Policy and Regulation

Assessing Progress on the Hospital Price Transparency Rule

by Victoria Bailey

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) established the hospital price transparency rule to help individuals know the cost of a hospital item or service before receiving it. CMS proposed the price transparency rule in the...

HHS Pauses Appeal of Surprise Billing Ruling on IDR Provisions

by Victoria Bailey

HHS has requested a hold on its recent appeal of a Texas federal court ruling regarding the interim final rule on surprise billing, according to reporting from the American College of Emergency...

FAH Requests Hospital Merger Guideline Consistency from DOJ, FTC

by Victoria Bailey

The Federation of American Hospitals (FAH) has asked the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice (DOJ) to maintain certain aspects of the hospital merger...

HHS Distributes $1.75B in Phase 4 COVID-19 Provider Relief Funds

by Victoria Bailey

Through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), HHS has released the fifth round of Phase 4 COVID-19 Provider Relief Funds, which includes $1.75 billion for healthcare providers that...

New Jersey Health Systems Terminate Hospital Merger Agreement

by Victoria Bailey

New Jersey-based Hackensack Meridian Health and Englewood Health have terminated their hospital merger agreement after a federal appeals court blocked the deal from moving forward. In March 2022, the...

HHS Renews COVID-19 Public Health Emergency, Regulatory Waivers

by Victoria Bailey

HHS has renewed the COVID-19 public health emergency for an additional 90 days past the previous expiration date of April 16, 2022. The extension will help hospitals and health systems manage ongoing...

CMS Releases Skilled Nursing Facility PPS Proposed Rule for FY23

by Victoria Bailey

CMS has released its proposed Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF) Prospective Payment System (PPS) rule for fiscal year 2023, which includes a reduction in Medicare payments for SNFs. The proposed payment...

Biden Admin Announces Plans to Alleviate Medical Debt Burden

by Victoria Bailey

The Biden-Harris administration has announced a series of reforms that aim to alleviate medical debt burden and increase consumer protections for Americans. One in three adults across the country has...

AHA Asks Congress Again for More COVID-19 Financial Relief

by Victoria Bailey

The American Hospital Association (AHA) has penned a letter to Congressional leaders, asking once again for additional COVID-19 financial relief for hospitals and health systems. The trade...

AHA, AMA Ask Court to Vacate IDR Provisions in Surprise Billing Rule

by Victoria Bailey

The American Hospital Association (AHA) and the American Medical Association (AMA) have asked the US District Court for the District of Columbia to vacate the independent dispute resolution (IDR)...

CMS Proposes 2.7% Payment Boost for Inpatient Psychiatric Facilities

by Victoria Bailey

CMS has issued a proposed Inpatient Psychiatric Facility (IPF) Prospective Payment System (PPS) rule for FY 2023, which introduced an update to IPF Medicare payments and included comment requests on...

CMS Releases FY23 Inpatient Rehabilitation Facility PPS Proposed Rule

by Victoria Bailey

CMS has released its proposed Inpatient Rehabilitation Facility (IRF) Prospective Payment System (PPS) rule for FY 2023, which included an increase in IRF payment rates and updates on the IRF Quality...

CMS Increases Hospice Payment Rate in Proposed Rule for FY 2023

by Victoria Bailey

CMS has introduced a proposed rule for fiscal year 2023 that includes an increase in hospice payments and an aggregate cap on negative wage index changes. Under the rule, hospices would see a 2.7...

AHA Asks DOJ, FTC for Minor Hospital Merger Guideline Revisions

by Victoria Bailey

The American Hospital Association (AHA) has asked the US Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to revise hospital merger guidelines to better account for the benefits...

Hospital Groups Urge HHS to Renew COVID-19 Public Health Emergency

by Victoria Bailey

The American Hospital Association (AHA) and eight other hospital groups have urged HHS to renew the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE), which is currently set to expire on April 15, 2022. In a...

Federal Appeals Court Blocks New Jersey Hospital Merger

by Victoria Bailey

A federal appeals court has blocked the proposed hospital merger between New Jersey-based Hackensack Meridian Health and Englewood Health, stating that the merger would hurt competition and increase...

AHA Requests Additional COVID-19 Financial Support from Congress

by Victoria Bailey

The American Hospital Association (AHA) has urged Congress to provide hospitals and health systems with additional COVID-19 financial support, including more Provider Relief Funds and an extension on...

HHS Announces $413M in Provider Relief Fund Phase 4 Payments

by Victoria Bailey

Through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), HHS has announced another series of Provider Relief Fund Phase 4 payments totaling $413 million for healthcare providers that have been...

AHA: Electronic Prior Authorization Implementation Requires Testing

by Victoria Bailey

The American Hospital Association (AHA) has expressed support for electronic prior authorization processes but urged the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) to...

Sutter Health Receives Jury Support in Antitrust Class Action

by Victoria Bailey

A federal jury has sided with Sutter Health in an antitrust class action lawsuit in which plaintiffs claimed that the health system drove up insurance premiums through anticompetitive tactics, Reuters...