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Trying to find a story from a past AHA NewsNow? Use the button below to search the NewsNow archives by date or key word.
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AHA comments on CCIIO approach to essential benefits 01/27/2012
The Center for Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight's approach to defining "essential health benefits" under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act fails to reflect "the individual's need for a range of services grounded in evidence-based guidelines," the AHA said in comments submitted today. "The work of the Institute of Medicine on this subject and the recent issuance of the CCIIO EHB Bulletin suggest that in the struggle to balance affordability with comprehensiveness of health benefits, the recommendations consistently tilt in favor of affordability," AHA wrote. The letter recommends CCIIO establish "a universal baseline of benefits, and prevent insurers from picking and choosing the benefits that are covered," adding that affordability of the EHBs "could be governed by the cost sharing amounts among the four levels of qualified health plans." Among other changes, AHA urges the agency to clarify that its benchmark plan approach to benefits is limited to covered services and does not include the plan's underlying decisions regarding actuarial value and cost-sharing. It also recommends that the Department of Health and Human Services "require public consultation as part of its overall approval of a state's EHB plan and exchange certification." The comments are based on the AHA's recommended framework for defining EHBs, first shared with the Institute of Medicine last year.
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SSA to begin accepting electronic signatures on medical records form 01/27/2012
The Social Security Administration encourages health care providers to accept electronic signatures on Form SSA-827 effective April 1, when Americans can begin applying for disability benefits online. The form is used to request applicants' medical records from health care providers. SSA expects the optional electronic form to reduce application processing times by up to nine days, allowing the agency to provide Medicare and Medicaid coverage to qualified patients more quickly. Medical providers will continue to receive the form with each request for records. According to the agency, the form complies with Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act requirements. For more information, visit www.ssa.gov.
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ISMP surveying hospital pharmacists about CMS drug shortage guidelines 01/27/2012
Conflicting requirements in the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' interpretive guidelines for storing and dating the expiration of injectable medications may be making it harder for health care providers to manage drug shortages and reduce waste, the Institute for Safe Medication Practices reports. The organization is surveying hospital pharmacists and other health care practitioners through March 2 to learn more about the issue, and will share aggregate results from the survey with professional organizations, drug manufacturers, The Joint Commission and CMS. For more information, see the ISMP's latest newsletter.
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Health IT resource targets rural providers 01/27/2012
The Rural Assistance Center and National Rural Health Resource Center have launched an online resource to help rural health care providers plan and implement health information technology. Developed with funding from the Department of Human Services' Office of Rural Health Policy, the HIT Toolkit includes information on funding, training, legislation and other federal resources. For more information, see the news release.
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Updated website features leading voices in Equity of Care 01/27/2012
The Equity of Care website, www.equityofcare.org, now includes commentaries by leading voices in the field. Initial contributors include AHA President and CEO Rich Umbdenstock and Catholic Health Initiatives President and CEO Kevin Lofton. In addition to AHA, partners in the Equity of Care initiative to eliminate health disparities include the Association of American Medical Colleges, American College of Healthcare Executives, Catholic Health Association of the United States, and National Association of Public Hospitals and Health Systems. The website provides a platform for sharing free resources and best practices. To share a comment or viewpoint, e-mail info@equityofcare.org.
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Moody's, S&P: Hospitals face growing financial stress 01/26/2012
U.S. not-for-profit hospitals face increasing financial pressures, according to two new reports by credit rating agencies. Moody's Investors Service said its outlook for the sector remains negative for 2012, "based on modest projections for hospital revenue growth over the next 18 months, the expectation of ongoing economic softness throughout the country, financial and operating pressures resulting from regulatory changes, and continued balance sheet challenges." In a separate report, Standard & Poor's Rating Services said credit quality and ratings for the sector "will be negatively affected, perhaps as early as 2013, due to an increasingly difficult operating environment. Conditions include tighter revenues, weaker payer mixes, generally declining to at best stable inpatient volume trends, the lingering impact of the recent recession, and health reform." The Moody's report, "U.S. Not-For-Profit Healthcare Outlook Remains Negative in 2012," can be purchased at www.moodys.com. The S&P report, "The U.S. Not-For-Profit Health Care Sector's Rating Stability Is Vulnerable To Headwinds After 2012," is available to subscribers of RatingsDirect at www.globalcreditportal.com.
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Coalition ad urges Congress to protect hospital care 01/26/2012
As Congress negotiates an agreement to fix the Medicare physician payment system and extend the Social Security payroll tax holiday and emergency unemployment benefits, the Coalition to Protect America's Health Care today launched a national television ad campaign urging Congress not to cut Medicare and Medicaid funding for hospital care. The ad, now appearing on cable news stations, features a woman and her ailing real-life father, who depends on Medicare for his hospital care. Noting that funding cuts mean fewer nurses, longer waits for emergency care and less access to treatments, she implores viewers to call Congress and urge them not to cut funding for hospital care. To view the ad, visit www.protecthealthcare.org. AHA is a founding member of the coalition, a broad-based group dedicated to educating the public about issues affecting hospitals' financial situation, and what this means for patients and their families.
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ASPR issues hospital preparedness planning guide 01/26/2012
The Department of Health and Human Services' Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response has issued guidance to help state and local health care and public health preparedness planners identify gaps in preparedness, determine specific priorities, and develop plans for building and sustaining health care specific capabilities. The guidance is based on new national capabilities for the Hospital Preparedness Program beginning in fiscal year 2012, which align HPP and Public Health Emergency Preparedness program capabilities. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently issued similar guidance for the PHEP program.
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AHA report looks at opportunities to integrate behavioral health care 01/26/2012
Health care organizations and providers that can effectively integrate care across treatment settings as well as between the behavioral and physical health care systems should realize gains in quality and outcomes, and reduced treatment costs, according to a new AHA TrendWatch report. One in four Americans experiences a mental illness or substance abuse disorder each year, and the majority also has a physical health condition. "Health reform creates new impetus and opportunity for better managing the care delivered to individuals with behavioral health conditions," the report notes. "Expansion of health insurance generally, along with improved coverage of behavioral health treatment under parity laws, will broaden access to needed services. At the same time, increased provider accountability will spur efforts to coordinate care across currently fragmented settings to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of care delivered to individuals with behavioral health conditions." The report was prepared with research and analysis by Avalere Health.
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Louisiana hospitals launch workplace wellness initiative 01/26/2012
The Louisiana Hospital Association this week launched a workplace wellness initiative for hospitals throughout the state. "The LHA created this campaign so that every hospital, regardless of type or size, could participate and have a positive impact on the wellness of their staff and communities," said Milton Bourgeois, LHA Board Chair and CEO of Ochsner-St. Anne General Hospital. "Healthy choices lead to better health outcomes, and hospitals are committed to leading by example." Phase one of the three-year Smart Choices, Better Health campaign will focus on healthy eating, exercise and weight loss, and phase two will focus on smoking cessation. Hospital CEOs have appointed campaign champions, who will form wellness teams to implement hospital-specific action plans for their employees and communities. More than 100 hospitals have committed to the campaign.
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