The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has signaled that it will delay the end of the public health emergency (PHE) related to the COVID-19 pandemic until April, quelling fears from stakeholders that not enough time was given to review Medicaid eligibility for everyone enrolled since the pandemic began.
In Arizona,...
This week, accountable care has a new definition following the Health Care Payment Learning and Action Network (LAN) Summit, and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) look to get more Affordable Care Act (ACA) plans into value-based insurance design.
Out with the old, in with the new. LAN received feedback from...News
The Urban Institute reports its analysis of the June 2022 Health Reform Monitoring Survey finding that 62% of adults with family Medicaid enrollment had heard nothing at all about Medicaid renewals resuming creating a significant information gap among enrollees about the change once the PHE ends, which is now likely to be extended to...
On Tuesday, the U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) heard arguments in the case which asks two questions that could have huge impacts for not only Medicaid and state-owned nursing homes, but any person who receives federally funded benefits.
The first question the case asks is narrow, and more to the point of the plaintiff. Indiana...
Children's hospitals and pediatricians are grappling with a major outbreak of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) among children in Arizona and across the country.
RSV is a relatively common virus that follows patterns of other airborne respiratory diseases and is generally expected to increase cases in the fall and winter months. Data...
The Hertel Report's annual data edition focusing on Arizona Medicaid includes everything you need to know about AHCCCS and the contracted managed care organizations (MCOs) providing integrated healthcare to 2.5 million in Arizona.
AHCCCS 2022 DATA EDITION
What's Inside:
Pandemic Population Growth
AHCCCS Complete Care MCOs
...
There will likely be a winter surge of COVID-19 in the next few months, but Americans aren't receiving the bivalent booster shot that targets Omicron variants.
The daily global COVID-19 infection rate is expected to rise by two million daily cases by February, according to an analysis from the University of Washington. Reuters notes...
The fight for health equity in maternal health continues with the Biden administration announcing plans to reform substance abuse treatment for expecting mothers. Meanwhile, maternal care options are shrinking for women in rural and underserved communities, increasing their risk for poor maternal and infant health outcomes.
Roughly...
President Biden has set a goal of ending hunger and increasing healthy eating and physical activity by 2030 so fewer Americans experience diet-related diseases, which disproportionately impact communities of color, rural communities, people with disabilities, veterans, older adults, LGBTQI+ populations, and military families.
The...News
Snyder oversees Arizona’s Medicaid and CHIP program, including its $18 billion annual budget to provide acute, behavioral health, and long-term care services and supports to more than 2.3 million Arizona residents. She began her work at AHCCCS in 2017 as the agency's deputy director and was appointed by Governor Doug Ducey in 2019...National News
The federal government is curious about states' use of value-based payment (VBP) in nursing facility reimbursement through Medicaid programs. In August, the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) published an issue brief on its investigation into which states use VBP and how well the systems work.
On the federal level,...National News
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced that it will no longer refuse entry to non-citizens seeking admission to the United States based on their likelihood to receive health benefits.
The new rule, mirroring the 1999 public charge definition, which describes a public charge as a person primarily dependent on the...CMS Rules
Last Wednesday, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a proposed rule that would streamline the application and renewal process for enrollees in Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP).
The overhaul aims to "reduce red tape" and simplify the application and verification process for children,...
Well ahead of the expected publication, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) posted a draft of updated Minimum Data Set specifications (MDS 3.0) last Friday. The comprehensive item set version 1.18.11 is expected to radically transform the future of nursing home reimbursements by states.
CMS said that the final version...
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (APSE) published a report late last week that projects that 15 million people could lose health coverage once states resume checking Medicaid enrollees for eligibility at the conclusion of the COVID-19 public health...
Last week, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a proposed rule that aims to improve quality reporting for Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP).
According to the CMS press release, the rule would include mandatory annual state reporting of three new quality measures, called "Core Sets,"...National News
Last Wednesday, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) announced a reconciliation package that includes drug pricing reforms, a three-year extension of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) tax credits enacted under the American Rescue Plan (ARP), in addition to deficit reduction and investments in climate and energy security. Senator Joe...CMS Rules
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) published a set of quality metrics for home and community-based services (HCBS) to assess patient health outcomes. According to CMS, the ratings will provide insight into HCBS programs and will enable states to determine the success of long-term services and support programs offered...Featured
Last week, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released a Framework for Health Equity at CMS, a frequently-used term by the agency that has been mentioned in nearly every initiative of President Joe Biden's Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
According to the CMS blog post "Establishing the Framework for...CMS Rules
Earlier this year, President Joe Biden relaunched his Cancer Moonshot Initiative, which was initially established under the Obama administration to accelerate research into cancer prevention and cures. As part of the initiative, the Biden administration announced a new alternative payment model (APM) from the Center for Medicare and...