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Rural Health
News by Topic: Policy

May 10, 2024 - Call for volunteer experts in geriatrics, nursing, aging policy, disability policy, or workforce and caregiving to serve on the Forum on Aging, Disability, and Independence part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. Nominations are due May 31st.
Source: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
May 10, 2024 - Notice of final rule from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) implementing improvements to increase transparency and accountability, standardize data and monitoring, and create opportunities for States to promote active beneficiary engagement in their Medicaid programs, with the goal of improving access to care. These regulations are effective July 9, 2024.
Source: Federal Register
May 10, 2024 - Notice of final rule from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) advancing CMS' efforts to improve access to care, quality and health outcomes, and better address health equity issues for Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) managed care enrollees. This rule specifically addresses standards for timely access to care and States' monitoring and enforcement efforts, reduces burden for some State directed payments and certain quality reporting requirements, adds new standards that will apply when States use in lieu of services and settings (ILOSs) to promote effective utilization and specify the scope and nature of ILOS, specifies medical loss ratio (MLR) requirements, and establishes a quality rating system for Medicaid and CHIP managed care plans. These regulations are effective July 9, 2024.
Source: Federal Register
May 10, 2024 - Notice of final rule from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) establishing minimum staffing standards for long-term care facilities. This rule also requires states to report the percentage of Medicaid payments for certain Medicaid-covered institutional services that are spent on compensation for direct care workers and support staff. These regulations are effective on June 21, 2024, except for § 483.71, § 483.35(b)(1) and (c)(1), § 483.35(b)(1)(i) and (ii), and §§ 438.72(a) and 442.43 as indicated.
Source: Federal Register
May 9, 2024 - Reports on recent legislation to expand the definition of "village" in Alaska in an effort to increase eligibility for infrastructure funding for small communities. Notes how rural is defined, the potential for increased competition for funds, and the need to include rural partners in the discussion.
Source: Alaska Beacon
May 9, 2024 - Notice of final rule and interpretation from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) revising and amending its section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (section 504) regulations, which prohibits recipients of financial assistance from HHS from discrimination on the basis of disability in their programs and activities. This notice also summarizes and responds to public comments on the September 14, 2023, proposed rule. This rule is effective July 8, 2024.
Source: Federal Register
May 9, 2024 - Organizations and individuals are invited to submit nominations for Partnerships for Quality Measurement committees by June 7, 2024. Nominations are sought for a range of Pre-Rulemaking Measure Review committees in addition to Endorsement & Maintenance projects.
Source: Partnership for Quality Measurement
May 9, 2024 - Pre-publication notice of proposed rule from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) describing a new mandatory Medicare payment model, the Increasing Organ Transplant Access Model (IOTA Model). The IOTA Model would test whether performance-based incentive payments paid to or owed by participating kidney transplant hospitals increase access to kidney transplants for patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) while preserving or enhancing the quality of care and reducing Medicare expenditures. This proposed rule also describes standard provisions for CMS Innovation Center (CMMI) models relating to beneficiary protections, cooperation in model evaluation and monitoring, audits and records retention, rights in data and intellectual property, monitoring and compliance, and more. These standard provisions would apply to any CMMI model whose first performance period begins on or after January 1, 2025, and in whole or in part to any CMMI model whose first performance period began before January 1, 2025. Comments are due within 60 days of the publication of this notice, which is scheduled for May 17, 2024.
Source: Federal Register
May 9, 2024 - New funding has been allocated technical colleges by the Wisconsin legislature to address dental healthcare worker shortages across the state, driven primarily by shortages in rural communities.
Source: Wisconsin Public Radio
May 8, 2024 - Notice of final rule from the Administration for Community Living (ACL) modifying the Older Americans Act of 1965 regulations by adding a new subpart D regarding adult protective services (APS). This rule establishes mandatory minimum federal standards to govern APS program policies, procedures, and practices for state APS systems and programs that receive federal Elder Justice Act funding. Among other things, this rule includes definitions for foundational terms used in APS practices and requires state APS entities to define in their policies and procedures processes for receiving, screening, prioritizing, and referring cases based on the risk and nature of the adult maltreatment or self-neglect. This rule is effective on June 7, 2024. Regulated entities must fully comply with these regulations by May 8, 2028.
Source: Federal Register