News

The House Energy & Commerce Committee yesterday approved 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 in another state during a disaster.

The AHA and three member hospitals today urged the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to require the Health and Human Services Secretary to clear the Medicare appeals backlog at the administrative law judge level within five years.

Health insurers use the annual list to identify providers meeting ECP requirements for Qualified Health Plans participating in health insurance exchanges.

National health expenditures are projected to grow an average 5.5% annually during 2017-2026, outpacing average projected growth in gross domestic product by 1 percentage point, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ Office of the Actuary reported yesterday.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services this week held a Medicare Learning Network call on its new settlement option for health care providers with a low volume of appeals pending at the Office of Medicare Hearings and Appeals and Medicare Appeals Council.

Reps. Randy Hultgren (R-IL) and C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger (D-MD) yesterday introduced legislation that would restore tax exemption for advance refunding bonds.

In a letter submitted to the committee, AHA Executive Vice President Tom Nickels said that one has to look no further than recent announced partnerships on employee health care and physician acquisition.

The House Ways and Means Committee today held a hearing on the Department of Health and Human Services’ fiscal year 2019 budget request, at which HHS Secretary Alex Azar testified.

AHA will host a free webinar on successful hospital practices for promoting healthy behaviors.

The Institute for Diversity and Health Equity today released its February newsletter highlighting new resources and upcoming events and education opportunities related to diversity, health equity and inclusion.

The AHA yesterday recommended that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services provide a complete package of information on its new Bundled Payments for Care Improvement Advanced Model by March 1.

The AHA is accepting nominations through March 16 for outstanding clinicians to serve on five at-large seats on its Committee on Clinical Leadership.

The prize honors health care organizations that have demonstrated exceptional commitment to community service.

The budget request, which is not binding, proposes hundreds of billions of dollars in reductions to Medicare and Medicaid over 10 years.

Phillips Electronics North America Corp. has recalled 71 HeartStart MRx defibrillators produced in September and October 2016 due to a defect that may cause the device to fail.

A U.S. District Court in Missouri Friday permanently barred the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services from enforcing in Missouri a 2017 final rule and two Frequently Asked Questions documents.

Congress today passed and President Trump signed into law a massive two-year budget bill containing a number of priorities important to hospitals and health systems.

The flu hospitalization rate rose last week to 59.9 per 100,000 people, the highest rate for this point in the year since the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention began enhanced surveillance of laboratory-confirmed flu hospitalizations during the H1N1 flu pandemic in 2009-2010.

The AHA seeks hospital and health system trustees to serve on its Committee on Governance and Regional Policy Boards.

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