News Briefs
Physicians Responsible for Meeting CMS Information Blocking Rules
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology issued a final rule that allowed the Department of Health and Human Services' Office of the Inspector General to investigate allegations of information blocking for conduct starting July 31. The OIG said it will prioritize investigating practices in which the alleged information blocking has resulted in or could cause patient harm, affect a physician or other health professional’s ability to care for patients, went on for a long time, and cost federal healthcare programs or other government or private entities money. To be judged as violating the rule, physicians and nonphysician providers must “know” that a practice is unreasonable and is likely to interfere with, prevent or materially discourage accessing, exchanging or using electronic health information.
(Source: AMA Wire, 2024-08-16)
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LTC Pharmacies Concerned About Impact of Drug Price Negotiations
Even as the federal government touted the billions of dollars in savings seniors can expect to see from newly negotiated, lower drug costs, pharmacies that supply long-term care facilities are warning of dire consequences. Top advocates for long-term care pharmacies cautioned that, while they support lowering costs for seniors, the steep discounts will put even more pressure on these companies, which are already struggling to remain profitable.
(Source: McKnight's Long-Term Care News, 2024-08-16)
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Congress Takes on Telehealth Policy Extension, Healthcare AI
The 118th Congress and the Biden administration were hard at work in the last quarter pushing their health technology policy priorities forward before their terms come to an end this December. Since April, Congress has tackled a two-year Medicare telehealth policy extension, comprehensive health data privacy legislation, cybersecurity controls, and a road map for healthcare AI.
(Source: FierceHealthcare, 2024-08-14)
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Regulatory Oversight Could Create Challenges for Hospice M&A
The outlook for the hospice M&A market is equal parts promising and potentially turbulent, with regulatory and reimbursement pressures among the challenges on investors' radar. Hospice merger and acquisition activity has seen a slump compared to previous record-breaking years.
(Source: Hospice News, 2024-08-16)
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Drug Shortages Challenging Hospitals' Quality of Care
Ongoing drug shortages in the U.S. are placing unprecedented strain on hospitals and threatening patient access to essential care, according to Bharath Krishnamurthy, director of health policy and analytics at the American Hospital Association. "Drug shortages were one of the biggest issues for hospitals in 2023," Krishnamurthy explained. The shortage crisis is not just an abstract issue. Krishnamurthy highlighted the real-world consequences, noting that patients have lost their lives due to the unavailability of critical medications, such as cancer drugs.
(Source: HealthExec, 2024-08-16)
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Researchers Question Benefit of Hospital CON Laws
Certificate of need laws exist in 35 states and Washington D.C., according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. The hospital industry, especially nonprofit facilities, generally support the rules, and have argued they reduce healthcare costs and preserve access to quality medical services. But whether the laws improve care or reduce costs is questionable, researchers have found, and critics say more competition would decrease spending by insurers and consumers.
(Source: KFF Health News, 2024-08-19)
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Senior Living Advocates Concerned About 'Alarming' Legal Opinion
An "alarming" legal opinion affecting a federal loan program popular with senior living and care organizations could have a "detrimental" effect on maintaining senior living communities and other types of long-term care facilities, according to a coalition of business groups. The American Seniors Housing Association, Argentum, and the American Health Care Association / National Center for Assisted Living joined banking, mortgage, and business groups in sending a letter to the Department of Housing and Urban Development regarding an "immediately alarming" legal opinion affecting the Section 232 loan program.
(Source: McKnight's Senior Living, 2024-08-16)
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Hospitals with More Digital Maturity Have Better Safety, Outcomes
Digital maturity matters when it comes to patient safety and outcomes, according to a research paper published by Anne Snowdon, chief scientific research officer at HIMSS. Using data on 2,000 hospitals nationwide obtained from the nonprofit hospital safety watchdog organization the Leapfrog Group, Snowdon's research shows that hospitals that have obtained Stage 6 or 7 in the Electronic Medical Record Adoption Model are statistically more likely to have higher quality and safety grades and lower rates of adverse events such as infections, falls, and pressure ulcers.
(Source: Healthcare Finance News, 2024-08-15)
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Despite 'Recalls,' Many Medical Devices Remain in Use
When it comes to medical devices, recalls can include not only "removals," in which the device is removed from where it is used or sold, but also "corrections," which address the problem in the field -- for instance, by repairing, adjusting, relabeling, or inspecting a device.
(Source: KFF Health News, 2024-08-15)
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More States Turning to Lawsuits to Rein in PBM Power
States increasingly have been turning to lawsuits against PBMs in their drive to lower prescription drug prices. They've done so partly because of the barriers they've faced in trying to address the problem through legislation, including fierce lobbying by PBMs and a federal law that prevents them from helping the two-thirds of Americans who get their health coverage through their employers and so-called self-funded plans.
(Source: Kentucky Lantern, 2024-08-16)
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Resolution to Nursing Home Staffing Lawsuit Could Come by January
A resolution to the lawsuit challenging the nursing home federal minimum staffing mandate could be reached as early as January, if the court finalizes a proposed schedule put forth by the American Health Care Association, LeadingAge, and other industry leaders. If this turns out to be the case, the lawsuit would be resolved more than a year prior to when non-rural nursing homes would need to adhere to the hourly minimums.
(Source: Skilled Nursing News, 2024-08-14)
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