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WHITE HOUSE:

The White House focused this week on the G7 Summit, a new security agreement with Ukraine, and the first national strategy on food waste (available here as a PDF). 3 items of interest for us:

• They announced a new proposed rule, via the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), that would remove medical debt from credit reports. Under the new rule, debt collectors would be prohibited from using the credit reporting system as a tool in collections. You can download a copy of the proposed rule here (PDF). The Fact Sheet is here (PDF).

• They issued a new Executive Order that would formalize the White House council on “supply chain resilience”. The goal is to develop a better strategy to protect against future disruptions of the supply chain, something that was keenly felt during the early days of the pandemic. For now, there are no regulations attached to the council, which must produce a report on the strategy by the end of the year.

• Following up on the recent cyberattacks that affected the healthcare community, they announced new actions, including public-private partnerships with Microsoft & Google, to help healthcare providers strengthen their cybersecurity. The programs are primarily aimed at rural healthcare hospitals, but SNF’s may be able to tap into them. To register for the Microsoft program, please see here. Google hasn’t yet released details on their program but will be releasing more information soon.

CONGRESS:

Continuing the theme of the summer, the annual must-pass defense bill turned into a messaging bill as the GOP narrowly passed a version of the bill loaded with Republican priorities unrelated to actual defense. While the likely end game will be a bipartisan bill that removes the culture war items (similar to what happened last year), the process is indicative of where Congress’ mind is at as we draw ever closer to the November elections. It’s important to note that crossing party lines and messaging have real consequences for the political futures of elected officials, a point made clear with the news Friday that Louisiana Congressman Garrett Graves isn’t running for election. Graves, of course, was one of the main architects of the Republican debt deal that ultimately cost Speaker McCarthy his seat. In fact, all three architects (Graves, McCarthy and Congress McHenry) are all out or on their way out of Congress. It’s a sobering note to keep in mind as Congress continues the messaging wars. Elsewhere in the political world:

• Both Houses of Congress now have resolutions utilizing the Congressional Review Act (CRA) to overturn the Minimum Staffing Rule. The Senate version is bipartisan, while the House version remains, for now, Republican only. While the Biden Administration is likely to veto the resolution, should it pass, it’s another important reminder of how unpopular the mandate is.

• A deep dive into SB1047, a bill making its way through the California legislature that would represent one of the stiffest regulatory requirements on the development of AI.

• Former Speaker McCarthy has been leading a revenge tour against those Republicans who were involved in forcing him out of leadership. It’s off to a poor startas Congresswoman Nancy Mace easily survived a primary challenge.

• Cracks are appearing in the usually tight-knit House Freedom Caucus, the ultraconservative group that has tried to maintain a united front, at least publicly.

AGENCIES:

The federal government called out Texas for their slow rate of Medicaid applications processing following the unwinding, threatening the state with the loss of federal funding if they don’t pick up the pace.

The Wall Street Journal reports that CMS will be reworking their star ratings for MA plans, following several court decisions against CMS.

Leading Age posted a letter from CMS regarding an update to the agency’s $75 million campaign to help with staffing recruitment. Unfortunately, the response is vague and unclear. You can access a copy of the letter here (PDF).

HHS, via the Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), announced more than $31 million in funding opportunities for programs that tackle behaviorial health. A breakdown of each program and how to apply can be found at the announcement page.

CMS’ Office of the Actuary released their latest projections for “National Health Expenditures”, a useful tool to identify where federal health dollars may be spent over the coming years. The study is here. The central resource page with the underlying data can be found here.

The OIG at HHS released a new audit of CMS’ requirement that hospital stays expected to last less than 2 midnights not be treated as inpatient, finding that CMS could do a better job with oversight of the program. The summary is here and the full report is here (both PDF).

Seventeen federal agencies held a meeting to commemorate a decade worth of efforts in combating elder abuse since the inauguration of the Elder Justice Coordinating Council.

A FDA committee endorsed approval of a new drug to treat Alzheimer’s from Eli Lily called donanemab. You can download a copy of the presentation here (PDF).

FROM THE NOTEBOOK:

• A new analysis is calling on the federal government to abolish Medicare Advantage, given the fact that it costs the government more than traditional Medicare while providing less services.

• The NY Times did a deep dive on a new model of care for homeless people in nursing facilities.

• They also reported on resident on resident aggression in healthcare settings.

• Healthcare cyberattacks are not unique to the United States. A recent cyberattack in London is going to take months to resolve, highlighting the growing problem.

• Voters in California will have a chance to directly weigh in on whether providers should be paid more for accepting Medicaid beneficiaries.

• Axios explored what large retailers might do as they struggle to enter the healthcare market.

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