News

The Food and Drug Administration recently issued an emergency use authorization for a next generation sequencing test to detect SARS-CoV-2 in respiratory specimens from individuals suspected of COVID-19 by their health care provider.

Health care and behavioral health care systems can apply through April 19 for grants to screen children and/or adults in primary care and community health settings to screen for substance use disorders, implement brief interventions and refer for treatment services, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration announced. 

The Department of Health and Human Services through March 26 has reduced by more than 69% its backlog of Medicare appeals at the Administrative Law Judge level, according to a status report the agency provided Friday to a federal court.

The Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines reduced the risk of both asymptomatic and symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection by 90% at least two weeks after the second dose and by 80% at least two weeks after the first dose in a study of 3,950 vaccinated health care and other essential workers, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported. 

In this episode of Leadership Rounds, I talk with Alvin Hoover, CEO of King’s Daughters Medical Center in Brookhaven, Miss., who is serving on the front lines of rural health care.   

AHA urged the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to rescind its recent audit determinations denying hospitals a mid-build exception to site-neutral payment under the 21st Century Cures Act.

The FBI released an alert on Mamba ransomware, which uses an open source encryptions software to encrypt and restrict access to a victim’s entire drive, including the operating system.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services released interpretive guidance for emergency preparedness provisions in its 2019 final rule reducing certain regulatory burdens for providers participating in the Medicare and Medicaid programs.

The Senate voted 92-7 to pass and send to the president legislation (H.R. 1799) to extend the Paycheck Protection Program through June 30. The president is expected to sign the bill, which will allow applications through May 31. Without the extension, the program would expire March 31.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced the immediate resumption of survey activities for all complaints.

As more vaccine supplies become available and more jurisdictions expand priority categories or do away with them altogether, hospitals and health systems continue to work overtime to serve as access points.

Learn how hospital and health system leaders such as Neil Gomes, system senior vice president of digital and human experiences at CommonSpirit Health, are synthesizing and applying consumer experience data insights for improved patient loyalty and outcomes. 

The House Education and Labor Committee voted 27-20 to approve, as amended, the Workplace Violence Prevention for Health Care and Social Service Workers Act (H.R. 1195). 

The AHA voiced support for the Rural America Health Corps Act (S.924), legislation that would establish a Rural America Health Corps modeled on the National Health Service Corps to encourage health care professionals to serve in rural areas. 

Though most hospitals and health systems are collecting patient demographic data, by using layers of additional data sets, investigating patterns in health disparities, tailoring interventions and aligning priorities with identified community needs, organizations can advance health equity, writes Mital Patel, senior director of market intelligence, AHA Center for Health Innovation. 

Throughout the pandemic, innovative partnerships have helped hospitals and health systems ensure ongoing care for patients, health care workers and their communities. 

AstraZeneca revised its data on its COVID-19 vaccine candidate, stating that its AZD1222 vaccine showed a 76% efficacy in preventing symptomatic COVID-19. 

The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee held a hearing on improving COVID-19 health equity and outcomes by addressing health disparities.

The Senate passed by 90-2 vote a bill that, among other health care provisions, would eliminate the 2% across-the-board cut to all Medicare payments, known as sequestration, until the end of 2021.

The White House announced a $10 billion investment in promoting public confidence in COVID-19 vaccines, particularly among the hardest-hit and highest-risk communities.