March 26, 2020 | Reopening open enrollment
INDUSTRY NEWS
Several states have reopened their health insurance exchanges, giving uninsured residents a second chance to sign up for a health plan before the pandemic really hits. The states, Colorado, Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, New York, Rhode Island and Washington, all run their own exchanges and have more flexibility than states that don’t. California’s exchange is still open, and it will stay open through June. (Kaiser Health News)
Interoperability timelines “troubling”
Payer and provider groups are warning that the six- and nine-month timelines to implement interoperability regulations are “troubling” and unrealistic in light of the growing pandemic. “The timeline was overly ambitious in the first place. Add everyone’s response to the pandemic and the timeline is more difficult to meet,” AHIP’s Danielle Lloyd told FierceHealthcare. (FierceHealthcare)
INNOVATION & TRANSFORMATION
Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie said last week that the VA is prepared to help back up the nation’s health care system, if needed. The VA is designated by federal law to act as back-up to other hospitals in times of crisis. Over the past two weeks, the VA expanded hospital capacity, dropping occupancy in acute care beds from about 80% to over 60% to make room for possible civilian patients. “In war and in case of natural disaster or an epidemic, we are the surge force,” he told NPR. (NPR)
CONSUMERS & PROVIDERS
Will COVID-19 kill rural health care?
Long before COVID-19 emerged, rural health care had been pushed to the breaking point. The pandemic may be the final blow to those organizations that have managed to stay open thus far. “This virus, and what it is causing for these hospitals, is the perfect storm that will close these hospitals at a time this country critically needs them,” said Robin Rau, CEO of Miller County Hospital in southwestern Georgia. “This is going to be the death blow to them.” (Kaiser Health News)
Telehealth vendors need more doctors
Telehealth vendors are scrambling to hire and onboard doctors ASAP to meet the surging demand, Healthcare Dive reports. For example, telehealth vendor Amwell reports more than a 1,000% increase in virtual visits. The federal government rolled back regulatory barriers to telehealth use over the past week, including allowing virtual care visits to be covered under Medicare fee-for-service, but other barriers, including state licensing issues, remain. Efforts are also hampered by the growing shortage of physicians. (Healthcare Dive)
Primary care practices are facing desperate conditions due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to a survey of more than 500 primary care clinicians across 48 states. Close to half of primary care practices (46%) lack testing capacity for COVID-19 and just over half (51%) lack adequate personal protective equipment, according to the survey from the Larry A. Green Center and the Primary Care Collaborative conducted March 13-16. The survey will be conducted weekly, with results posted here. (Fierce Healthcare; PCC)
NEW & NOTED
Interop implementation delay? The Trump administration is considering extending the deadline for implementation of the new interoperability rules. Among the concerns: Implementation on the current timeline could pull people away from more pressing COVID-19-related work. (Fierce Healthcare)
Match Day, from a distance: This year, in-person Match Day celebrations were cancelled. Many, however, moved to a virtual setting, allowing students to still share their residency placements with each other. (Modern Healthcare)
In praise of health workers: Millions of heath care workers have more than stepped up during this pandemic, former CMS Chief Don Berwick writes in a New York Times opinion piece. He shares several heroic examples. “We are witnessing professionalism in its highest form, skilled people putting the interests of those they serve above their own interests.” (New York Times)
COVID-19 roundup: Several health care news organizations have added coronavirus-specific pages to their sites, including Kaiser Health News, Modern Healthcare, Medscape, MedPage Today and FierceHealthcare.
MULTI-MEDIA
To mark the 10th anniversary, the current episode of Kaiser Health News, “What the Health?” features an interview with Kathleen Sebelius, who was secretary of Health and Human Services during the development, passage and implementation of the Affordable Care Act. Then, journalists from Politico and KHN—all of whom covered the law from its inception—discuss the ACA’s past, present and future. (KHN)
MARKETVOICES...QUOTES WORTH READING
“As the world writhes in the grip of Covid-19, the epidemic has revealed something majestic and inspiring: millions of health care workers running to where they are needed, on duty, sometimes risking their own lives. I have never before seen such an extensive, voluntary outpouring of medical help at such a global scale.”—Don. Berwick, former CMS chief and president emeritus and senior fellow of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, in the New York Times