Congress has been back for a week, and already the president and Democrats are engaged in a contest with Republicans to see who will blink first. Additional spending legislation needs to be passed to keep the government...more
After spending the past month in their home districts listening to constituents, this week House and Senate members are back in Washington and Congress is back in session. Though the attention of many has turned to...more
There is only one week left of Congress’ summer recess. While the members have been in their home districts, the agencies in Washington have been finalizing Affordable Care Act (ACA) regulations on everything from the...more
In response to security concerns about personal information in the health insurance exchanges, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released a new security agreement for the data hubs where this information...more
With less than 50 days until open enrollment begins, tensions in Washington and around the country are high among health care stakeholders. ...more
8/20/2013
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Deadlines ,
Delays ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Open Enrollment ,
Pay or Play ,
Shared Responsibility Rule
The House Energy and Commerce Committee voted unanimously on legislation that would repeal the sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula that has historically led to annual decreases in physician payments that are fixed at the...more
8/14/2013
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fraud ,
Healthcare Reform ,
IRS ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Proposed Legislation
Capitol Hill and the agencies went back and forth last week on the impact and consideration involved in delaying the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) employer mandate; votes in the House are expected this week on it, as well as a...more
7/17/2013
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) ,
Delays ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Employer Mandates ,
Health Insurance Exchanges ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare
The Obama administration announced yesterday it was delaying the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) Employer Mandate, which requires employers with 50 or more full-time workers to provide affordable health insurance to its employees...more
7/5/2013
/ ACOs ,
Affordable Care Act ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Contraceptive Coverage Mandate ,
Contraceptives ,
Deadlines ,
Delays ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Employer Mandates ,
Healthcare ,
Hobby Lobby ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Pay or Play ,
Physician SGR Formula ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Religious Institutions ,
Shared Responsibility Rule
The countdown is on now. Less than 100 days until the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) main provisions go into effect, and Organizing for Action and Enroll America kicked outreach efforts to the uninsured into high gear last week....more
6/28/2013
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Deadlines ,
Health Insurance Exchanges ,
Healthcare ,
Hospitals ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Pay-For-Delay ,
Reverse Payment Settlement Agreements ,
SCOTUS
Last week the House Committee on Ways & Means Health Subcommittee held a hearing on Medicare overhaul proposals affecting post-acute care; the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) wrote to House Budget Committee Chairman Paul...more
Discussions around reforming Medicare’s sustainable growth rate (SGR) continued this week as the Committee on Energy & Commerce held a hearing to solicit input on a draft bill for replacing the current SGR formula...more
Medicare Trustees released their annual report finding that the Medicare trust fund will be exhausted in 2026, two years later than was predicted last year; over the past two weeks, as Washington has investigated the Internal...more
Last week the Senate agreed to vote on Marilyn Tavenner’s nomination to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS); the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced an initiative that will give...more
Last week the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued new proposed regulations on FY 2014 payment updates and regulatory policy changes for inpatient and long term care hospitals, skilled nursing facilitates,...more
Marilyn Tavenner received bipartisan support from members of the Senate Committee on Finance in her confirmation hearing to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) though a full Senate vote is being held up,...more
4/26/2013
/ Affordable Care Act ,
CCIIO ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Charitable Donations ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
EHR ,
Fraud Abuse and Waste ,
Health Insurance Exchanges ,
Medicaid ,
Safe Harbors ,
Tax Credits
While Congress was in recess, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) surprised many when it changed course on Medicare Advantage payment rates – switching from a 2.3 percent reduction to a 3.3 percent increase,...more
Last week, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) conditionally approved state partnership marketplaces in Iowa, Michigan, New Hampshire and West Virginia; Accountable Care Organizations wrote to the Centers for...more
Last week another marketplace deadline came and went, Illinois became the 21st state approved to operate a health insurance marketplace, and U.S. senators pressed the HHS official responsible for the bulk of exchange...more
In the past week, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released an updated federal budget to account for new regulations from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS),...more
2/13/2013
/ Actuarial Values ,
Affordable Care Act ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Congressional Budget Office ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Essential Health Benefits ,
Health Insurance Exchanges ,
IRS ,
Medicaid ,
Medical Device Tax ,
Medicare ,
Notice Requirements ,
OMB
Several agency actions on the Affordable Care Act out of HHS and Treasury last week include proposed regulations detailing exemptions from the shared responsibility tax, such as an exemption for those who would qualify for...more
2/4/2013
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
EHR ,
FMAP ,
Medicare ,
Religious Institutions ,
Shared Responsibility Rule ,
Sunshine Act ,
Tax Credits ,
U.S. Treasury
In the past week, the health insurance exchanges were rebranded as “health insurance marketplaces;” HHS extended the deadline for states to opt into administering their own marketplaces and announced $1.5 billion in new...more
The extended deadline for states to submit plans to run their own insurance exchanges is now behind us. A total of 18 states submitted blueprints to run their own exchanges. The 32 remaining states have until February 15,...more
As the year’s end approaches, the Hill is a flurry of activity with representatives from various health groups trying to ensure that whatever solution Congress finds to the fiscal cliff problems does not negatively affect...more