Senate HELP Committee advances legislation, examines healthcare affordability. The legislation would reauthorize expiring programs, including the Over-the-Counter Monograph Drug User Fee Program.
Senate Appropriations...more
CBO releases final scores for OBBBA. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) will increase the uninsurance rate by 10 million individuals over 10 years.
House Energy and...more
7/28/2025
/ Congressional Committees ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Federal Funding ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare Advantage ,
New Legislation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Trump Administration ,
Ways and Means Committee
THIS WEEK’S DOSE -
- OBBBA implementation begins. While the administration focuses on implementing the new law, some lawmakers are already discussing adjustments to health provisions in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act...more
7/21/2025
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Fraud ,
GAO ,
Health Insurance ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Medicare ,
MIPS ,
New Legislation ,
OPPS ,
Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Proposed Rules ,
Senate Committees ,
Technology ,
Telehealth ,
Trump Administration
On July 15, 2025, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released the Calendar Year (CY) 2026 Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment and Ambulatory Surgical Center Payment Systems Proposed Rule [CMS-1834-P],...more
7/18/2025
/ Ambulatory Surgery Centers ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Medicare ,
Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) ,
Payment Systems ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Reporting Requirements
On July 14, 2025, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released the Calendar Year (CY) 2026 Revisions to Payment Policies Under the Physician Fee Schedule (PFS) and Other Revisions to Medicare Part B [CMS-13271]...more
7/17/2025
/ Ambulatory Surgery Centers ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Insurance Industry ,
Medicare ,
Medicare Part B ,
Medicare Shared Savings Program ,
New Regulations ,
Physician Fee Schedule ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Technology ,
Telehealth
THIS WEEK’S DOSE -
- President Trumps signs OBBBA into law. After months of debate, Congress passed and President Trump signed H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), into law on July 4, 2025.
- Senate HELP...more
7/14/2025
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Cybersecurity ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
ESRD ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Budget ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
HELP ,
Immigrants ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
New Legislation ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Public Health Emergency ,
SCOTUS ,
Senate Committees ,
Trump Administration
THIS WEEK’S DOSE -
- Senate Finance Committee Releases Reconciliation Text. The language is subject to change as negotiations continue and the Byrd rule process plays out.
- CMS Releases MA Risk Adjustment Audit Methodology...more
6/19/2025
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Budget Reconciliation ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Federal Funding ,
Government Agencies ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
National Institute of Health (NIH) ,
New Legislation ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Senate Finance Committee
Patient engagement. Information blocking. Interoperability. These buzz words are flying around the health information technology (HIT) world as the Trump administration starts to make its mark on the HIT policy landscape....more
6/18/2025
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Data Privacy ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Digital Health ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Information Technologies ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Technology ,
Trump Administration
THIS WEEK’S DOSE -
- Reconciliation Moves Forward. Senate committees continue to release their reconciliation provisions.
- NIH Director Testifies on FY 2026 Budget. National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Bhattacharya...more
6/16/2025
/ Biden Administration ,
Budget Reconciliation ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Executive Orders ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
National Institute of Health (NIH) ,
New Legislation ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Trump Administration
THIS WEEK’S DOSE -
- Senate Begins Work on Reconciliation. Democrats prepared to file points of order to exclude certain provisions under the Byrd rule, while Republicans discussed key health provisions.
- White House Sends...more
On May 28, 2025, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) sent a letter to “select hospitals” that provide gender-affirming care services, requesting information about how those hospitals adhere to quality standards...more
6/2/2025
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Gender Identity ,
Government Agencies ,
Healthcare ,
Hospitals ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Trump Administration
On May 28, 2025, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) sent a letter to “select hospitals” that provide gender-affirming care services, requesting information about how those hospitals adhere to quality standards...more
5/30/2025
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Gender Identity ,
Government Agencies ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Hospitals ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Trump Administration
The US House of Representatives passed its One Big Beautiful Bill Act on May 22, 2025 (the Act), but nonprofit health systems may not find much about the Act that’s attractive. If passed by the US Senate and signed into law,...more
THIS WEEK’S DOSE -
- House Passes Reconciliation Package. The package now moves to the Senate, where substantive changes, including in healthcare, will likely be made.
- HHS Secretary Kennedy, FDA Commissioner Makary...more
5/27/2025
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Drug Pricing ,
Executive Orders ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare Advantage ,
New Legislation ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Senate Committees ,
U.S. House
THIS WEEK’S DOSE -
- Republicans Advance Reconciliation Debate. Work continued behind the scenes among Republicans to reach consensus on Medicaid policies, with a House Energy and Commerce Committee markup announced for May...more
THIS WEEK’S DOSE -
- House Committees Begin Reconciliation Markups. Non-health-related committees moved forward this week, with the House Energy and Commerce Committee tentatively scheduled to mark up its legislative text in...more
On April 11, 2025, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued the fiscal year (FY) 2026 Medicare Hospital Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS) and Long-Term Care Hospital (LTCH) Prospective Payment...more
THIS WEEK’S DOSE -
House Passes Concurrent Budget Resolution for Reconciliation Process. Passage of the resolution didn’t resolve the policy differences between the House and the Senate. Those still need to be addressed as...more
THIS WEEK’S DOSE -
- Reconciliation Moves Forward with Senate Introduction of Concurrent Budget Resolution. This move initiates the next stage in the reconciliation process, which requires House and Senate passage of a...more
Government Is Funded, Congress at Home for the Week. On March 15, 2025, President Trump signed a continuing resolution (CR) into law that funds the government and provides short-term extensions of certain healthcare programs...more
3/24/2025
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Technology Sector ,
Telehealth ,
Trump Administration
On January 14, 2025, the US Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services (HHS), and the Treasury (collectively, the Departments), along with the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), jointly issued Part 69 of a series of...more
3/18/2025
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Cost-Sharing ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Dispute Resolution ,
Final Rules ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Medicaid ,
New Guidance ,
No Surprises Act (NSA) ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Trump Administration
THIS WEEK’S DOSE -
- Congress Debates Government Funding. A continuing resolution (CR) to fund the government through September passed the House and may pass the Senate today.
- Senate HELP Committee Advances NIH, FDA...more
3/17/2025
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Health ,
Regulatory Agenda
Government Funding Deadline, Healthcare Program Expirations Approach. Following recent House and Senate passage of their competing budget resolutions, Congress’ attention has now turned to the March 14, 2025, government...more
3/10/2025
/ Continuing Resolution ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
EMTALA ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Government Agencies ,
Health Insurance ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Presidential Nominations ,
Senate Finance Committee ,
Trump Administration
On March 5, 2025, the Center for Clinical Standards and Quality (CCSQ) within the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released a Quality & Safety Special Alert Memo for hospitals related to President Trump’s...more
House Passes Budget Resolution. On February 25, the House voted 217 – 215 to advance its version of a budget resolution to outline the reconciliation process. In a dramatic display of how quickly things can change, the vote...more
3/3/2025
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
New Legislation ,
Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) ,
Technology Sector ,
Trump Administration