News

The Department of Health and Human Services will work this year with the departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs and private sector stakeholders to develop a governance structure to improve and align federal health care quality programs while reducing administrative burden, according to a National Health Quality Roadmap released by HHS.

The AHA urged leaders of the House and Senate Appropriations Subcommittees on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies to support a number of issues important to hospitals and health systems as they consider funding for health care programs for fiscal year 2021.

Individuals and businesses can make a financial gift to Give a Mask, which donates high-quality, non-medical grade facemasks to hospitals and other community-based organizations through a partnership with the AHA’s 100 Million Mask Challenge.

An annual report into death by several factors tied to mental health and wellbeing — otherwise referred to as “deaths of despair” — topped 150,000 in 2018.

The CDC issued revised guidance for pediatric clinicians on caring for newborns with confirmed or suspected COVID-19 or known COVID-19 exposure, including birth to a mother with confirmed or suspected COVID-19.

A collaboration between the Department of Health and Human Services and AstraZeneca is projected to make available 300 million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine, the first of which could be available as early as October, HHS said.

On this Advancing Health podcast, Joy Lewis, AHA vice president of strategic policy planning, and Cathy Jacobson, CEO of Froedtert Health in Milwaukee and chair of AHA’s Changing Workforce Task Force, discuss the group’s efforts to advance thought leadership on workforce issues.

The Health and Public Health Sector Coordinating Council, a public-private partnership, released a crisis response guide to help health care providers respond to a critical incident.

Marking Mental Health Awareness Month, Robyn Begley, CEO of the American Organization for Nursing Leadership, writes that health care workers already faced burnout, addiction and suicide before COVID-19, and it’s important to tackle these issues now.

To facilitate tracheal intubation and provide skeletal muscle relaxation during surgery or mechanical ventilation, the Food and Drug Administration approved the use of succinylcholine chloride injection USP 200 mg/10 mL.

The National Cancer Institute and National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health, seek input through May 26 on research priorities for COVID-19 serology testing and related technologies, which are key to understanding immunity and developing vaccines against the virus.

The CDC has released a framework for providing non-COVID-19 clinical care during the pandemic, based on the level of community transmission and potential for patient harm from deferring in-person care.

CMS said that until Medicare sets national payment rates for COVID-19-related testing claims, its Medicare Administrative Contractors have authority to set payment amounts in their respective jurisdictions.

HHS reminded eligible health care providers that they have until June 3 to attest to receipt of payments from the Public Health and Social Services Emergency Fund, accept the terms and conditions and submit their revenue information to potentially qualify for an additional payment from the $50 billion general distribution.

The Health Resources and Services Administration, part of the Department of Health and Human Services, provided $225 million to rural health clinics for COVID-19 testing.

The AHA is encouraged by the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s proposal to use its authority under the Defense Production Act to establish a voluntary agreement of key private sector stakeholders to coordinate COVID-19 response and information sharing, the association told the agency.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services released early stakeholder insights from its Accountable Health Communities Model.

Hospitals can submit their stories of kindness in overcoming the COVID-19 pandemic by May 31 to be featured in Reader's Digest's Nicest Places in America 2020.

The AFL-CIO asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit to order the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to issue within 30 days an emergency temporary standard to protect U.S. workers from COVID-19 under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970.

In response to the significant impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on nursing homes, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services recommended criteria for state and local officials who are considering how to mitigate risks.