Tele-Mental Health Bill Could Lead To Permanent Telehealth Legislation

Telehealth stakeholders say the Senate Finance Committee’s discussion draft of tele-mental health policies, unveiled Thursday (May 26), could signal lawmakers are ready to consider broader legislation to cement COVID-19 pandemic telehealth flexibilities before the end of the 151-day extension of waivers in the omnibus funding package. The draft would eliminate the in-person requirement for behavioral health services under Medicare, support use of audio-only care when clinically appropriate and mandate studies on telehealth usage. A 151-day blanket extension of COVID-19 pandemic...
Article Type: 
Inside Telehealth Daily News
Site Name: 
InsideHealthPolicy.com
Author: 
Cara Smith
Topics: 
Not Top Story

Bipartisan Bill Extends Telehealth Use In Dialysis Clinics Post-COVID-19

A bipartisan, bicameral group of lawmakers on Thursday (May 26) introduced legislation that would continue COVID-19 pandemic flexibilities allowing patients with End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) to connect with providers via telehealth while receiving treatment in a dialysis clinic. The waiver that enabled a dialysis clinic to be a telehealth originating site under Medicare is attached to the COVID-19 public health emergency. Stakeholders are asking HHS to extend the COVID-19 pandemic public health emergency (PHE) beyond July to keep certain...
Article Type: 
Inside Telehealth Daily News
Site Name: 
InsideHealthPolicy.com
Author: 
Cara Smith
Topics: 
Not Top Story

HHS Axes Trump-Era Rule That Threatened Scores Of Health Care Regs

HHS on Thursday (May 26) withdrew a Trump-era final rule that would have automatically scrapped health agency regulations if they weren’t assessed every 10 years. The rule was universally disliked by industry and consumer groups, and a lawsuit against the rule said it could have eliminated thousands of regulations for public health, food and health systems. HHS in October began the process of repealing the Trump administration’s rule , Securing Updated and Necessary Statutory Evaluations Timely (SUNSET), which was published...
Article Type: 
Daily News
Tags: 
trump
enforcement
Site Name: 
InsideHealthPolicy.com
FDA Issue: 
FDA Week - 06/03/2022
FDA Volume: 
Vol. 28, No. 22
CMS Issue: 
Inside CMS - 06/02/2022
CMS Volume: 
Vol. 25, No. 22
HEA Issue: 
Health Exchange Alert Weekly Report - 06/01/2022
HEA Volume: 
Vol. 10, No. 22
Author: 
Beth Wang
Topics: 
ISSUE: INSIDE CMS
ISSUE: FDA WEEK
Health-Exchange-Alert
Biden Health Agenda

BMA Endorses Bipartisan Prior Authorization Reform Bill

Better Medicare Alliance on Thursday (May 26) announced its endorsement of a bipartisan bill that would streamline prior authorization for those enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans, which House sponsors are hoping to take directly to the floor after the bill passed the 290-cosponsor threshold earlier this month . While the Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act had previously garnered the support of over 400 health care organizations , BMA is the first Medicare Advantage group to sponsor the bill,...
Article Type: 
Daily News
Tags: 
prior-auth
MA
hospital
Site Name: 
InsideHealthPolicy.com
CMS Issue: 
Inside CMS - 06/02/2022
CMS Volume: 
Vol. 25, No. 22
Author: 
Bridget Early
Topics: 
ISSUE: INSIDE CMS
Congress

Committee On Finance Releases Tele-Mental Health Discussion Draft

The Senate Committee on Finance released a discussion draft of tele-mental health policies on Thursday (May 26) which is one part of the committee’s mental health care initiative that aims to improve mental health care access across the country. The report comes as telehealth stakeholders are gearing up to lobby lawmakers for additional legislation to increase telehealth access after the COVID-19 PHE and after the Biden administration announced plans to use telehealth to address the national mental health crisis. A...
Article Type: 
Inside Telehealth Daily News
Site Name: 
InsideHealthPolicy.com
Author: 
Cara Smith
Topics: 
Featured Content
Not Top Story

Sanders Expected To Push For Drug Imports In FDA User Fee Bill

Correction: An earlier version of this story confounded the status of applications for Maine and New Hampshire. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) is expected to try to amend FDA user fee legislation to allow for drug imports, several lobbyists said, though it’s not clear whether Senate health committee Chair Patty Murray (D-WA) will want to add the controversial measure to the must-pass legislation, even though drug importation has bipartisan support. Support from committee members would likely depend on...
Article Type: 
Inside Drug Pricing Daily News
Site Name: 
InsideHealthPolicy.com
IDP Issue: 
Inside Drug Pricing - 05/30/2022
IDP Volume: 
Vol. 5, No. 22
Author: 
John Wilkerson

Senators Urge FDA, USPTO To Coordinate Against Patent Thickets

In an effort to fight patent thickets, Sens. Maggie Hassan (D-NH) and Bill Cassidy (R-LA) are calling on FDA and the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to improve coordination on drug patents and explain how USPTO uses FDA information when reviewing drug-related patent applications. “The lack of coordination between the Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has allowed the pharmaceutical industry to obtain patents of questionable validity,” the senators wrote in a letter to the...
Article Type: 
Inside Drug Pricing Daily News
Site Name: 
InsideHealthPolicy.com
IDP Issue: 
Inside Drug Pricing - 05/30/2022
IDP Volume: 
Vol. 5, No. 22
Author: 
John Wilkerson

Press Release

Draft Bill Text


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