Advocacy
July 30, 2021
On July 13, CMS released its annual Medicare Part B Physician Fee Schedule proposed rule.
Among other provisions, CMS proposes to:
Update reimbursement for Medicare Part B fee schedule services
Maintain certain telehealth services on...
July 27, 2021
Maine has been a leader in the nation over the past four months, from March through June 2021, in terms of the proportion of its population that has been fully vaccinated. This accomplishment is in spite of several major demographic and...
July 26, 2021 | Primary Care Collaborative
WASHINGTON, July 26, 2021 – The PCC and many of its members are among the 430 organizations that are sending a letter today to Congress to urge policymakers to address the “telehealth cliff.” The letter was co-led by the Alliance for...
July 2, 2021
On June 29, the Delaware House passed a bill that continues recent efforts to strengthen the primary care system in the state by:
Directing the Health Care Commission to monitor compliance with value-based care-delivery models and...
July 1, 2021 | Primary Care Collaborative
As states are ending state-level public health emergencies that temporarily added new telehealth payment coverage in Medicaid and other state-funded or -regulated programs and payers, many states are codifying telehealth payment parity for...
July 1, 2021 | Primary Care Collaborative
The California Department of Health Care Services solicited public comments on its draft request for proposal (RFP) for upcoming procurement of Medi-Cal (Medicaid) managed care plans. This is the first time California has conducted a...
July 1, 2021 | The Boston Globe
A task force of state lawmakers and health experts called on the Legislature to create a statewide office and a Cabinet-level position focused on equity, and to immediately initiate an equity-focused review of the state’s response to COVID...
July 1, 2021 | Primary Care Collaborative
The PCC is working with its members and other leaders in primary care to build unity and momentum for the bold changes the recent NASEM report calls for, particularly those related to payment reform. The report is an opportunity to shift...
July 1, 2021 | Primary Care Collaborative
In early June, the Department of Health and Human Services announced that a record 31 million Americans were enrolled in coverage related to the Affordable Care Act as of February 2021, demonstrating its role as a lifeline for people...
July 1, 2021 | Primary Care Collaborative
As discussion continues about how to extend the enhanced subsidies in the American Rescue Plan, which will expire at the end of 2022, there are calls for improving affordability of both premiums and out-of-pocket costs in marketplace plans...
July 1, 2021 | Primary Care Collaborative
Department of Health and Human Services
The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) announced $125 million in workforce grants to support 14 nonprofit private and public organizations’ efforts toward underserved communities...
July 1, 2021 | Primary Care Collaborative
Telehealth
Bills related to telehealth continue to be introduced in both houses of Congress. The Alliance for Connected Care has a comprehensive list of bills and summaries.
Expansion of Teaching Health Centers
Noting that “we need...
June 2, 2021
Congress is considering new legislation aimed at boosting funding for medical education with a goal of tackling a shortage of primary care doctors in underserved areas.
The Doctors of Community (DOC) Act introduced in the House of...
May 27, 2021 | Primary Care Collaborative
New CMS Administrator Confirmed
On May 25, Chiquita Brooks-LaSure was confirmed as the next Administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. She is the first Black woman to fill the role. Her confirmation process had...
May 27, 2021
The Maine legislature is considering “An Act Regarding Targets for Health Plan Investments in Primary Care and Behavioral Health” (LD 1196 ). It will likely be carried over to next year with a stakeholder workgroup working on details over...
May 27, 2021 | Primary Care Collaborative
The pandemic is having an outsized impact on Americans without health insurance. According to a report by Families USA, approximately one out of every three COVID-19 deaths nationally are linked to health insurance gaps. The federal...
May 27, 2021 | Primary Care Collaborative
Congress continues to weigh how telehealth should be treated after the public health emergency ends. In late April, the House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee held a hearing on the path forward for telehealth. Witnesses included Sinsi...
May 27, 2021 | Primary Care Collaborative
In late April, PCC issued a letter to the House and Senate leadership requesting $5 million in dedicated funding for the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality's (AHRQ) Center for Primary Care Research in fiscal year 2022. The center...
May 13, 2021
News release from the Primary Care Development Corporation, a PCC Executive Member:
PCDC Supports Legislation to Strengthen Primary Care in New York
Primary care is undervalued and underfunded, despite evidence that it improves health...
April 29, 2021 | Primary Care Collaborative
COVID-19 continues to take a disproportionate toll on communities of color. A recent study found that Black women are three times more likely than White men to die from COVID-19. And this month, the CDC released a pair of studies further...
