Senate HELP Committee Hearing on Lowering Drug Prices

The U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions discussed the issue and potential solutions of drug prices. Providing more transparency for patients, lower drug prices, and prohibiting gag clauses were areas of bipartisan agreement. Specific topics discussed were drug rebates, how HHS is handling refugee children, drug negotiations, and drug pricing transparency. Committee Democrats acknowledged that there are ideas in the President’s blueprint that they could agree with.

Full memo can be accessed here.

Best Practices For Increasing Academic Completion Rates By Students

A new report from the education research group, Third Way, provides an extensive review of completion initiatives across a spectrum of institutions. Using IPEDs data, the report shows that almost 600 of the nation’s approximately 3,000 four-year campuses report that less than one-third of their freshmen earned a four-year bachelor’s degree in six years. 

The report can be obtained at http://thirdway.imgix.net/pdfs/completion-reforms-that-work-how-leading-college-are-improving-the-attainment-of-high-value-degrees.pdf.

 

Impact Of Alternative Measures Of Age On Research Conclusions

As average life spans have lengthened, age is no longer the best measure to compare well-being and behavior between different generations. A report from the Urban Institute proposes two alternative measures of “age” based on life expectancy that can provide better insights into the conditions and future needs of older adults.

The report can be obtained at https://www.urban.org/sites/default/files/publication/98523/how_alternative_measures_of_age_can_affect_research_conclusions_1.pdf.

House Committee Holds Hearings with Sec. DeVos and Sec. Azar

This week the House Education and the Workforce Committee held hearings examining the policies and priorities of the Department of Education and separately of the Department of Health and Human Services. Secretary Betsy DeVos and Secretary Alex Azar, respectively, provided testimony. 

ASAHP's memo on the Sec. DeVos hearing may be accessed here. ASAHP's memo on the Sec. Azar hearing may be accessed here. 

Graduate STEM Education For The 21st Century

The U.S. system of graduate education in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) has served the nation and its science and engineering enterprise. Continuous, dramatic innovations in research methods and technologies, changes in the nature and availability of work, shifts in demographics, and expansions in the scope of occupations needing STEM expertise raise questions about how well the current STEM graduate education system is meeting the full array of 21st century needs. The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine released a new report that provides recommendations to advance graduate STEM education.

The report can be obtained at https://www.nap.edu/login.php?record_id=25038&page=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nap.edu%2Fdownload%2F25038.

Medicare Trust Fund Solvent Until 2016

The Medicare Hospital Insurance Trust Fund will have sufficient funds to cover its obligations until 2026, three years earlier than projected last year, according to the latest annual report from the Medicare Board of Trustees. The projected 75-year actuarial deficit in the Hospital Insurance Trust Fund is 0.82% of taxable payroll, up from 0.64% in last year’s report. Medicare’s total costs under current law will rise steadily from their current level of 3.7% of gross domestic product in 2017 to 5.9% in 2042. 

The report can be obtained at https://www.cms.gov/Research-Statistics-Data-and-Systems/Statistics-Trends-and-Reports/ReportsTrustFunds/Downloads/TR2018.pdf.

Improving Care At The End Of Life

While the expanded use of hospice in recent years is helping to better meet the needs of these patients, Medicare limits hospice benefits to those with a life expectancy of less than six months. A post from the Commonwealth Fund discusses advanced illness management programs, which seek to fill the gap in end-of-life care for patients who need help earlier.

The post can be obtained at http://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/blog/2018/may/advanced-illness-management.

Challenges Facing The Poorest Medicaid Beneficiaries

Medicaid expansion has brought health coverage to many low-income, childless adults who previously didn’t qualify for public insurance programs. A new Commonwealth Fund issue brief examines the complex needs of this population in Minnesota, one of the handful of states that opted to broaden Medicaid eligibility prior to the Affordable Care Act’s expansion of the program in 2014.

The issue brief can be obtained at http://www.commonwealthfund.org/~/media/files/publications/issue-brief/2018/may/shippee_complex_needs_mn_medicaid_expansion_ib.pdf.

The Condition Of Education

The Condition of Education is a congressionally mandated annual report summarizing important developments and trends in education using the latest available data. The 2018 report from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) presents 47 indicators on topics ranging from prekindergarten through postsecondary education, as well as labor force outcomes and international comparisons. Also included in the report are three Spotlight indicators that provide more in-depth analyses on selected topics.

The report can be obtained at https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2018/2018144.pdf.

Health Sector Employment

According to a Labor Brief from the Altarum Institute, the health care sector added 24,400 new jobs in April 2018, consistent with the 12-month average of 25,500 new jobs per month, but enough to propel the health share of total U.S. jobs to 10.76%, a new all-time high. Hospitals added 8,000 jobs in April, and ambulatory settings such as physician offices and home health added 16,900 new jobs. While health job growth appears to have stabilized at around 2%, compared to 1.5% for non-health jobs, the share of health sector jobs continues its relentless upward trend, mirroring the growth in the health spending share of GDP.

The Labor Brief can be obtained at https://altarum.org/sites/default/files/uploaded-related-files/SHSS-Labor-Brief_May_2018.pdf.

Making Health Care More Affordable

During the annual membership meeting of the American Hospital Association (AHA), hospital and health systems leaders shared affordability strategies at a panel discussion. Ways of doing so include using data and reexamining pricing and managing risk to make health care more efficient and affordable.

A video of the panel discussion can be can be viewed at https://www.aha.org/news/insights-and-analysis/2018-05-29-hospital-and-health-system-leaders-share-affordability.

Students Eligible For Financial Aid Fail To Receive It

Last year alone, more than 900,000 low-income students who applied for and were found eligible for state financial aid for college never received it because states ran out of money, according to a new analysis of data by The Hechinger Report. The number is likely much higher and it’s not just a few states that have a severe shortage. In ten states. More than half of eligible students didn’t receive a grant.

More information can be obtained at http://hechingerreport.org/eligible-for-financial-aid-almost-one-third-of-students-never-get-it/.

 

Findings From Hospital CIO Cloud Perspectives Survey

Despite growing interest in cloud storage and applications, many healthcare organizations are holding back due to concerns about compliance, security, and privacy, according to a new Datica survey of hospital CIOs. In all, 17.7% of respondents said their organizations have more than half of their existing software infrastructure remotely hosted or in the cloud and 15% said a quarter to half of their infrastructure is cloud-based. Nearly a third (32%) called cloud hosting for existing applications a top five priority while 60% ranked it as a top 10 priority.

A report about the survey can be obtained at http://www.prweb.com/pdfdownload/15509052.pdf.

The Federal Budget: Overview And Issues For FY 2019 And Beyond

After a decline in budget deficits over the past several years, the deficit is projected to increase significantly in FY2019, according to a new report from the Congressional Research Service. Each fiscal year, Congress and the President engage in a number of activities that influence short- and long run revenue and expenditure trends. This report offers context for the current budget debate and tracks legislative events related to the federal budget.

The report can be obtained at https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R45202.pdf.

Department of Education Insights on Accreditation

In drafting a regulatory agenda for the oversight bodies for higher education institutions, the U.S. Department of Education is paying special attention to previously published recommendations that suggest reorienting accreditation toward its original focus of academic quality, a key adviser to Education Secretary Betsy DeVos said Tuesday.

Diane Auer Jones, a special adviser to the secretary, offered the remarks in a briefing before the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity, which oversees the country’s higher ed accreditors, on how the department is looking to reduce the regulatory burden on those organizations. 

The article may be accessed here. 

Income-Based Third-Party Payment Programs

A new Issue Brief from the Commonwealth Fund examines the potential of third-party payment programs to help low-income consumers obtain marketplace coverage. Funded by local hospital systems and run by independent nonprofits, these programs pay premium costs not covered by tax credits.

The Issue Brief can be obtained at http://www.commonwealthfund.org/~/media/files/publications/issue-brief/2018/may/dorn_third_party_payment_progs_ib.pdf.

Senate Committee Holds Hearing on Health Care Workforce Shortages

The Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions held a Full Committee hearing today, “The Health Care Workforce: Addressing Shortages and Improving Care”, which examined how to address health workforce shortages, giving particular attention to workforce shortages in rural areas. Testimony was provided by Dr. Kristen Goodell, of the Boston University School of Medicine, Dr. Julie Sanford of James Madison University, and Dr. Elizabeth Phelan of Elizabeth Phelan of the University of Washington. 

A memo on the hearing may be accessed here.