On March 9, 2020, the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC) and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) finalized rules to prevent information-blocking practices and anti-competitive behaviors by healthcare providers, developers of certified health IT products, health information exchanges and other information networks. It also specifies the reasonable and necessary activities that do not constitute information blocking. 

Covered actors must comply with the information blocking requirement nine months after the publication of the Final Rule; however, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, enforcement will not begin until November 1, 2020. 

On July 27, 2020, Senate Republicans outlined their fourth phase of federal coronavirus response efforts, rolling out their legislative package as enhanced unemployment benefits are beginning to expire for millions of Americans who are out of work due to the coronavirus pandemic. The proposal is the culmination of talks between the White House and Senate Republicans and represents the opening bid in negotiations with congressional Democrats, who passed a $3 trillion measure in May. 

House Democrats on May 12, 2020 unveiled their latest round of legislation to provide Americans with economic relief from the coronavirus pandemic. The bill, entitled the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (HEROES) Act, would add an additional $175 billion to the Public Health and Social Services Emergency Fund, including $100 billion for the Provider Relief Fund. 

On September 14, 2018, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued OMB Bulletin No. 18-04, which superseded the April 10, 2018 OMB Bulletin No. 18-03. These bulletins established revised delineations for Metropolitan Statistical Areas, Micropolitan Statistical Areas, and Combined Statistical Areas (collectively known as Core Based Statistical Areas, or CBSAs), and provided guidance on the use of the delineations of these statistical areas. 

On April 14, 2020, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced that it will use this bulletin as the basis for new CBSAs when determining the area wage index (AWI) adjustments for health care facilities like skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) and acute care hospitals.

On April 22, 2020, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) today announced how the agency plans to allocate the provider relief funding from the $100 billion Public Health and Social Services Emergency Fund. The fund, created by the CARES Act, is intended to provide relief for healthcare providers facing economic harm from the stoppage of elective procedures and the additional expenses incurred from caring for COVID-19 patients. 

On May 23, 2019, the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee released a discussion draft on legislation that would address healthcare costs, patient financial responsibility, surprise medical bills, and public health. The Lower Health Care Costs Act of 2019 aims to improve the overall patient experience of care while cutting down on out-of-pocket patient spending.

The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) Emergency Triage, Treat, and Transport (ET3) Model is a voluntary, five-year payment model intended to provide greater flexibility to ambulance care teams to address emergency health care needs of Medicare beneficiaries following a 911 call. The anticipated start date is January 2020. 

Concerned about rising health care costs and cost differences between sites of care for the same procedures, the U.S. Congress and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in recent years have begun implementing legislation and regulatory policies that would lower reimbursement for certain off-campus HOPDs to a level comparable with freestanding and/or non-hospital facilities. 

On March 11, 2019, President Donald Trump released his administration’s Fiscal Year 2020 budget request. The proposal asks for $2.7 trillion in spending cuts, a higher proposed reduction than any other administration in history.

 On September 18, 2018, a bipartisan group of six Senators introduced draft legislation that would limit health care providers’ ability to send patients “surprise bills” – unexpected out-of-network charges that can leave patients with substantial medical bills not covered by insurance. 

 On September 20, 2018, CMS issued a proposed rule that, if implemented, would no longer require that ambulatory surgical centers (ASCs) have a written transfer agreement with a hospital or ensure that all physicians performing surgery in the facility have admitting privileges in a hospital that meets certain Medicare requirements. 

On September 27, 2018, the House passed the FY 2019 Defense and Labor-HHS-Education “minibus” spending bill that includes a total of $90.5 billion for HHS, an increase in agency funding of $2.3 billion above FY 2018 levels. The bill, passed by a vote of 361-61, now heads to President Donald Trump’s desk ahead of the new fiscal year, which begins October 1. 

 As Congress scrambles to fund the government and avoid another shutdown, a little-known federal provision could make or break the medical marijuana industry. 

 The Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act (PAHPRA) of 2006 (Pub. L. 109-417) was developed in response to reports that federal programs created in the aftermath of September 11 and the anthrax mailing attacks still left communities unprepared to deal with public health emergencies. PAHPRA created new public health programs, and consolidated existing programs, under the authority of the Secretary of Health & Human Services and a newly created Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR). 

 The CREATES Act is intended to prevent pharmaceutical companies from blocking companies from producing generic drugs by refusing to sell drugs to the new companies or taking advantage of safety regulation to block new drugs.