The House Energy & Commerce Health Subcommittee convened a legislative hearing to consider five pieces of proposed legislation to address the drug shortage crisis. The hearing featured witnesses from the American Society of Health Systems Pharmacists, Healthcare Supply Chain Association, Healthcare Distribution Alliance, Yale Collaboration for Regulatory Rigor, Integrity, and Transparency (CRRIT), Civica, and Association for Accessible Medicines. Key Takeaways… (Marceno, September 14, 2023) #340B, #Drug Pricing, #Generic Drugs

Today, Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee Chairman Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Senator Roger Marshall (R-KS) unveiled the Bipartisan Primary Care and Health Workforce Act (bill text/section by section). The bill will be marked up in the HELP Committee next Thursday, along with S. 1573, PREEMIE Reauthorization Act of 2023, S. 2415, Preventing Maternal Deaths Reauthorization Act of 2023, and… (Lewis, September 14, 2023) #Workforce

The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) held the second National Telehealth Conference to convene policymakers and stakeholders to discuss telehealth best practices. The conference included several different panel discussions with Administration officials and representatives of stakeholder organizations. Topics of discussion included the adoption and expansion of telehealth, tele-behavioral health, workforce issues, and research on telehealth. HRSA plans to make… (McClurg, September 13, 2023) #Health Equity, #Mental and Behavioral Health, #Telehealth

As part of President Biden’s Unity Agenda, the White House Cancer Moonshot announced new actions and commitments to advance the mission of reducing the cancer death rate in the United States by at least half by 2047 and improving the cancer patient experience. The announcement coincides with a meeting of the Cancer Cabinet established by President Biden to mobilize the… (Colocho, September 13, 2023) #Health Equity, #Prevention, #Public Health, #Tobacco, #Wellness

The CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) voted 13 to 1 to recommend the 2023-2024 monovalent, XBB containing COVID-19 vaccines as authorized under the FDA’s Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) or approved by Biologics License Application (BLA) for all persons ages 6 months and older.  Yesterday, the FDA approved the updated boosters.   Presentations:  A total of 13 presentations were included in the meeting.  All are available… (Joyce, September 12, 2023) #COVID-19, #Health Equity, #Prevention, #Primary Care

Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA), the ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, released a request for information (RFI) on enhancing the protection of health data privacy in the United States. In his request, Cassidy expressed concern that health data created and collected from new technologies such as wearable devices, smart devices, and health and wellness… (Colocho, September 12, 2023) #Health Information Technology, #Privacy, #Transparency

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of the Inspector General (OIG) released a report on the reporting of falls with major injury by Home Health Agencies (HHAs). Beginning in 2019, HHAs were required to report that their patients experienced falls with major injury in the patient Outcome Assessment Information Set (OASIS) assessments. OIG says that the Centers for… (McClurg, September 11, 2023) #Home Health

The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) convened a session to discuss ambulatory surgical centers (ASCs) and the factors that might be slowing the shift from hospital outpatient departments (HOPDs) to ASCs. Principal Policy Analyst Daniel Zabinski presented a status report on ASCs and discussed how shifting procedures from hospital outpatient departments (HOPDs) to ASCs could prove beneficial to Medicare, beneficiaries,… (Colocho, September 11, 2023) #Ambulatory Surgical Centers, #Costs, #Hospitals, #Physicians

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of the Inspector General (OIG) released a report the emergency preparedness of nursing homes. OIG examined a random sample of nursing homes in geographic areas that have a high or relatively high risk for natural hazards to learn about their emergency preparedness and resilience. OIG found that although nursing homes often… (McClurg, September 11, 2023) #Post-Acute Care, #Public Health

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released a fact sheet detailing the factors the agency will consider when developing an initial offer under the Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program. CMS explains that it will consider the following information, data, and evidence when developing an initial offer: Evidence about alternative treatments, as available, including: The extent to which the selected drug… (Slifer, September 11, 2023) #Medicare Part D, #Prescription Drugs