News

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services approved a five-year Medicaid waiver for Nebraska that allows newly covered adults who are not medically frail or pregnant to access additional benefits if they participate in certain wellness, work, volunteer or training activities.

National Health Care Facilities and Engineering Week 2020, Oct. 25-31, will spotlight the heroes who keep the health care physical environment running safely and smoothly during the pandemic and beyond.

While work is underway on new payment and delivery models for rural hospitals, additional, targeted actions by Congress and the administration are needed to support these hospitals and their communities, writes Erika Rogan, AHA senior associate director of policy.

In this AHA podcast, Rita Carreon, deputy vice president for health, UnidosUS, and Elisa Arespacochaga, vice president of the AHA’s Physician Alliance, discuss how community-based organizations can help hospitals and health systems improve health status for Latinx communities during the 2020-2021 flu season and COVID-19 pandemic.

The AHA, American Medical Association, American Health Care Association and National Association for Home Care & Hospice urged leaders in the U.S. House and Senate to pass legislation that would extend into 2021 and through the duration of the COVID-19 public health emergency the congressionally enacted moratorium on the 2% Medicare sequester cuts.

More hospitals are implementing policies and programs to address the mental and emotional wellbeing of staff members, writes American Organization for Nursing Leadership board member Anne Schmidt, chief nursing officer at Novant Health UVA Health System’s Prince William Medical Center and Haymarket Medical Center. “But it’s not enough to put these programs into place.

In this Hospitals Against Violence webinar, the third in a series highlighting the National Mass Violence Victimization Resource Center, physician leaders from University Hospitals, Orlando Regional Medical Center and UT Health address the elements of preparedness and response, specifically outlining how hospitals and health systems can best provide for victims, care givers and communities.

The AHA submitted comments in response to the Health Resources and Services Administration’s proposed changes to geographic eligibility for Federal Office of Rural Health Policy rural health grants.

President Trump Oct. 17 signed into law the National Suicide Hotline Designation Act, designating 988 as the nationwide phone number to connect people experiencing mental health crises to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.

The average premium for a benchmark plan at HealthCare.gov will decline 2% in 2021 to $379, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced.

A study released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates 299,028 more deaths than expected occurred in the United States between Jan. 26 and Oct. 3, with 66% attributed to COVID-19.

In a letter, AHA again urged the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation to delay the start date for its new radiation oncology alternative payment model until Jan. 1, 2022.

The Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Intergovernmental Affairs will host an Oct. 22 webinar at 1 p.m. ET on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ recent guidance clarifying how the agency will implement its interim final rule that makes collecting and reporting COVID-19 data a condition of participation for hospitals that participate in Medicare.

On this Institute for Diversity and Health Equity webinar, 2020 AHA Carolyn Boone Lewis Equity of Care Award honorees share efforts to deliver inclusive, culturally competent care.

Congress should consider specifying in the Internal Revenue Code what services and activities it considers sufficient community benefit for tax-exempt hospitals, the Government Accountability Office said in a report.

The full U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit denied AHA’s request to reconsider two decisions from this summer that upheld the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ cuts to payments for 340B drugs and for off-campus hospital outpatient clinic visits.

The AABB, America’s Blood Centers and the American Red Cross urged eligible individuals to donate blood, calling the nation’s blood supply “critically low.”

A new analysis by Global Health 50/50, an initiative to advance gender equality in global health, sheds light on sex disparities in COVID-19 deaths.

The Department of Health and Human Services announced the new option of saliva tests at federal community-based testing sites in areas experiencing COVID-19 surge.

Jim Skogsbergh, president and CEO of Advocate Aurora Health, will join AHA Board Chair Melinda Estes, M.D., Oct. 22 at 3:30 p.m. ET to discuss COVID-19’s impact on health trends and key strategies for reimagining and innovating care during and beyond the pandemic.