News

Sens. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Rob Portman, R-Ohio, introduced the Senate companion to the Post-Disaster Mental Health Response Act (S. 3677), AHA-supported legislation that would expand the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Crisis Counseling Assistance and Training Program to federally-designated emergencies.

As Russia attempts to advance its political interests by its invasion of Ukraine through the use of its military, we have also seen stepped up cyberattacks attributed to Russia in recent days on major networks in Ukraine.

The Agency for Health Care Research and Quality named as its new director Robert “Bob” Otto Valdez, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation professor emeritus of family and community medicine and economics at the University of New Mexico.

Million Hearts 2027 is a national initiative to prevent one million heart attacks, strokes, and other cardiovascular events over the next five years.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said some people may wish to receive their second dose of the Pfizer or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine up to eight weeks after the first, especially males aged 12 to 39.

The AHA recommended hospitals and health systems take certain immediate steps to protect against increased cyber risks to the U.S. health system stemming from the ongoing military operations in the Russia/Ukraine region.

A federal judge in Texas struck down certain parts of the federal government’s surprise medical billing regulations related to the arbitration process for determining payment for services by out-of-network providers, saying the regulations conflict with the text of the No Surprises Act. 

The Health Resources and Services Administration will distribute $560 million in Provider Relief Fund “Phase 4” payments to providers who experienced revenue losses and expenses related to the COVID-19 pandemic based on changes in operating revenues and expenses from July 1, 2020, to March 31, 2021, the Department of Health and Human Services announced.

The Justice Department joined Minnesota and New York in filing a federal lawsuit to stop UnitedHealth Group from acquiring Change Healthcare, alleging the proposed $13 billion transaction would harm competition in commercial health insurance markets and in the market for a vital technology used to process claims and reduce health care costs.  

Commenting today on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ hospital inpatient prospective payment system final rule for fiscal year 2022, the AHA expressed concern that the rule prioritizes Health Professional Shortage Areas and training time in HPSAs when distributing new graduate medical education slots to teaching hospitals.

The Food and Drug Administration yesterday listed all over-the-cou

The U.S. maternal mortality rate increased to 23.8 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2020 from 20.1 in 2019 as rates for Black and Hispanic women increased, according to data released today by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services yesterday removed the Accountable Care Organization Transformation Track from the Community Health Access and Rural Transformation Model.

AHA is launching a special two-part podcast series featuring guests from the organization’s most downloaded podcasts.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will host a conference call for health care providers Feb. 23 at 2 p.m. ET on the No Surprises Act’s continuity of care, provider directory and public disclosure requirements.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will host a March 1 call for stakeholders on its recent request for information on barriers to accessing health care coverage and services through Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program.

The Federal Communications Commission Friday adopted a notice proposing changes to the Rural Health Care Program, which provides funding to help rural health care providers expand telehealth services.

President Biden released a notice extending the national emergency declaration for the COVID-19 pandemic beyond March 1. The notice will be published in tomorrow’s Federal Register. It does not indicate an end date for the emergency declaration. 

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought many new challenges to America’s health care system. It also has exacerbated existing issues that were already in need of attention before the pandemic. 

A new four-part tool is available to help hospitals and health systems estimate the cost and benefit of interventions to prevent health care-associated infections.