Senate Hearing to Examine Health Care Workforce Shortages

On Thursday, February 16, at 10am Eastern, the Senate HELP Committee, Chaired by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), will hold a full Committee hearing entitled, “Examining Health Care Workforce Shortages: Where Do We Go From Here?”. Testimony will be provided by James Herbert PhD, President, University of New England, James E.K. Hildreth Sr., PhD, MD, President and CEO, Meharry Medical College, Sarah Szanton PhD, RN, FAAN, Dean, Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, Leonardo Seoane MD, FACP, Chief Academic Officer, Ochsner Health, and Douglas Staiger PhD, Professor, Dartmouth College.

The hearing may be viewed here.

Toward A Comprehensive Response To The Opioid Crisis

Legal settlements with opioid manufacturers, distributors, and pharmacies accused of fueling the opioid crisis will bring much-needed funding to states and counties that are seeing a record number of overdoses. A report from the Commonwealth Fund explores what a comprehensive approach to addressing opioid use disorder might look like.  

The report can be obtained at Building Comprehensive Responses to the Opioid Crisis | Commonwealth Fund.

Public Health Preparedness

A report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) indicates that in 2012, Health and Human Services (HHS) established a program to ensure the U.S. could rapidly produce medical countermeasures—such as drugs and vaccines—in public health emergencies. The program didn't meet its goals in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, HHS found, and had trouble with large-scale production and quality control. HHS is transitioning to a new program, but needs to take additional steps to ensure that the new program doesn't repeat the previous program's challenges.  

The report can be obtained at https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-23-105713.pdf.

ACA Marketplace Open Enrollment Report

The Biden Administration announced that a record-breaking more than 16.3 million individuals have selected an Affordable Care Act (ACA) Marketplace health plan nationwide during the 2023 Marketplace Open Enrollment Period (OEP) that ran from November 1, 2022-January 15, 2023 for most Marketplaces. 

More information can be obtained at Marketplace 2023 Open Enrollment Period Report: Final National Snapshot | CMS.

Academic And Socioemotional Impacts Of The COVID-19 Pandemic

A report from the Urban Institute projects how the pandemic’s cognitive and emotional impacts on schoolchildren may affect their degree attainment and lifetime earnings. 

The report can be obtained at https://www.urban.org/sites/default/files/2023-01/Academic%20and%20Socioemotional%20Impacts%20of%20the%20COVID-19%20Pandemic%20Will%20Affect%20Adult%20Earnings%20and%20Degree%20Attainment.pdf.

Changes In Health Insurance

The uninsured rate for Americans under age 65 fell from 11.1% in 2019 to 10.5% in 2021, according to new report by the Department of Health and Human Services. The analysis shows that the national uninsured rate declined during this period, with larger coverage gains for younger adults; Latino, American Indian, and Alaska Native individuals; non-English speaking adults; and people living in states that recently expanded Medicaid.  

The report can be obtained at https://aspe.hhs.gov/reports/changes-health-insurance-coverage-2019-2021.

Enrollment In Affordable Care Act Marketplaces

The Biden-Harris administration announced that about 15.9 million individuals have selected an Affordable Care Act (ACA) Marketplace health plan nationwide since the start of the 2023 Marketplace Open Enrollment Period (OEP) on November 1. 

The report can be obtained at Marketplace 2023 Open Enrollment Period Report: National Snapshot #3 | CMS.

Ransomware Attacks On The Health Care Sector

According to an investigation reported in JAMA Health Forum, attacks on health care providers doubled between 2016 and 2021, leaving 42 million patients’ data vulnerable. These attacks exposed larger quantities of personal health information and grew more likely to affect large organizations with multiple facilities. Disruptions to care during attacks may threaten patient safety and outcomes. 

The report can be obtained at JAMA Health Forum – Health Policy, Health Care Reform, Health Affairs | JAMA Health Forum | JAMA Network.

Medicare Private Plan Enrollment

As more Medicare beneficiaries enroll in private plans, it can be confusing to make sense of the array of available options. A new explainer from the Commonwealth Fund details the rules governing how insurers can sell their plans; how marketing and sales tactics can have an impact on beneficiaries; and what efforts are being made to ensure they obtain the information they need to choose the plan that’s right for them. 

The explainer can be obtained at Role of Marketing in Medicare Beneficiaries’ Coverage Choices | Commonwealth Fund.

,

Congress Releases Text of FY 23 Omnibus Appropriations bill

,

The $1.7 trillion FY 23 Omnibus Appropriations bill was released this morning. It contains a roughly 10% increase for defense related programming. House Democrats highlight a 9.3% increase for domestic programs, but their Republican colleagues claim the increase is actually only 5.5% when excluding a dramatic rise for Veterans’ health care.

The fiscal year 2023 Labor-H bill includes $209.9 billion in base discretionary funding. Including spending offset by savings in changes in mandatory programs, this represents an increase of $14.8 billion or 7.1 percent over the comparable fiscal year 2022 level.

The bill includes $579.3 million, an increase of 60.6 million for HRSA’s Title VII health professions programs.

The bill increases the maximum Pell Grant award by $500 or 7.2 percent to $7,395 for the 2023-24 school year. This is the largest increase in the maximum Pell grant award since the 2009-10 school year and further builds off the $400 increase provided last year.

The bill includes language from the Allied Health Workforce Diversity Act, amending the Public Health Service Act to allow for “increasing educational opportunities in physical therapy, occupational therapy, respiratory therapy, audiology, and speech-language pathology professions, which may include offering scholarships or stipends and carrying out other activities to improve retention, for individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds or individuals who are underrepresented in such professions.’’

The leadership expects to move the Omnibus through the Senate, followed by the House, before the December 23rd expiration of the current Continuing Resolution.

More details may be accessed here and here.

Integrating Behavioral Health Services Into Primary Care

Demand for behavioral health services, from addiction treatment to mental health care, is at an all-time high, yet many patients struggle to find the help they need. A new case study from the Commonwealth Fund explores how one group of providers has managed to increase its members’ access to these services without increasing overall health spending. 

The study can be obtained at Integrating Behavioral Health Services into Primary Care | Commonwealth Fund.

Health Spending Growth In 2021

A decline in federal government spending led to more modest growth in health care expenditures last year, according to figures released by the Office of the Actuary at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). The 2021 National Health Expenditures (NHE) Report found that U.S. health care spending grew 2.7% to reach $4.3 trillion in 2021, slower than the increase of 10.3% in 2020.  

More information can be obtained at https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/press-releases/national-health-spending-grew-slightly-2021.

 

Marketplace 2023 Open Enrollment Period Report

According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), nearly 5.5 million Americans have signed up for 2023 individual market health insurance coverage through the Marketplaces since the start of the 2023 Marketplace Open Enrollment Period (OEP) on November 1. The number includes 4.9 million plan selections in the 33 Marketplaces using the HealthCare.gov platform for the 2023 plan year, through December 3, 2022 (Week 5), and 598,000 plan selections in the 18 State-based Marketplaces (SBMs) in 17 states and the District of Columbia that are using their own eligibility and enrollment platforms, through November 26, 2022 (Week 4).  

More information can be obtained at https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/fact-sheets/marketplace-2023-open-enrollment-period-report-national-snapshot-2.

 

CMS Approves Groundbreaking Section 1115 Demonstrations

Medicaid allows states to experiment with new ways of operating their programs and serving patients through what are known as Section 1115 demonstration waivers. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently approved waivers in Arkansas, Arizona, Massachusetts, and Oregon that seek to improve enrollment and address social drivers of health. 

More information can be obtained at CMS Approves Groundbreaking Section 1115 Demonstrations | Commonwealth Fund.

,

ASAHP Urges Health Professions Funding in FY 23 Appropriations

,

This week ASAHP joined with other members of two coalitions, the Federation of Associations of Schools of the Health Professions (FASHP) and the Health Professions and Nursing Education Coalition (HPNEC), in urging congressional leaders to include robust health professions funding in a FY 23 appropriations package.

The joint letter from FASHP advocates for strong funding for student aid programs like the Pell Grant program and campus-based aid programs, as well as continued support for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program (PSLF).

The joint letter from HPNEC urges Congress to provide at least the higher of the two funding levels from the draft House and Senate Labor-HHS-Ed spending bill for the HRSA Title VII health professions and Title VIII nursing workforce development programs for FY 2023.

The current Continuing Resolution (CR) expires on December 16, and Democrats and Republicans have yet to agree on spending levels for non-defense spending along with an array of other issues, increasing the likelihood of another Continuing Resolution into the following week, giving both parties more time to negotiate an Omnibus spending agreement. Many of the most conservative Members in the House and Senate would like to push final consideration of FY 23 funding until Republicans regain control of the House next month, allowing them to recraft the bills at significantly lower overall funding levels.

The FASHP letter may be accessed here and the HPNEC letter may be accessed here.

CMS Memorandum On Violence In Hospitals

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a memorandum that reinforces the agency’s role in enforcing regulatory expectations that patients and hospital staff have an environment that prioritizes their safety to ensure effective delivery of health care. An April 2020 Bureau of Labor Statistics Fact Sheet found that health care workers accounted for 73% of all nonfatal workplace injuries and illnesses due to violence in 2018. This percentage has been growing steadily since tracking of these specific events began in 2011. 

The memorandum can be obtained at https://www.cms.gov/files/document/qso-23-04-hospitals.pdf.

Drop In Hospital Operating Margins

According to a new report from Kaufman Hall, U.S. hospitals and health systems in October 2022 experienced their 10th consecutive month of negative operating margins. Based on data from more than 900 hospitals, margins were down 43% from a year ago, as high labor and other costs continued to outpace revenues and labor shortages delayed discharges and admissions. 

The report can be obtained at https://www.kaufmanhall.com/sites/default/files/2022-11/KH-NHFR_2022-11.pdf.