News

The House of Representatives last night voted 242-176 to approve legislation (H.R. 6311) that would allow individuals purchasing health insurance in the individual market to purchase a lower value “copper” plan, which could drive more individuals to buy inadequate coverage and increase bad debt for providers.

A growing number of hospitals are using health information technology to improve health care quality and support new models of care, according to TrendWatch reports released today by the AHA.

The AHA Board of Trustees has selected as it chair-elect designate Melinda Estes, M.D., president and CEO of Saint Luke’s Health System in Kansas City, MO.

Hospitals are redesigning their delivery systems, improving quality and outcomes, embracing new reimbursement models, and leveraging technology to make care more affordable, according to an AHA advertorial published today in the Wall Street Journal.

Read on for coverage of AHA's chair-elect designate, keynote sessions, awards and sights and sounds from the conference.

The AHA today presented two federal health care leaders with awards for outstanding service to the health care field. Capt. James Hancock, M.D., commanding officer of Naval Medical Center Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, received the Award for Excellence, while Lt. Col. Johnathan Compton, M.D., deputy director of medical services at the Air Force Medical Operations Agency in San Antonio, received the Special Achievement Award.

The AHA today presented its 2018 Board of Trustees Award to author and futurist Ian Morrison at the AHA Leadership Summit in San Diego. The award recognizes individuals or groups who have made substantial and noteworthy contributions to the work of the AHA.

Northwell Health, New York State's largest health care provider and private-sector employer, today received the 2018 AHA Quest for Quality Prize for its exemplary achievements in improving and preserving access to care, addressing the social determinants of health and encouraging innovation.

The Missouri Hospital Association today received the 2018 Dick Davidson Quality Milestone Award for Allied Association Leadership for its work to improve health care quality.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services today proposed to update hospital outpatient prospective payment system rates by 1.25% in calendar year 2019 compared to CY 2018.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services expects to begin $10.4 billion in risk adjustment transfers for benefit year 2017 in September, according to a final rule posted last night.

Testifying this afternoon at a House hearing on Federal Communications Commission oversight, FCC Chairman Ajit Pai called closing the digital divide his “top priority,” citing the agency’s recent actions to expand access to broadband and telehealth services in rural America.

The AHA has joined Aligning for Health, a coalition advocating for federal and state solutions to address the social determinants of health.

In an effort to make care more accessible to its changing community, Washington, D.C.-based Providence Health System will transition out of acute care services by the end of 2018 and will instead offer care coordination, telehealth services and virtual care, primary and urgent care, home care, community-based behavioral health care, senior care and more, the organization said in a statement.

The National Institutes of Health yesterday awarded grants to five new projects through its Health Care Systems Research Collaboratory, which conducts clinical trials in the health care settings where patients normally receive their care.

The House of Representatives last night approved legislation to reauthorize the Children’s Hospitals Graduate Medical Education Program and federal workforce development programs for nurses and health professionals.

The Senate last night voted 86-9 to approve President Trump’s nomination of Robert Wilkie to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs permanently.

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Seema Verma today announced two additions to the agency’s leadership team.

The World Health Organization today announced the end of the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The Health Resources and Services Administration’s Workplace Partnership for Life Hospital Organ Donation Campaign recently recognized more than 1,200 hospitals and transplant centers, including 314 small and rural hospitals, for outstanding efforts to promote organ donation awareness and registration between October 2017 and April 2018.