During the COVID-19 outbreak, we published a regular newsletter with emergency updates. We also have a COVID-19 Resources page with updated summaries reflecting the current state of health policy.
On December 11th, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) released a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for the 2021 Integrated Substance Use Disorder Training program. The purpose of this program is to expand the number of nurse practitioners (NPs), physician assistants (PAs), health service psychologists, and/or social workers trained to provide mental health and…
Continue readingOn December 9th, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Center for Substance Abuse Treatment released a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) for the Enhancement and Expansion of Treatment and Recovery Services for Adolescents, Transitional Aged Youth, and their Families grant program (Youth and Family TREE). The purpose of this program is to enhance…
Continue readingOn December 3rd, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Administration for Community Living (ACL) released a funding opportunity for the 2021 Empowering Communities to Address Behavioral Health and Chronic Pain through Chronic Disease Self-Management Education (CDSME) Program. The goals of this program are to: Develop a comprehensive strategy for addressing behavioral health…
Continue readingLast week, the New York State Department of Health (DOH) released a draft version of its Medicaid Redesign Team (MRT) Waiver Demonstration Extension Request. The extension request seeks a three-year extension (April 1, 2021-March 31, 2024) of all current programs and authorities under the State’s current MRT Waiver Demonstration, and the following two programmatic amendments:…
Continue readingOn December 10th, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and the Office of the National Coordinator proposed a rule that, if finalized, would place new requirements on state Medicaid and CHIP fee-for-service programs, Medicaid managed care plans, CHIP managed care entities, and Qualified Health Plan issuers on the Federally-facilitated Exchanges. The rule seeks to…
Continue readingOn December 2nd, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released a final rule that updates the Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) and Ambulatory Surgical Center (ASC) Payment System for calendar year 2021. The final rule increases both OPPS and ASC payment rates by 2.4 percent and updates regulations regarding hospital Star Rating…
Continue readingFederal Update Congress Prepares to Vote on COVID-19 Relief and Government Funding Package Today (December 21st), Democratic and Republican Congressional leaders announced that they had reached an agreement on a new emergency COVID-19 relief and omnibus spending package to avert a government shutdown. The COVID-19 relief package consists of approximately $900 billion of funding for households and businesses, testing, vaccine distribution,…
Continue readingOn December 1st, CMS released a final rule to establish the CY 2021 Physician Fee Schedule. It includes significant changes to reimbursement for evaluation & management services relative to other services, changes to telehealth coverage during and after the PHE, and changes to scope of practice and direct supervision requirements. The rule also revises the…
Continue readingState Updates Governor Cuomo Announces COVID-19 Vaccine Updates, Addresses Budget Concerns On December 16th, Governor Cuomo held a press conference during which he announced updates on the State’s COVID-19 vaccination efforts. The State has received 87,750 doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine to date, with approximately 80,000 additional doses expected in the coming days to support…
Continue readingState Updates Governor Cuomo Issues Executive Order 202.82 on Vaccination Processes On December 13th, Governor Cuomo signed Executive Order (EO) 202.82 (available here), which authorizes the use of new/temporary vaccination sites for administering the COVID-19 and influenza vaccines. At these Points of Dispensing (PODs) and other vaccination sites, which will be approved and overseen by the…
Continue readingOn November 18th, the New York State Office of Community Renewal (OCR) released a Request for Applications (RFA) for 2020 State Funded Housing Programs. OCR will award up to $9 million in State funding for the following programs: Access to Home Access to Home for Heroes (veterans) Access to Home for Medicaid Recipients Mobile &…
Continue readingOn June 17th, the New York State Department of Health (DOH) issued a public notice in the State Register of its intention to transition the current Adult Behavioral Health Home and Community Based Services (BH HCBS) to a new service array called Behavioral Health Adult Rehabilitation Services. DOH’s goal was to simplify this service array…
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