Medicaid

As the Senate moves to pass a second coronavirus stimulus package and draft a third, provider groups are continuing to urge Congress to provide them with more funding and expanded telehealth authority.

Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt (R) unveiled on Monday (March 16) a plan to accept capped Medicaid spending while implementing work requirements, premiums and other conservative policies as the state seeks to be the first to take advantage of controversial new guidance from CMS inviting states to convert portions of their Medicaid programs into block-grant-style funding.

Immigrants who receive Medicaid-funded testing or treatment for COVID-19 will not be penalized under the Trump administration’s so-called public charge rule, federal immigration authorities announced late Friday (March 13).

Democratic primary candidates Sen. Bernie Sanders (VT) and former Vice President Joe Biden both proposed the U.S. government prevent pharmaceutical companies from price gouging patients for critical supplies during the coronavirus outbreak and make testing, vaccines and treatments free of charge.

Medicaid Health Plans of America asks CMS to promptly take steps to make it easier for states to address COVID-19: The group says CMS should encourage states to forgo cost-sharing for Medicaid beneficiaries dealing with COVID-19, and issue additional guidance on Medicaid telehealth, prescription refills and how to handle face-to-face care management meetings.

HHS Secretary Alex Azar on Tuesday (March 10) told nurse practitioners to keep coming up with ideas on ways HHS could empower nurses, months after CMS had given stakeholders a short time to provide recommendations on how to ease stringent Medicare regulations that could stop such providers from working to the top of their license.

The HHS Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT finalized its long-awaited interoperability rule on Monday (March 9), adding an additional exception to information blocking and streamlining some definitions in the rule, as well as addressing data privacy in third-party apps.

Democratic senators are demanding HHS immediately reverse actions that have undermined the Affordable Care Act and other policies that could impede consumers’ ability to get coverage amid the coronavirus outbreak, and pledge to ensure any coronavirus vaccine will be affordable.

Rep. Steven Horsford (D-NV) sparred with HHS Deputy Secretary Eric Hargan on proposed changes to graduate medical education and cuts to Medicaid in the Trump administration’s fiscal 2021 budget as Hargan, and one Republican lawmaker, reiterated that the budget doesn’t cut Medicaid.