Billy Wynne

HHS Office for Civil Rights Releases Resources to Help Educate Patients on the Privacy and Security of Protected Health Information When Using Telehealth Services The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) released two patient resources to explain the privacy and security risks to patient’s protected health information (PHI) when…

2024 Medicare Parts A & B Deductibles, Premiums, Coinsurance Rates Announced The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently announced 2024 premiums, deductibles, and coinsurance amounts for Medicare Parts A and B in the Federal Register. The announcement came ahead of Medicare Open Enrollment, which began Sunday, October 15 and will end on Thursday, December 7, 2023. Medicare Part…

Agency Determines that Expanding the Hospital Transfer Policy Would Result in Significant Savings The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of the Inspector General (OIG) released a report describing potential Medicare savings from hospital transfers to post acute care (PAC) if the transfer policy were extended to all Medicare Severity Diagnosis-Related Groups (MS-DRGs).…

Progress Update Provided on Three Models Aimed at Prescription Drug Affordability and Access The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) provided a one-year update on President Biden’s Executive Order on Lowering Prescription Drug Costs for Americans, which includes new details on the three selected models aimed at improving prescription drug affordability and access. CMMI notes that since the release…

NTIA Urges FCC to Establish Strong Digital Discrimination Rules to Close the Digital Divide The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) urged the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to implement strong rules against digital discrimination. These rules are intended to prevent Internet service providers (ISPs) from engaging in discriminatory practices that harm vulnerable communities. The Biden…

New Digital Health Technologies Advisory Committee Announced; Nominations Sought for Voting and Nonvoting Members The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced the creation of the Digital Health Advisory Committee, which is tasked with exploring issues related to digital health technologies (DHTs), including artificial intelligence/machine learning (AI/ML), augmented reality, virtual reality, digital therapeutics, wearables, remote patients monitoring, and…

HHS, Labor, and Treasury Release Updated Guidance on No Surprises Act Implementation: Federal IDR Process The Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services (HHS), and the Treasury, along with the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), released guidance documents explaining changes to the implementation of the No Surprises Act (NSA), in light of district court decisions…

Commissioners Discuss Potential Reforms to Physician Fee Schedule Updates The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) convened a session to discuss long-term considerations for payment under the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (PFS). This work is separate from the Commission’s annual payment adequacy work which will begin in December. MedPAC staff, including Principal Policy Analyst Geoff Gernhardt…

Commission Discusses How to Evaluate Site Neutral Payment for Nonqualifying Conditions at IRFs and SNFs  The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) held a meeting to discuss its research on an alternative method to establish Medicare payments for conditions treated in inpatient rehabilitation facilities (IRFs). Following MedPAC’s chapter on an aligned post-acute care (PAC) payment system…

Agencies Extend COVID-19 Telemedicine Flexibilities Through December 31, 2024 The Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) jointly issued a second temporary rule that extends the full set of COVID-19 telemedicine flexibilities for prescription of controlled medications through December 31, 2024. What is it. The agencies note that…