In the News

• As the Pandemic Struck, a Private-Equity Firm Went on a Nursing-Home Buying Spree (Barron’s)

• 340B Hospitals Lose Court Challenge to OPPS Rate Cut (AAMC)

• A routine ECG enhanced by artificial intelligence is better at identifying heart failure than a standard blood test (Health Analytics)

• Study: Evaluating dyspnea in the ED

• Government [Feds] moves to block Geisinger’s partial acquisition of Lewisburg-area hospital (PennLive)

• OIG: Mediare Overpaid Hospitals $267M for Post-Acute care Transfers to Home Health (Health Leaders)

• Emergency Department visits plunged as COVID-19 cases climbed, Yale study finds (Eureka!)

• CMS finalized 2021 Medicare payment rates for inpatient psychiatric facilities and hospices in addition to the $750M boost in skilled nursing facility reimbursement (RevCycle)

• Psychiatric visits to the emergency room rise despite the ACA (MedExpress)

• DOJ & State AGS Sue to Block Anthems’s Acquisition of CIGNA, AETNA’S Acquisition of HUMANA (justice.gov)

• Related: DOJ sues Cigna, alleging $1.4B in Medicare Advantage fraud (HealthCareDive)

• The COVID-19 Downturn Triggers Jump in Medicaid Enrollment (KHN)

• Study Using TriNetX Real-World Data Finds Cancer Screenings Fell 89% During COVID-19 (Newswire)

• HHS Extends Public Health Emergency (Revcycle)

• Early Impact Of CMS Expansion Of Medicare Telehealth During COVID-19 (Health Affairs)

• An Early Look at 2021 Premium Changes on ACA Exchanges and the Impact of COVID-19 on Rates (KFF)

• UVA pioneers study of genetic diseases with quantum computers (Newswise)

• Half of Hospitals to Operate in the Red By Year’s End (FierceHealth)

• Study identifies patient- and hospital-level risk factors for death in critically ill COVID-19 patients (MedicalExpress)

• COVID-19 Test Prices and Payment Policy (Health Systems Tracker)

• Data Reveals Chronic Disease Burden Among Individuals with HIV (HealthAnalytics)

• Association Between Federal Value-Based Incentive Programs and Health Care–Associated Infection Rates in Safety-Net and Non–Safety-Net Hospitals (JAMA Network)

• Hospitalization for acute heart failure: the in-hospital care pathway predicts one-year readmission (Nature/Scientific Reports)

• Will the COVID-19 pandemic leave a mental health crisis in its wake? (Medical Express)

• Cost of preventable adult hospital stays topped $33 billion in 2017 (The Hospitalist)

• HCUP Statistical Brief #59, June 2020: Characteristics and Costs of Potentially Preventable Inpatient Stays, 2017 (HCUP)

• Nursing Homes & Covid-19

• Virus toll unknown in nation’s nursing homes (Daily Item)

• NY count: 6,300 Covid virus patients were sent to nursing homes (Boston Herald/ AP)

• Related: NY DOH report blames nursing home staff for coronavirus infections (Binghampton)

• Health regulators did not inspect Maryland nursing homes for more than a month as coronavirus pandemic raged (Baltimore Sun)

• Advocates Seek Better COVID-19 Protections For Nursing Home Residents (WFPL)

• Overwhelmed nursing homes kept taking new patients. Some got sick and died (Union Bulletin)

• Hollowed-Out Public Health System Faces More Cuts Amid Virus (KHN)

• Related: KHN How We Reported ‘Underfunded And Under Threat’

• COVID-19's financial impact on hospitals in Ohio is $3.3 billion to date, state hospital association says (Crains)

• Preterm Birth Ups Mom's Long-Term Heart Disease Risk: Study (US News/Health Day)

• Coronavirus Live Updates: 54,000 Deaths in the U.S. Are Linked to Nursing Homes (NYT)

• AHA urges CMS to keep relaxed regulations beyond crisis (HealthDive)

• Prior Authorization Burden Continues to Rise, Physicians Report (RevCycle)

• AMA Survey Summary (AMA)

• Court Upholds CMS’ Hospital Price Transparency Final Rule (HealthLeaders)

• Memorandum Opinion (US Courts.Gov)

• An Early Look at the Potential Implications of the COVID-19 Pandemic for Health Insurance Coverage (Commonwealth Fund)

Blogs We Follow

Popular Site Destinations

AHPA National Directory

CON Mapbook

CON Service Matrix

Job Bank

No current postings at AHPA

Federal Agency Blogs

COVID-19 Information

Starting Points:

• U. S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC)
• State Health Departments
• NACCHO Directory Local Health Departments
• CMS Nursing Home Covid Data (1st report 5/24/2020)

• Related GAO Report: Infection Control Deficiencies Were Widespread and Persistent in Nursing Homes Prior to COVID-19 Pandemic

Guides & Resources for Reopening Workspaces:

• Kaiser Permanente Releases COVID-19 Playbook: Planning For The Next Normal At Work
• CDC Interim Guidance for Businesses and Employers Responding to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)

• CDC Workplace Decision Tree
• Summary of CDC guidelines on reopening businesses after the pandemic (Tech Republic)

Additional Resources:

• John Hopkins ABX Guide: Coronavirus COVID-19
• The Covid Tracking Project:
• Oxford Martin School’s Our World Data -Covid 19
• University Of Minnesotta CIDRAP Covid Resources
• JAMA Sponsored Live Stream Q & A with CDC
• Kaiser Family Foundation COVID-19 News and Reports
• NEJM : A collection of articles and other resources on the Coronavirus (Covid-19)
• Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME): COVID-19 Resources
• Xtelligent Healthcare: Ongoing Updates on Latest Coronavirus for the Healthcare Community
• Penn Center for Research on Coronavirus and Other Emerging Pathogens Webinars (You Tube Channel)

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