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The National Quality Forum’s Measure Applications Partnership recently initiated its statutorily required annual review of the quality measures that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is considering for use in federal programs.

The AHA praised a Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ proposed rule that would remove inappropriate barriers to patient care by streamlining the prior authorization processes for the impacted health plans; however the association said it was deeply disappointed that CMS chose not to include Medicare Advantage plans, “many of which have implemented abusive prior authorization processes that act as a detriment to the provision of efficient and timely patient care,” in the rule.  

New research conducted by the National Institutes of Health is shedding light on how COVID-19 affects patients’ brains.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency has extended through June 30, 2021, with changes, a temporary final rule designating certain scarce health and medical resources exclusively for domestic use during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Food and Drug Administration last month added to its device shortage list several device types, along with clarifying notes and resource links.

Rod Hochman, M.D., is trained as a rheumatologist and immunologist. He started his health care career as a clinical fellow in internal medicine at Harvard Medical School and Dartmouth Medical School and went into practice at the Guthrie Clinic in Pennsylvania.

The House of Representatives is expected to consider a continuing resolution that extends current federal funding levels through Dec. 20 while Congress continues negotiations on an omnibus appropriations bill and a COVID-19 relief package.

The AHA urged congressional leaders not include in any end-of-the year legislative package provisions that would impact private contract negotiations between providers – including hospitals and physicians – and health insurance plans.

Medicaid managed care organizations with enrollees dually eligible for Medicare can participate in the Direct Contracting Model’s Professional and Global Options beginning in January 2022, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced.

The International Code Council has named Jonathan Flannery, senior associate director of advocacy for the AHA’s American Society for Health Care Engineering, to a three-year term on the International Fire Code Development Committee, which evaluates and recommends proposed changes to the IFC fire code.

Sens. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, and John Thune, R-S.D., introduced the Improving Seniors' Tmely Access to Care Act (S. 5044), bipartisan legislation that would require Medicare Advantage plans to establish an electronic prior authorization system and provide “real-time” decisions for routine services and items.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services said that will audit a sample of hospitals in January for compliance with the agency’s hospital price transparency rule that takes effect Jan. 1, 2021.

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services released updated guidance for states and territories on Medicaid, Children’s Health Insurance Program and Basic Health Program coverage and reimbursement for COVID-19 vaccinations.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has extended to Feb. 1 at 8 p.m. ET the deadline for clinicians participating in the Merit-based Incentive Payment System to apply for an extreme and uncontrollable circumstances exception to reweight the MIPS performance categories.

In an article published in JAMA, Jonathan Perlin M.D., president, clinical operations, and chief medical officer, HCA Healthcare, discusses how with the COVID-19 pandemic, “the less appreciated ravage has been excess morbidity and mortality from patients who have forgone essential care due to patient fears of contracting COVID-19 in health care settings and to policy makers’ restrictions of care activities to ensure capacity” for COVID-19 patients.

The American Medical Association announced Current Procedural Terminology immunization and administration codes for reporting on medical claims the COVID-19 vaccine under development by AstraZeneca and University of Oxford.

The National Institutes of Health announced enrollment in phase 3 of the clinical trial of two disparate therapies. This trial is specifically looking at the safety and effectiveness of the therapeutics in people hospitalized with moderate COVID-19 symptoms.

The Food and Drug Administration’s Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee Dec. 17 recommended the approval of Moderna’s mRNA-1273 COVID-19 vaccine candidate.

To continue emphasizing the message of protecting against both the flu and COVID-19, AHA’s Wear A Mask and United Against the Flu campaigns released new resources, including new sample social media messages, several graphics and a video that hospitals and health systems can use to reiterate the importance of getting a flu shot, wearing a mask and practicing good hygiene.

To help advance the public’s confidence and trust in the safety of COVID-19 vaccines and their distribution, the AHA has launched a COVID-19 vaccine webpage for individuals.