News

The U.S. infant mortality rate was essentially unchanged in 2021, but the number of deaths rose 2% to 19,928, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Sept. 12

The Food and Drug Administration’s independent Nonprescription Drugs Advisory Committee Sept. 12 by unanimous vote declared oral phenylephrine ineffective as a decongestant.

As authorized Sept. 11 by the Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention today recommended a single dose of the updated Moderna and Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines for Americans aged 12 and older, and one or two doses of the updated vaccines for previously vaccinated children aged six months through 4, at least two months after receipt of their last dose.

Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Marco Rubio, R-Fla., Sept. 12 introduced the Safety from Violence for Healthcare Employees Act, AHA-supported legislation that would make it a federal crime to assault health care workers in hospitals, with enhanced penalties for assaults that result in serious bodily injury.

Under the Department of Health and Human Services’ recent agreement with Regeneron to develop a new monoclonal antibody to prevent COVID-19, the U.S. list price for a new commercialized product could not exceed the retail price in comparable markets globally, HHS said.

Commenting on the physician fee schedule proposed rule for calendar year 2024, AHA urged the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to work with Congress to eliminate the budget neutrality cut to the payment update, expressing deep concern about the rule’s almost 3.3% proposed cut to reimbursement. 

September is National Preparedness Month. And today marks the 22nd anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the U.S.

In comments submitted today, AHA expressed strong concern about the proposed hospital outpatient market basket update, noting it “does not capture either the unprecedented inflationary environment or the other persistent financial headwinds hospitals and health systems are experiencing.”

Physical therapist Clare Fox with North Country Healthcare in New Hampshire shares with AHA’s Elisa Arespacochaga why she left her native England to pursue her health career dreams in the U.S., and how adopting the Lean Six Sigma process improvement approach has made all the difference.

A new Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services fact sheet reviews how the agency selected the first 10 Part D drugs to include in the Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program, its process for negotiating with the companies that make the drugs, opportunities for public input and key dates for implementation.