Headline
The latest stories from AHA Today.
The House Energy & Commerce Health Subcommittee today approved an amended version of the Good Samaritan Health Professional Act (H.R. 1876), AHA-supported legislation that would extend liability standards under the Volunteer Protection Act of 1997 to licensed health professionals who volunteer…
A report released today by the AHA offers state-level strategies to help stabilize the Health Insurance Marketplaces. “Given the unique characteristics of each state, there is no single option that would work for all states, and all of the options come with implementation hurdles,” the report…
The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee today held the first of two planned hearings on reauthorizing the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act, currently set to expire Oct. 1. Among other provisions, PAHPA authorizes funding for the Hospital Preparedness Program, the…
The House Ways and Means Oversight Subcommittee today held a hearing focused on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ efforts to use data to identify Medicare Part D beneficiaries who are at risk of misusing opioids. The hearing also examined the tools CMS has available to limit…
The Senate Finance Committee voted 15-12 this afternoon to advance the president’s nomination of Alex Azar to serve as Health and Human Services secretary. The former president of Lilly USA and deputy HHS secretary under the George W. Bush administration last week told the committee he would focus…
The AHA, America’s Health Insurance Plans, American Medical Association, American Pharmacists Association, Blue Cross Blue Shield Association and Medical Group Management Association today released a consensus statement outlining their shared commitment to improving the prior authorization…
House Appropriations Chairman Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-NJ) last night introduced a continuing resolution that would fund the federal government through Feb. 16 and the Children’s Health Insurance Program for six years. The bill also would delay the Affordable Care Act’s medical device tax and…
Kenneth Bowman, division vice president for Kindred Rehabilitation Services at Kindred Healthcare, will serve as 2018 council chair of the AHA’s Section for Long-Term Care and Rehabilitation. Derrick Jones, CEO of Lovelace UNM Rehabilitation Hospital in Albuquerque, NM, is council chair-elect and…
The AHA generally supports the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ proposals to increase flexibility in plan design, cost sharing and enrollment for the Medicare Advantage and prescription drug programs in 2019, but recommends caution to ensure that the added flexibility provides value…
FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D., today issued an update on the agency’s efforts to address ongoing shortages of intravenous saline. “Based on the information we’re receiving from companies and the actions we’ve taken at FDA, we continue to expect that the shortage of IV fluids will improve in…