The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released an Inflation Reduction Act First Anniversary Fact Sheet. The fact sheet provides a summary of the milestones that CMS has met for implementing the provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act, which was signed into law on August 16, 2022.

The CMS Inflation Reduction Act Anniversary Fact Sheet is available here: https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/fact-sheets/anniversary-inflation-reduction-act-update-cms-implementation.

If you have any questions, please contact the CMS Office of Legislation.

Pennsylvania lawmakers are considering a shortcut of sorts to expand healthcare access, letting psychologists, not just psychiatrists, prescribe medication. A handful of states and the federal government already do so, but critics worry about a lack of proper training and other innovations of the past that have not panned out. HB 1000 would allow psychologists to qualify for prescription authority by meeting educational and training requirements set by the state Board of Psychology, granting them similar privileges as primary care physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants for psychotropic medications.

Pennsylvania has disenrolled 137,000 Medicaid beneficiaries since eligibility redeterminations began in April. Approximately 44% have been disenrolled for procedural reasons and the remaining 56% lost coverage due to ineligibility. Read More.

The Pennsylvania Insurance Department (PID) announced a public comment period on health insurance marketplace rates for the 2024 enrollment period. While the average 2024 Rate Increase of 4.2% is tracking below the current medical information rate and represents a smaller increase according to PID, health insurance coverage affordability is a message health center enrollment assisters hear consistently. The same insurers from 2023 will remain in the market to provide coverage options: Capital Blue Cross, Cigna, Geisinger, Highmark, IBX, Oscar, Ambetter, and UPMC. Highmark plans to expand into Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia Counties. Geisinger plans to expand into Bedford County. Public comment on rate requests and filings will be accepted through Sept. 8, 2023, and can be emailed to ra-in-comment@pa.gov.

Short-term health insurance plans don’t offer the same consumer protections guaranteed in Affordable Care Act marketplace plans, such as a ban on excluding coverage of preexisting conditions. They also don’t typically come with the comprehensive benefits that ACA plans provide, like coverage for prescription drugs, mental health care, and maternity care. Recently, the Biden administration proposed new regulations to protect consumers from plans that may leave them without affordable access to needed care. On To the Point, experts from Georgetown University’s Center on Health Insurance Reforms discuss how states can build on these regulations. Among the steps, they outline: prohibiting short-term plans from selling policies during open-enrollment periods, banning plans from rescinding coverage, and requiring them to cover essential benefits. The authors also say aggressive plan marketing tactics that hinder consumers from making informed decisions may require policy action.

The Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) said in a notice that was posted on August 4, that it is open to creating a special registration process that would allow providers to prescribe certain controlled substances for patients without requiring the patient to ever have an in-person medical evaluation. The agency will hold a listening session next month to allow the public to weigh in on the issue. Stakeholder groups and lawmakers have been pressing the DEA to change its policy, given the shortage of mental health providers and the increased need for access to prescribers through telehealth.

View a presentation to understand the recent changes in training requirements for providers prescribing medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD). Physicians, psychiatrists, nurse practitioners, and behavioral health professionals can visit HRSA’s behavioral health technical assistance website to watch the 11-minute presentation.

On August 3, 2023, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released a new report showing that the national uninsured rate reached an all-time low of 7.7% in early 2023. Approximately 6.3 million people gained coverage since 2020. Nationally, uninsured rates among adults ages 18-64 declined from 14.5% in late 2020 to 11% in early 2023. The uninsured rate among children ages 0-17, which had increased during 2019 and 2020, fell from 6.4% in late 2020 to 4.2% in early 2023.

An estimated 24,000 Pittsburghers could soon have their medical debt reduced after City Council approved a new contract with a nonprofit group. For a cost of $1 million to the city, the partnership with the nonprofit RIP Medical Debt could alleviate about $115 million in medical debt, lawmakers estimate. Read more.

In an opinion piece, the authors argue that investment in primary care is essential to improving the nation’s healthcare system. Primary care is the first place patients should turn with questions or issues about their health. But this is happening less and less, as decades of underinvestment make it difficult for patients to consult with primary care clinicians who truly know them and their health histories. Read more.