Updates & Analysis

In this update:  Federal Agencies CMS Releases 2026 Hospice Payment Rate Update Final RuleOn August 1st, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a final rule updating Medicare hospice payment rates and the aggregate cap amount for fiscal year (FY) 2026. The FY 2026 hospice payment update percentage is 2.6% (an estimated increase…

In this update:  Federal Opportunities HRSA Issues FY 2026 FQHC Service Area CompetitionOn July 22nd, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) posted a new Service Area Competition (SAC) opportunity for FY 2026. Through the SAC, organizations may apply to participate in the federally qualified health center (FQHC) program by taking over a grant in an…

In this update:  Trump Administration White House and Tech Leaders Announce CMS Health Tech Ecosystem Initiative On July 30th, the Trump Administration announced commitments from major health care and information technology firms to begin developing a next-generation digital health ecosystem. Amazon, Anthropic, Apple, Google, and OpenAI joined Epic, Athenahealth, eClinicalWorks and most of the largest insurers…

In this update:  Administration Updates White House Releases AI Action PlanOn July 23rd, the White House released its AI Action Plan to accelerate the adoption of AI across sectors with potential breakthroughs for the practice of medicine and drug discovery. The Plan is broken into three pillars – AI Innovation, AI Infrastructure, and International Diplomacy…

In this update:  Federal Agencies CMS Limits Medicaid and CHIP Demonstration Authority On July 17th, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) sent letters to states detailing new policies on continuous eligibility and workforce initiatives in both Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). In the interest of improving “the stewardship of federal funds,”…

In this update:  Administration Update SCOTUS Allows Trump Administration to Continue Mass Layoffs On July 8th, the Supreme Court issued an order allowing the Trump Administration to move forward with its ongoing agency restructuring and layoffs. A February executive order directed agencies to initiate sweeping “reductions in force” (RIF), but was blocked by a district judge…

In this update: Federal Opportunities SAMHSA Announces Over $7 Million in Funding for Targeted Substance Use Treatment ProjectsOn June 27th, the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) issued a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) seeking organizations to implement targeted strategies to improve treatment and services for substance usedisorder (SUD) and/or co-occurring substance…

In this update: Legislative Updates Senate and House Pass OBBBABy a vote of 218-214, the House passed the Senate’s amendments to the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) today, July 3rd. The budget reconciliation bill has been sent to the President, who is expected to sign it into law on July 4th. Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA)…

In this update:  NYS and NYC Opportunities DOH Seeks Contractor for Mental Health Prescreening and Evaluation of Transitional Adult Home ApplicantsOn June 24th, the New York State (NYS) Department of Health (DOH) issued an Invitation for Bids (IFB) seeking a single organization to provide mental health prescreen and evaluation services for people seeking admission to…

In this update:  Legislative Updates House Republicans Send Warning on Senate Medicaid ChangesOn June 24th, a group of moderate House Republicans penned a letter to Senate Majority Leader John Thune and House Speaker Mike Johnson warning that they “cannot support” a final reconciliation bill with the Senate’s Medicaid provisions and cuts, which are deeper than…

In this update:  Legislative Updates Senate Committees Release Reconciliation Bill LanguageOn June 16th, the Senate Finance Committee released its portion of the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” (OBBBA). The text includes several key departures from House-passed provisions, generally calling for even deeper cuts to Medicaid. Key changes from the House bill include:   Providers and other…

On June 16th, the Senate Finance Committee published proposed legislative text for their portion of the so-called “One Big Beautiful Bill”, the Republicans’ reconciliation legislative package. This includes versions of most of the health care proposals that were passed by the House. Notable changes that the Senate proposes include:  A draft summary table of the…