News

The Federal Emergency Management Agency today published a plan of action to develop a national strategy that would coordinate transportation systems needed to supply, produce and distribute critical COVID-19 health care resources, the latest addition to a 2020 voluntary agreement under the Defense Production Act that permits private sector organizations to coordinate with other organizations to produce and distribute critical health care resources during the pandemic. 

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services yesterday released for comment its advance notice of methodological changes to Medicare Advantage capitation rates and Part C and Part D payment policies for calendar year 2023.

Registration is now open for the 2022 Accelerating Health Equity Conference, an in-person event in Cleveland.

In a statement submitted to House and Senate subcommittee hearings on fraud, price gouging and corporate profiteering during the COVID-19 pandemic, the AHA urged Congress to examine reports of anticompetitive conduct by travel staffing agencies and coordinate with the Federal Trade Commission and other agencies to investigate where appropriate. 

While intentional drug overdoses have declined overall in the United States, they have increased among young people, the elderly and Black women, according to study by the National Institute on Drug Abuse published today in the American Journal of Psychiatry.

The Department of Health and Human Services has extended to Feb. 18 the deadline for health care organizations to register for the first phase of its Racial Equity in Postpartum Care Challenge, which will recognize effective programs to address equity in postpartum care for Black and Native women enrolled in Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program.

The AHA has released a guide to help health care governing boards work with their organization’s leadership team to set cybersecurity priorities and reduce cyber risks.

As part of AHA’s Joining Hands for Greater Impact series, Priya Bathija, AHA vice president of strategic initiatives, speaks with Rita Carreon, vice president for health at UnidosUS, about how to overcome barriers to vaccine confidence and access in the Latino community.

The Food and Drug Administration announced a Class 1 recall of two COVID-19 tests the agency had not authorized or approved.

Pfizer asked the Food and Drug Administration to authorize for emergency use two 3-microgram doses of its COVID-19 vaccine for children aged 6 months through 4.

The Department of Health and Human Services announced a standard clinical definition for opioid withdrawal in infants. Recently published in the Journal of Pediatrics, the definition includes prenatal exposure and at least two of the most common clinical signs of withdrawal (excessive crying, fragmented sleep, tremors, increased muscle tone or gastrointestinal dysfunction). 

On Feb. 15, the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute will launch an AHA-informed initiative that will provide funding to help health care delivery systems and provider-affiliated health plans implement practices that improve patient outcomes, based on findings from PCORI-funded research.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Hear Her campaign has released a new website and resources to help health professionals communicate with pregnant and postpartum patients about their concerns and respond to urgent maternal warning signs. 

Once the COVID-19 omicron variant became prominent through Jan. 8, unvaccinated adults in Los Angeles County had a 3.6 times higher SARS-CoV-2 infection rate and 23 times higher hospitalization rate than adults who had received a COVID-19 vaccine booster, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported.

As part of AHA’s Joining Hands for Greater Impact series, Julia Resnick, AHA director of strategic initiatives, speaks with Lydia Isaac, vice president for health equity and policy at the National Urban League, about vaccine hesitancy among parents and the importance of clear communication and outreach to build vaccine confidence in the Black community.

The AHA joined the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and American Medical Association in urging the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals to overturn a district court decision that refused to allow a case involving the Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness Act of 2005 to proceed in federal court and sent it back to state court for further proceedings.    

Hundreds of hospital and health system leaders today participated in an AHA virtual advocacy briefing to hear the latest from Capitol Hill and urge Congress to support hospitals and caregivers as part of a must-pass legislative package this month.

A recent Congressional Budget Office report comparing the prices commercial health insurers and fee-for-service Medicare pay for hospital and physician services lacks important context and raises more questions than it answers, writes Benjamin Finder, director of policy research and analysis at the AHA. 

Sky Lakes Medical Center in Klamath Falls, Ore., will receive the AHA’s 2021 Rural Hospital Leadership Award at the Rural Health Care Leadership Conference next week in Phoenix, AHA announced.

The Food and Drug Administration issued an update on the Class 1 recall of certain Philips Respironics ventilators.