American women of reproductive age score worse on just about every major health metric compared to their peers in other wealthy countries according to a new report from the Commonwealth Fund. The researchers looked at women ages 18–49 in 11 developed nations and found the U.S. had the highest maternal mortality rate by far at 23.8 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births. When broken out by race, the rate was 55.3 deaths per 100,000 births for Black women or about triple the 19.1 deaths per 100,000 for white women and 18.2 deaths per 100,000 for Hispanic women. American women also were among the most likely to have two or more chronic conditions, skip necessary care due to cost and have the worst rate of avoidable deaths.

The Center for Connected Health Policy (CCHP) has released an updated billing guide for telehealth encounters. The guide takes into consideration temporary Public Health Emergency (PHE) policies as well as permanent post-PHE policies. The guide provides an overview of billing terminology and service codes, as well as topics such as chronic care management and remote patient monitoring.

The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services indicated that transition milestones for the new Physical HealthChoices contracts have been shifted. The new date for managed care organization (MCO) readiness reviews is April 22, 2022, dissemination of letters to patients about selecting or being assigned to a new MCO will be delayed until after the readiness review process, and the launch date for 2022 MCO assignments will move to August 1, 2022.

In an announcement released last Friday, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) reminded states that beginning, April 1, 2022, they can provide 12 months of continuous postpartum coverage to Medicaid and CHIP enrollees as part of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARP). States must submit a state plan amendment for this option. This announcement comes at a crucial time when enrollees who have retained continuous postpartum coverage throughout the Public Health Emergency (PHE) are at risk of losing it when the PHE unwinding begins. This infographic from the Modern Medicaid Alliance provides more information about maternal health through Medicaid.

Pennie has just updated the Path to Pennie page and the Pennie Assister Resource page to add two new documents: Workaround for Path to Pennie Stakeholder Talking Points and Path-to-Pennie Customer Experience Job Aid. The Workaround for Path to Pennie Stakeholder Talking Points provides the steps for tax filers who used a known tax software program that did not provide the REV-1882 form and are uninsured to still be eligible for the Tax Filer Special Enrollment Period to enroll for coverage. The Path-to-Pennie Customer Experience Job Aid includes an example of the email the tax filer who is eligible for the Path to Pennie special enrollment period (SEP) will receive beginning Wednesday, April 6 telling them they will be receiving information via US mail because they submitted the REV-1182. Customers will receive a letter in the mail that will provide them with a unique access code. The document provides detailed instructions on how they go about accessing their Pennie account using this unique access code.

As Pennsylvania prepares for the eventual end of the federal public health emergency, the Department of Human Services (DHS) is strongly encouraging Pennsylvanians enrolled in Medical Assistance to make sure their contact information is correct and sign up for alerts through the myCOMPASS PA mobile app and by text to ensure they are getting updates about their cases quickly. Changes can be made on COMPASS, the state’s website to apply for and manage benefit information. On the COMPASS website consumers can also update their information for any of the following:

• Changes to the number of people living in the household
• Changes to the email address
• Changes to the phone number
• Changes to the mailing address

The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services’ (DHS) seven program offices administer services that provide care and support to Pennsylvania’s most vulnerable individuals and families. The program offices are Administration, Child Development and Early Learning, Children, Youth and Families, Developmental Programs, Income Maintenance (IM), Long Term Living, Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services, and the Office of Medical Assistance Programs (OMAP). OMAP and IM work in tandem to oversee and provide healthcare coverage for eligible consumers. Enrollment assisters have access to the Medical Assistance Eligibility Handbook to review enrollment requirements, program descriptions, and consumer rights and responsibilities.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced on Tuesday that it is considering a large-scale “transformation,” and that as a first step, HRSA Bureau of Primary Health Care Associate Administrator Jim Macrae will lead a one-month effort to “kick off an evaluation of CDC’s structure, systems, and processes.” The CDC’s efforts are largely in response to widespread criticism about its performance as the lead national agency in the COVID-19 response. Jim’s one-month effort is scheduled to begin on April 11, and he will be supported by three senior CDC officials. It is expected that Tonya Bowers will fill in for Jim during his brief absence.

On Monday, April 4, Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) announced there was a bi-partisan agreement on legislation to fund a $10 billion package for coronavirus relief. The agreement includes $9.25 billion for therapeutics, testing, and vaccines and $750 million to research future variants. The legislation is fully offset by unspent funds from previously passed COVID-19 funding packages. Senator Schumer and House Leadership aimed to pass the legislation this week, but the bill stalled in the Senate because of a partisan fight over whether to allow a vote on an amendment to reinstate the Title 42 restrictions that had been used to deny migrants’ asylum claims at the U.S.-Mexico border. Congress is now in recess.

On April 5, President Biden signed an Executive Order to strengthen the Affordable Care Act (ACA) by fixing the “Family Glitch” which made health coverage unaffordable for thousands of families. Under the current rules, employer-based coverage was seen as affordable if the coverage was for the employee only, and not for family members. If affordable for the employee, families were ineligible for tax credits even though they may need them to afford marketplace coverage. Coverage for family members of the employee was often very expensive and caused many to go without coverage. The “Family Glitch” affects more than 5 million people and has shut consumers out of affordable coverage and tax credits. This Executive Order proposes to eliminate the “Family Glitch” and will allow families to access tax credits on the marketplace. If made final, the rule would take effect in 2023.