- Colorectal Cancer Is Rising among Younger Adults. Some States Want to Boost Awareness.
- Rural Hospitals Built During Baby Boom Now Face Baby Bust
- Food Stamps Go Further in Rural Areas — Until You Add Transportation Costs
- CMS Announces Resources and Flexibilities to Assist with the Public Health Emergency in the State of Texas
- CMS Proposes New Payments for Digital Health Under CY2025 PFS Draft Rule
- Improving Public Health by Strengthening Community Infrastructure
- Biden Harris Administration Proposes Policies to Reduce Maternal Mortality, Advance Health Equity, and Support Underserved Communities
- Nearly Half of U.S. Counties Don't Have a Single Cardiologist
- Randolph County, Ill. Turns Unused Part of Nursing Home Into State-Of-The-Art Behavioral Health Center
- Safe and Stable Housing Is a Foundation of Successful Recovery
- Rural RPM Program Is a Lifeline for Pregnant Women
- Expert: Rural Hospitals Are Particularly Vulnerable to Increasing Cyberattacks Targeting Healthcare Facilities
- Biden-Harris Administration Invests Over $200 Million to Help Primary Care Doctors, Nurses, and Other Health Care Providers Improve Care for Older Adults
- AJPH Call for Papers Special Section on Intersections of Public Health And Primary Care
- NIH HEAL Initiative Turns Attention to Pragmatic Trials in Rural Communities
How Medicaid Can Help Enrollees Quit Smoking
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released an informational bulletin with strategies that states have used to improve delivery of tobacco cessation services to beneficiaries of Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). States are required to cover certain services for certain groups. For example, counseling and pharmacotherapy for enrollees who are pregnant must be covered. Coverage for other services, such as over-the-counter medications, is optional. All recommended tobacco cessation services – including individual, group and telephone counseling, and all seven FDA-approved cessation medications – are Medicaid or CHIP-coverable services, and the bulletin provides resources and strategies states can use to increase quit rates. Medicaid is an important source of health coverage in rural areas, where smoking rates are often higher than in urban areas.
Federal Agencies Seek Input on the Effects of Consolidation in Health Care
Comment by May 6. The Department of Justice, Department of Health and Human Services, and Federal Trade Commission seek public comment on the effects of private equity funds’ acquisition of health care providers, mergers involving providers and health systems, and private payers’ purchase of physician practices. There is concern about patients’ health, workers’ safety, quality of care, and the rising cost of health care for patients and taxpayers. The Departments are particularly interested in receiving input on the effects of consolidation on patients and health care providers, including any differences between rural and urban areas.
CMS Shares Vaccine Billing Guide for Skilled Nursing Facilities
Summarizes billing guidance for long-term care facilities and pharmacies, including information on billing for influenza, pneumococcal, COVID-19, Tdap, shingles, and RSV vaccines.
Vaccine Resource Hub Shares Talking Points and FAQs About Long Covid
The Vaccine Resource Hub is funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to improve vaccine confidence and access. The talking points are available in English and Spanish and describe long COVID symptoms and populations that are at greater risk.
Help shape the future of the Marketplace Quality Rating System (QRS) and Qualified Health Plan (QHP) Enrollee Experience Survey
Comments due March 28
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) requests comment on proposed refinements to the QRS and QHP Enrollee Survey to advance health equity. These programs are part of the Marketplace Quality Initiative, which provides information to help individuals and small businesses select Marketplace health plans. According to the RUPRI Health Insurance Chartbook, the number of Marketplace plans available in rural areas has grown in recent years and has become an important source of health coverage for rural residents. Submit comments to Marketplace_Quality@cms.hhs.gov and reference “Marketplace Quality Initiatives (MQI)-Draft 2024 QRS Call Letter” in the subject line.
New Report Assesses Impact of CMS Quality Programs
The report from the Centers for Medicaid & Medicare Services (CMS) analyzes the performance of nearly 500 quality measures used in CMS’s quality and value-based incentive payment programs. It provides patients and families, clinicians, measure developers, federal partners, and researchers with updates on progress toward reducing disparities across the measure portfolios. For example, rural/urban disparities were most often detected in quality measures addressing Wellness and Prevention and Chronic Conditions; however, several measures of Person-Centered Care no longer show rural/urban disparities. Findings from focus groups underscore the need to develop measures that address bias in care delivery, deficits in cultural competence, and social drivers of health relative to unmet health needs, poor access, and low health literacy.
View the 2024 Physician Fee Schedule Webinar Recording
RHIhub posted a recording of the hour-long webinar from February 27 where experts from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) reviewed rural-relevant policy updates from the Calendar Year 2024 Physician Fee Schedule final rule. The new rule makes policy updates that may increase accessibility of behavioral health services, telehealth services, and other vital health services in rural areas. Presentation materials, video recording, and audio recording are also now available. Additional documents from CMS that may be helpful in understanding these updates:
- The CMS Manual System provides new provider specialty codes and payment instruction for Marriage and Family Therapists and Mental Health Counselors;
- The Medicare Learning Network gives guidance on health equity services – such as Caregiver Training Services, and Community Health Integration – that are now covered under the Physician Fee Schedule.
ASPE Brief Projects the Impact of the Inflation Reduction Act for Rural Medicare Enrollees
The Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Analysis (ASPE) released a new brief that highlights the potential impacts of the newly implemented Medicare prescription drug (Part D) policies authorized in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Signed into law in 2022, the IRA aims to strengthen the Medicare program by providing meaningful financial relief for beneficiaries and improving access to affordable treatments. Benefits of the IRA policies for Medicare include opportunities for CMS to negotiate Medicare drug prices, a requirement that drug companies pay inflation rebates, changes in Part B drugs, and a redesigned prescription drug program that expands eligibility for full Part D low-income subsidy (LIS) benefits to individuals between 130 and 150 percent of the federal poverty level (FPL), also known as partial LIS subsidy. About 23 percent of partial LIS enrollees live in rural areas, which is higher than the share of Part D (non-LIS) enrollees who live in rural areas (15 percent). ASPE estimates all LIS enrollees could experience a reduction of $300 in average annual out of pocket costs for Part D covered medications. With rural, non-LIS Part D enrollees are estimated to see more than $1,000 savings in out-of-pocket Part D costs in 2024 and $2,450 in 2025.
Pennsylvania to Receive More Than $1 Billion to Close Digital Divide
Pennsylvania is set to receive $1.16 billion in federal funding to increase access to high-speed internet connectivity for individuals, businesses, schools, and hospitals. To direct the funding, the federal government released the Federal Communications Commission’s map, which indicates areas with and without high-speed internet connectivity. Residents may challenge areas of the map that identify incorrect broadband service access/availability. To date, Pennsylvania had the third highest number of successful challenges in the country. While funding was predicated on the map released by the FCC, residents may still view and challenge the map should the information be incorrect. Residents can view the statewide broadband map and learn more about challenging any location in Pennsylvania here.
Court to Hear Affordable Care Act Preventive Mandate Appeal Case
The U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals will hear oral arguments regarding a lawsuit, Braidwood v. Becerra, which stipulates that the preventative care mandate of the Affordable Care Act violated the religious beliefs of plaintiff Braidwood Management as well as the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. The lawsuit was initially filed four years ago in a Texas federal court and maintains that the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, which implemented the mandate, was unconstitutional because its members were not appointed by the President or confirmed by the Senate. The Fifth Circuit is expected to release a decision within the next few months. Read More.