WHITE HOUSE:

The White House focused this week on a new national strategy on Critical & Emerging Technologies (CET) (the strategy is here; the current list of what’s considered CET, which includes biotech & AI, is available here – both are PDF links), advancing the US-Philippines relationship, and celebrating Small Business Week with a new report (PDF) highlighting their efforts. Two items of interest for us:

• The White House formally announced the end of several federal vaccine mandates when the PHE ends next Thursday, May 11. More below on CMS’ announcement for healthcare providers.

• They announced several new initiatives related to investment, oversight, and planned guidance for the use & development of AI systems. For those involved in healthcare technology that utilizes AI, it’s something to monitor.

CONGRESS:

With two new announcements this week (a Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report and a formal letter from the Treasury Secretary) that the debt ceiling may be hit as early as June 1, the President finally invited the four Congressional leaders to a discussion this week. The Senate continues to sit out the discussions (despite the White House looking to get Minority Leader McConnell involved), while House Democrats are utilizing several political tools to keep their options open and Leader McCarthy explores potential common ground for a path forward. Axios has a good summary of why the debt ceiling discussions are so important for healthcare providers. Elsewhere on the political front:

• The Senate Finance Committee held a hearing on “ghost networks”; i.e. Medicare Advantage plans that have inaccurate provider directories. The full video and testimony can be found here. They issued an internal report on the issue in which they found a less than 20% success rate in making appointments and finding providers. You can access a copy of the report here (PDF).

• Senate hearings on PBM’s and drug prices began in feisty fashion this week, as Congress explores new legislation to tackle the issue.

• A helpful explainer on the federal budget process from CQ (a legislative tracking firm). Free registration is required to access a copy.

• Even the NY Times Editorial Board is calling on Senator Feinstein to retire.

• In addition to the White House, Congress is also exploring how to regulate AI.

• A large coalition of 400+ companies, including AHCA, many Chambers of Commerce and quite a few national associations, sent a letter to Congress this week urging action on immigration. You can access a copy here (PDF).

• Finally, one interesting CRS report from this week: a guide to the PACT Act that Congress passed which expands access to medical care for veterans. You can download a copy here (PDF).

AGENCIES:

CMS released a new QSO (QSO-23-13-ALL) this week that provides practical guidance on the ending of the PHE next week. You can access a copy here (PDF). Pages 3 – 6 cover SNF’s, including the end of the 3-day stay waivers, Covid testing and vaccination requirements, among others.

For telehealth providers, HHS has a central resource page outlining how the end of the PHE impacts telehealth provision.

After receiving more than 38,000 public comments to their proposed rule issued in February that would end the ability of providers to providers to prescribe controlled medications via telehealth, the DEA plans on extending provider flexibility through a temporary rule that will be released shortly.

The OIG at HHS released a new audit on Medicare Part B payments for psychotherapy services during the first year of the pandemic, finding that Medicare improperly paid several providers. You can access copies of the report in brief and the full report (both PDF).

FROM THE NOTEBOOK:

• Highlighting the penetration of Medicare Advantage plans, the Kaiser Family Foundation found that, for the first time, more than 50% of eligible beneficiaries are now on Medicare Advantage plans. Skilled Nursing News, in an article released before the KFF study, looked at how challenging MA is to traditional SNF finances.

• HealthAffairs published a new blog post that argued that immigration alone won’t solve the staffing crisis.

• Modern Healthcare looked at the different states that offer tax incentives to encourage medical professionals to train new students, a model that can be used to potentially address staffing shortage. Registration with Modern Healthcare is required.

• Bloomberg examined how the end of the PHE will impacts SNF’s.

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