News

The Federal Emergency Management Agency Sept. 30 lifted the immediate needs funding status for its disaster relief fund, as Congress provided additional support to the agency through the continuing resolution passed last week to fund the government through Dec. 20.

The Department of Health and Human Services Sept. 30 released a statement on the dockworker strike at ports along the East and Gulf coasts, saying that immediate impacts to medicines, medical devices and other goods should be limited.

The AHA's Institute for Diversity and Health Equity has extended until Oct. 15 the deadline to apply for the 2025 Carolyn Boone Lewis Equity of Care Awards, which recognize the efforts of member hospitals and health systems in advancing health equity, diversity and inclusion across three categories.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Sept. 30 released a report on the hospital-at-home program, which found that patients and caregivers overall had positive experiences in the program.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Sept. 30 issued an interim final rule which will discontinue the hospital inpatient prospective payment system low wage index policy for FY 2025.

AnMed’s dedication to implementing language services and community engagement strategies to eliminate health care disparities and improve patient quality outcomes led to the organization earning the 2024 Carolyn Boone Lewis Equity of Care Award in the Small/Rural Hospital Excellence category.

Yoshi Honkawa, a former longtime health care executive and influential figure in health care policy and advocacy in both California and nationally, died Sept. 22 at age 100. 

The 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline last week announced that georouting, a process which routs cellphone calls to 988 contact centers based on the caller’s approximate location, began last week with two major U.S. wireless carriers, that, together, make up nearly half of all wireless calls to 988.

A Louisiana district court Sept. 30 upheld a state law prohibiting drug companies from denying Louisiana hospitals 340B discounts for drugs dispensed at community pharmacies.

The Department of Health and Human Services Sept. 29 declared a public health emergency for North Carolina due to health impacts from Hurricane Helene after making similar declarations for Florida and Georgia.

Johnson & Johnson Sept. 30 notified the Health Resources and Services Administration that it is ceasing implementation of its proposed 340B rebate model.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Sept. 27 announced that average premiums, benefits and plan choices for Medicare Advantage and Part D will remain stable for 2025.

In this episode, I talk with Steve Diaz, M.D., chief medical officer at MaineGeneral Health in Augusta and an AHA board member. Steve is an emergency medicine physician by training and has been involved in many of MaineGeneral’s health care quality and safety initiatives.

In this conversation, Brenda Romero, administrator at Presbyterian Española Hospital, discusses the methods for accessing treatment and the importance of the hospital's innovative and community-focused work.

The National Foundation for Infectious Diseases Sept. 25 released a survey showing that less than one in five U.S. adults are concerned about themselves or a family member getting a respiratory virus infection this fall and winter.

The Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General Sept. 24 recommended that additional oversight is needed to ensure that remote patient monitoring in Medicare is being used and billed appropriately, according to a report.

The Health Resources and Services Administration Sept. 27 sent a final warning letter to Johnson & Johnson urging the company to inform the agency by Monday, Sept. 30 that it would halt its proposed 340B rebate model scheduled to go into effect next month. 

AHA's newest social media toolkit for encouraging vaccination against the flu and COVID-19 focuses on receiving the latest vaccines before peak respiratory virus season begins.

Nonprofit hospitals have special obligations to their communities in exchange for being tax-exempt.

The Senate Sept. 25 voted 78-18 to pass a continuing resolution funding the government through Dec. 20 and avoiding a government shutdown.