Week 58 Newsletter
05/11-05/17 Updates
Vaccine Information
New regulation from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services now requires long-term care facilities to report vaccination status of providers and their patients.
Vaccine Information
(05/11/21) CMS Expanding Efforts to Grow COVID-19 Vaccine Confidence and Uptake Amongst Nation’s Most Vulnerable
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced a new regulation requiring long-term care facilities and intermediate care facilities for individuals with intellectual disabilities to release information on the vaccination status of both providers and patients, beginning June 14, 2021.
Access to Care Issues
A shortage of mental health providers is limiting access to mental health care in rural communities, requiring primary care providers and other health care workers to take on additional roles.
Access to Care Issues
(05/11/21) Riding Herd on Mental Health in Colorado Ranching Country
Access to mental health services continues to be a major challenge in rural communities, made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic’s shuttering of many gathering places in these communities. While local public health departments identify the issues with mental health for these communities, there is a shortage of health care providers, requiring primary care providers and other health professionals to take on extra roles.
Changes to Organizational Policies and Guidelines
Some experts believe positive change in the US health care industry will be the ultimate result of the COVID-19 pandemic, with patient-focused at-home care and telemedicine leading the way.
Changes to Organizational Policies and Guidelines
(05/13/21) How Health Care in the US May Change After COVID: An Optimist’s Outlook
This interview from NPR speaks to Dr. Shantanu Nundy, a primary care physician and chief medical officer of Accolade, discusses some of the positive changes made to health care delivery in the United States as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The rapid transition to patient-focused at-home and telemedicine services is seen as a positive by Dr. Nundy, who favors a decentralized model of distributed health care.
Telehealth
A podcast examines 3 important questions about the future of telehealth in the US, focusing on payment parity, payment reform, and barriers to implementation.
Some COVID-19 pandemic relief funding has been allocated for the US Department of Health and Human Services Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program, which enables telehealth services to be used for families.
Telehealth
(05/14/21) Podcast: 3 Unanswered Questions for Telehealth’s Future
This episode of the Health Affairs podcast, Health Affairs This Week, looks at the questions remaining following the rapid implementation and expansion of telehealth services in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The three main questions addressed include: Should Medicare continue payment parity? Where does payment reform stand on telehealth? And what are the current barriers affecting implementation of telehealth?
(05/14/21) Federal Funding for Emergency Home Visits for Families Includes Telehealth
New COVID-19 pandemic relief funding is being released by the United States Department of Health and Human Services to aid in the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program. This program utilizes telehealth services to deliver health care services to families who cannot be seen in person due to pandemic related difficulties.
