Enhancing The Medical Workforce In Rural And Underserved Communities

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued a proposed rule for inpatient and long-term care hospitals that builds on the Biden Administration’s key priorities to close health care equity gaps and provide greater accessibility to care. Major provisions in the proposed rule would fund medical residency positions in hospitals in rural and underserved communities to address workforce shortages and require hospitals to report COVID-19 vaccination rates among their workers to contain the spread of the virus. 

More information can be obtained at https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/press-releases/cms-proposes-enhance-medical-workforce-rural-and-underserved-communities-support-covid-19-recovery.

 

How Might State Medicaid and Other Health Programs Be Affected in the Pandemic's Aftermath?

A report from the Urban Institute examines how state Medicaid and other health programs responded to the COVID-19 pandemic and its related economic downturn. It also explores the outlook for these programs in the year ahead as governors and state legislatures work to balance their FY 2022 budgets.  

The report can be obtained at https://www.urban.org/sites/default/files/publication/104168/how-might-state-medicaid-and-other-health-programs-be-affected-in-the-pandemics-aftermath.pdf.

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President Biden's American Families Plan Proposal

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Earlier today, President Biden unveiled his American Families Plan, which includes $1.8 trillion in new spending and is the second part of his infrastructure proposal. A fact sheet is available here. The President will discuss the proposal tonight as part of his first joint address to Congress. The proposal calls for expanding existing institutional aid grants to HBCUs, TCUs, and MSIs, and explicitly states that they may use such funding to create or expand educational programs in high-demand fields such as allied health.

Senate Guidelines on Congressionally Directed Spending (Earmarks)

The Senate has released their guidelines on on congressionally directed spending, commonly known as earmarks. They differ from the House guidelines in that there is no limit to the number of earmarks Senators may request. The Senate timeline for earmark requests has yet to be announced,,

The Senate guidelines may be accessed here. Our prior coverage on earmarks in the House may be accessed here.

House Hearings on Telehealth, Education and Labor Budgets

On Wednesday, April 28, at 2:00pm Eastern, the House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee will hold a hearing on “Charting the Path Forward for Telehealth”. On Wednesday, April 28, at 10:00am Eastern, the House Appropriations L-HHS-ED Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the FY 22 Labor Budget Request with Secretary Marty Walsh. On Wednesday, May 5, at 10:00am Eastern, the Appropriations L-HHS-ED Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the FY 22 Education Budget Request with Secretary Miguel Cardona.

The House Ways & Means hearing may be accessed here, the House Appropriations L-HHS-ED Subcommittee hearings with Labor Secretary Walsh and Education Secretary Cardona may be accessed here and here.

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Nearly Three in Ten Health Care Workers Consider Leaving Their Profession

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According to a Washington Post-Kaiser Family Foundation poll, roughly three in 10 health care workers have weighed leaving their profession, more than half are burned out, and about six in 10 say stress from the pandemic has harmed their mental health. Younger health care workers were more likely to report feeling burned out about going to work.

The Washington Post article may be accessed here, and the survey results cited may be accessed here.

ACA’s “Family Glitch” Is Making Health Insurance Unaffordable For Mill

Under the Affordable Care Act, individuals can receive premium subsidies when they buy marketplace health plans unless they have been offered affordable coverage from their employer. What is considered affordable is based only on the employee’s costs. A report from the Commonwealth Fund shows how what has come to be known as the family glitch bars low-income families from accessing affordable marketplace coverage.  

The report can be obtained at ACA Family Glitch Increases Health Costs for Millions of Families | Commonwealth Fund.

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GAO Report on the CARES Act HEERF Funds

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The U.S. Government Accountability Office has released a new report, “COVID-19: Emergency Financial Aid for College Students under the CARES Act”. The report provides details on how the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) emergency student aid funds were provided to schools under the CARES Act, as well as how schools distributed emergency student aid to eligible students.

The GAO highlights and full report may be accessed here.

Affordability Challenges In The Nongroup Health Insurance Market

A new report from AARP explores affordability challenges facing 50- to 64-year-olds who rely on the nongroup market using 2019 data, including unaffordable premium and out-of-pocket costs. 

The report can be obtained at https://www.aarp.org/content/dam/aarp/ppi/2021/03/affordability-challenges-older-adults-nongroup-market.doi.10.26419-2Fppi.00099.008.pdf.

ASAHP and Higher Education Groups Release Statement In Support of Voting Rights

ASAHP was one of forty-eight higher education organizations to join in issuing a statement opposing efforts, currently being pursued in several states, to make it more difficult to vote. The statement reads, “We strongly oppose the many efforts currently underway across the nation to suppress voting by qualified voters. We stand with all who seek to expand rather than restrict voting and civic participation. We are particularly concerned with proposals that would roll back some of that progress by raising barriers to student voting, including prohibiting students from using their campus addresses to register or qualify for absentee ballots. Exercising the right to vote should not be controversial or challenging. The right to vote defines us as a nation. We call on lawmakers to take action to ensure that civic participation in America continues to move forward, not backward, and that the United States has the most inclusive and equitable democracy in the world.”

An article by Insider Higher Ed may be accessed here, and the full statement may be accessed here.

Research And Development In The Pharmaceutical Industry

A report from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) assesses trends in spending for prescription drug research and development (R&D) and the introduction of new prescription drugs. CBO also examines factors that determine how much drug companies spend on R&D.  

The report can be obtained at https://www.cbo.gov/system/files/2021-04/57025-Rx-RnD.pdf

Biden-Harris Administration Releases FY 22 Budget Outline

On Friday, the Biden-Harris Administration released their budget outline for FY 2022. The Administration proposed a $118 billion (8.4 percent) increase in spending relative to the FY 2021 level. The non-defense portion of discretionary spending would be increased by $106 billion (16 percent) while defense spending would be increased by $12 billion (1.7 percent). The proposal includes $102.8 billion for the Department of Education, a $29.8 billion (41 percent) increase over the 2021 enacted level. The discretionary request increases the maximum Pell Grant by $400, the largest one-time increase since 2009. This investment is one piece of a more comprehensive proposal to double the maximum Pell Grant. The President’s request includes $131.7 billion for HHS, a $25 billion (23.5 percent) increase from the 2021 enacted level. The proposal includes includes $8.7 billion for CDC, an increase of $1.6 billion over the 2021 enacted level, and provides $1.6 billion, more than double the 2021 enacted level, for the Community Mental Health Services Block Grant. The discretionary request provides additional funding to increase the diversity of the healthcare workforce and expand access to culturally competent care. The discretionary request also includes $153 million for CDC’s Social Determinants of Health program, an increase of $150 million over the 2021 enacted level, to support all States and Territories in improving health equity and data collection for racial and ethnic populations. More budget details are expected to be released later this Spring.

A summary of the President’s discretionary funding request is available here. A press release is available here.

House Hearing on the FY 22 Budget Request for the Department of Health and Human Services

On Thursday, April 15, at 10:00am Eastern, the House Appropriations Commmittee’s LHHSED Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the FY 2022 Budget Request for the Department of Health and Human Services. Secretary Xavier Becerra will testify. On Tuesday, April 13, at 2:30pm Eastern, the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs will hold a hearing entitled “The Student Debt Burden and Its Impact on Racial Justice, Borrowers, & The Economy.” On Thursday, April 15, at 10:00am Eastern, the Senate HELP Committee will hold a hearing on the nomination of James Kvaal to serve as Undersecretary of Education.

More information may be accessed here, here, and here.

House Hearing on Improving Access to Behavioral and Mental Health Care

On Thursday, April 15, at 10:15am Eastern, the House Education and Labor’s Subcommittee on Health, Education Labor, and Pensions Committee will hold a hearing, “Meeting the Moment: Improving Access to Behavioral and Mental Health Care”.

More information may be accessed here and the hearing may be viewed live here.

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Trust In The CDC Declined During COVID-19 Pandemic

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According to new RAND survey data, public trust in the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention fell by about 10% from May to October 2020, a critical period of the COVID-19 pandemic.  

More information can be obtained at Decline in Trust in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention During the COVID-19 Pandemic | RAND.

Department of Education to Review Title IX

Today, in a letter to stakeholders, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights (OCR) announced that it was undertaking a review of Title IX regulations. OCR will hold an upcoming public hearing in the next few weeks, at a date to be announced, and plans to issue a question-and-answer document in the coming months. Furthermore, OCR anticipates publishing in the Federal Register a notice of proposed rulemaking to amend the Department’s Title IX regulations. This notice will provide stakeholders with an additional opportunity to respond through a formal notice-and-comment period.

The letter from the Department of Education may be accessed here. An overview from the Chronicle of Higher Education may be accessed here.

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U.S. Department of Education Discharges Over $1.6 billion in HBCU Capital Finance Debt

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The U.S. Department of Education discharged $1.6 billion of debt provided to Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) that participate in the HBCU Capital Financing Program. This action will provide debt relief to 45 HBCUs. The Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act (CRRSAA) signed into law in December 2020 provided authority and funding to discharge debts held by HBCUs under the HBCU Capital Financing Program. 

The U.S. Department of Education press release may be accessed here.

Biden-Harris Administration Announces Infrastructure Package

On Wednesday, the Biden-Harris Administration announced their infrastructure package, the American Jobs Plan. The proposal, expected to amount to between $2.2 and $2.7 trillion, includes $400 billion towards home or community-based care for aging relatives and people with disabilities, $100 billion for broadband, $100 billion for workforce development, $12 billion for community college infrastructure, and $20 billion for upgrading research infrastructure in laboratories to be reserved for HBCUs and MSIs, including the creation of a new national lab focused on climate that will be affiliated with an HBCU. The proposal also calls for a $10 billion R&D investment at HBCUs and other MSIs, and $15 billion for creating up to 200 centers of excellence at these institutions. A second infrastructure proposal, the American Families Plan, is expected to be announced later in April.

The White House Fact Sheet on the American Jobs Plan may be accessed here. Reporting from Inside Higher Ed may be accessed here, and reporting from the Chronicle of Higher Education may be accessed here.