.
The Senate HHS Committee looked at three bills that passed unanimously. The first, HB2173 would prohibit health profession regulatory boards or licensing authorities from asking about an applicant's...
Helena Whitney will lead the development of policy positions on behalf of the Arizona Hospital and Healthcare Association's (AzHHA) member hospitals by tackling priority issues facing its members including addressing unfair and abusive health plan practices and working to strengthen the healthcare workforce.
Whitney recently served as...
Assisted living providers received a major regulatory blow from the Arizona Legislature this week after it passed an overhaul on best practices, training requirements and penalties for delinquent facilities. And hospitals net a win as a bill championed by the Arizona Hospital and Healthcare Association (AzHHA) moves out of the Senate...
This week, the Arizona Legislature killed two major bills that would have introduced tighter regulations and accountability to entities that provide both medical and residential services to the state's addicts and elderly.
A bill brought by Navajo tribal member and Senator Theresa Hatathalie (D-Coal Mine Mesa) failed in the House...Arizona News
Arizona is projected to struggle with the ongoing national nursing workforce shortage into 2025 and beyond.
The National Center for Health Workforce Analysis has predicted that Arizona will experience a shortage of 28,100 fewer registered nurses than needed by 2025, which will be the largest disparity in the country. According to...
We are now on week three of the Arizona Legislative Session for 2024 and bills related to the health sector are garnering attention to address some of the state's more pressing needs.
Representative Selena Bliss (R-Prescott) introduced House Bill 2171 to create a Health Care Workforce Advisory Council and an investment fund that would...
On October 27, the Arizona Hospital and Healthcare Association (AzHHA) presented the award to Purves for providing exceptional service and a selfless commitment to advancing healthcare and expanding its accessibility in Arizona.
The Salsbury Award, the most esteemed recognition that AzHHA bestows upon individuals, honors the late...
In the Arizona Legislature this week, the Senate Health and Human Services Committee passed a slew of health-related bills and the community weighs in on some bills that could directly impact health care providers.
The Senate Health and Human Services Committee had a busy docket this week, with six bills under close watch by the...
A new blog post by the director and chief transformation officer of the Center for Medicare provides a public update on the progress of the Hospital Price Transparency Rule and compliance among hospitals.
As of January 2023, CMS had issued nearly 500 warning notices and over 230 requests for corrective action plans since the initial...
The bill introduction deadline for both chambers of the Arizona State Legislature has passed with 1,625 bills introduced this year. On Tuesday, the Senate Health Committee voted unanimously to move the purview of the Arizona State Hospital out of the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) and to an independent committee.
The...Arizona News
The Arizona Legislature convened its 56th First Regular Session on January 9, and a slew of bills were introduced that could have lasting impacts across the Arizona healthcare landscape. Throughout the legislative session, the Hertel Report will monitor the progress of bills identified by stakeholders, advocacy organizations, other...Arizona News
Hospitals are still struggling to overcome a dip in revenue, with the sector expected to end this year in the red. The alleged culprit of hospital struggles is staffing shortages, which in turn causes potential staff to request higher wages, coupled with lower patient volumes than during the pandemic.
Although by early autumn it...Arizona News
The healthcare worker shortage and inflation concerns will compress margins for non-profit hospitals and health systems for the rest of the year, according to the Fitch Ratings Sector Outlook for mid-2022.
The Fitch Ratings report described the non-profit health sector as "deteriorating," which is a downgrade from the "neutral"...Arizona News
As the Arizona State Legislature proceeds with weighing and passing bills related to healthcare and the medical industry in Arizona, a number of healthcare advocacy and stakeholder groups provide researched assessments of bills as they pertain to their fields. The following organizations publish updates on their legislative agendas, and...Arizona News
COVID-19 cases in Arizona, as well as hospitalizations and deaths, are in decline throughout the state following the surge related to the Omicron variant of the coronavirus. On Wednesday, February 23, there were 1,236 new cases of COVID-19 reported and 39 new deaths.
This information comes courtesy of the Arizona Department of Health...Arizona News
On Wednesday, December 22, the state of Arizona reported 2,806 new cases of COVID-19 and 74 new deaths. There have now been 23,816 deaths related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Only 64.5% of the state is vaccinated at this time. Statewide, 6% of intensive care unit beds and 6% of inpatient hospital beds remain available at this time. Over 40%...Arizona News
The Arizona Hospital and Healthcare Association (AzHHA), which advocates for hospitals and healthcare partnerships throughout Arizona, published its 2021 Legislative Report this week.
The report highlights the healthcare and hospital-specific bills passed by the state legislature, including funding through the Arizona Health Care Cost...News
On September 8, there were 2,222 new cases of COVID-19 reported and 26 new deaths. The total number of deaths in Arizona crossed the 19,000 mark earlier this week. The vaccination rate is still 56.5% of Arizonans, with 6,384 new doses distributed today. In hospitals, 9% of intensive care unit beds are available, 32% of ICU beds are...Arizona News
On September 1, Governor Doug Ducey announced $60 million to support hospitals and healthcare facilities struggling with staffing across the state. According to the Arizona Public Health Association, the funding will “go toward contracts for a total of 750 nurses that will be available to work at qualifying hospitals for an 8-week...
