Overview Congress and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) have both taken a range of actions recently related to Medicaid. This includes legislation to modify Medicaid changes included in the One Big Beautiful Bill (H.R. 1), a range of state plan amendment (SPA) approvals related to maternal and child health, an announcement this morning regarding continued planning grants to promote continuity of care for individuals… (Joyce, August 11, 2025) #Mental and Behavioral Health, #Public Health, #Social Determinants of Health

President Trump issued an Executive Order (EO) on Improving Oversight of Federal Grantmaking to overhaul how federal discretionary grants are reviewed, awarded, and monitored (fact sheet). The EO directs senior political appointees across grant-making agencies to vet funding opportunity announcements and discretionary awards for consistency with Administration priorities and the “national interest,” requires the Office of Management and Budget (OMB)… (Colocho, August 8, 2025) #Grants, #Health Equity, #Public Health

The Department of Justice (DOJ) issued formal guidance outlining how recipients of federal funding, including educational institutions, public agencies, and federal contractors, should interpret and comply with existing federal antidiscrimination laws (press release). The memorandum, Guidance for Recipients of Federal Funding Regarding Unlawful Discrimination, provides long-awaited formal direction to grant recipients and other entities subject to federal antidiscrimination laws, clarifying… (Colocho, August 7, 2025) #Grants, #Health Equity, #Public Health, #Workforce

Yesterday, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) concluded that the National Institutes of Health (NIH) violated the Impoundment Control Act of 1974 (ICA) by withholding billions of dollars in congressionally appropriated grant funding without following the procedures required under federal law. According to GAO’s findings, in response to executive directives specifically targeting equity-related programs, NIH terminated over 1,800 grants and paused… (Eisen, August 5, 2025) #National Institutes of Health

The Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) held a hearing to examine a suite of bipartisan legislative proposals designed to expand access to Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs). ESOPs are retirement plans in which a company’s employees collectively hold stock in the company. With approximately 11 million American workers already participating in ESOPs, Committee members and witnesses… (Colocho, July 29, 2025) #Workforce

Today, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) convened its third and final listening session on ways to make prescription drugs more affordable for Americans by promoting competition. This session focused on turning insights from the previous two sessions into action and featured Congressional staffers who spoke to various legislative efforts to curb anticompetitive practices in… (Slifer, August 4, 2025) #Drug Pricing, #Food and Drug Administration, #Generic Drugs, #Pharmacy Benefit Managers, #Prescription Drugs

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released the fiscal year (FY) 2026 inpatient rehabilitation facility (IRF) prospective payment system (PPS) final rule (final rule; fact sheet). What it is. The final rule includes updates on the payment rate, outlier thresholds, and wage index decreases, along with measure and patient data assessment changes for the quality reporting program. Why… (Marceno, August 1, 2025) #Costs, #Inpatient Rehabilitation Facilities, #Insurance Coverage, #Quality

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released the fiscal year (FY) 2026 hospice payment rate update final rule (fact sheet). What it is. The final rule addresses the hospice wage index, payment rates, and aggregate cap amount for FY 2026, along with updates to the hospice quality reporting program (HQRP). Why it’s important for you. CMS finalizes a… (Testa, August 1, 2025) #End of Life and Palliative Care, #Hospice, #Quality

Today, President Trump released a fact sheet detailing that the president sent letters to pharmaceutical manufacturers outlining the steps they must take to bring down prescription drug prices and match the lowest price available in other developed nations, known as the most-favored-nation (MFN) price. The steps include the following: Directing manufacturers to provide MFN prices to all Medicaid patients; Requiring… (Slifer, July 31, 2025) #Drug Pricing, #Prescription Drugs

The Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and the Treasury, along with the Office of Personnel Management, issued Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) Part 71 regarding No Surprises Act implementation and limitations on cost sharing under the Affordable Care Act. Last Friday, Sens. Bill Cassidy (R-LA), chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, Maggie Hassan (D-NH), and Roger… (Llamas, July 31, 2025) #Cost-Sharing