America’s Essential Hospitals applauds President Biden’s swift pledge to fight the COVID-19 pandemic through a national strategy and executive orders.
view more »Statement on Political Giving Following Attack on U.S. Capitol
Jan 15, 2021 ||Due to the events of Jan. 6 and discord surrounding the November elections, we have suspended contributions from our Essential Hospitals Political Action Committee to members of Congress who voted against certifying the results of a free and fair election.
view more »Withdrawal of MFAR the Right Decision for the Safety Net
Jan 15, 2021 ||We thank the administration for recognizing the need to better analyze the proposed regulation’s potential effects. We cannot afford unintended consequences that harm the safety net — especially now, as we continue to battle COVID-19.
view more »CEO Message on Events at U.S. Capitol Building
Jan 7, 2021 ||While the assault on the U.S. Capitol this week shocks and saddens us, it also deepens our resolve to have a voice in the hard work ahead to heal our nation and restore democratic norms.
view more »Statement on HHS General Counsel 340B Opinion
Dec 30, 2020 ||The General Counsel's advisory opinion makes clear that drug companies have run afoul of the law that created the 340B Drug Pricing Program and undermined its benefits to the safety net by denying discounts to contract pharmacies.
view more »Essential Hospitals Urge Quick Action on COVID-19, Funding Bill
Dec 21, 2020 ||The legislation would avert disastrous Medicaid disproportionate share hospital payment cuts, bring additional relief from the heavy financial pressures of COVID-19, and establish important consumer protections for patients.
view more »Hospitals and Pharmacists File Lawsuit Over Drug Companies’ Refusals of 340B Discounts
Dec 11, 2020 ||The groups have sued the Department of Health and Human Services over its failure to enforce program requirements and halt drug company actions that undermine the 340B Drug Pricing Program.
view more »Essential Hospitals Thank Congress for Medicaid DSH Cut Relief
Dec 11, 2020 ||This $4 billion cut—a third of all program funding—would destabilize hospitals and threaten access to care as the nation confronts a rapidly escalating health care crisis. We now must turn to solutions that protect hospitals and their communities for the long term.
view more »America’s Essential Hospitals supports the nomination of Xavier Becerra as the next secretary of health and human services, and we applaud the incoming Biden administration for its other choices to lead key federal health care agencies and initiatives.
view more »Statement on OPPS, Physician Fee Schedule Final Rules
Dec 2, 2020 ||The final rule takes critical resources away from hospitals and is especially harmful now as they strain under the heavy financial burden of COVID-19.
view more »America's Essential Hospitals applauds the commitment of President-Elect Joe Biden and Vice President–Elect Kamala Harris to equity, social justice, and access to affordable, high-quality health care.
view more »CMS Announces New Repayment Terms for Medicare Loans
Oct 12, 2020 ||Providers will have one year from the issuance date of their Medicare Accelerated and Advance Payment Program funds before they must begin to repay their loans. Providers may apply for an extended repayment schedule and may not use Provider Relief Fund dollars to pay back the Medicare loans.
view more »Statement on House Passage of New HEROES Act
Oct 1, 2020 ||Essential hospitals thank House leaders for recognizing in the legislation the ongoing needs of providers that form the backbone of the health care safety net and for taking additional steps to support their service to patients and communities.
view more »Statement on House Passage of Continuing Resolution
Sep 22, 2020 ||Essential hospitals thank House lawmakers for responding to the heavy financial burden of COVID-19 on hospitals with bipartisan action to ease repayment terms for Medicare loans and further delay Medicaid disproportionate share hospital payment cuts.
view more »Essential Hospitals Praise Decision to Withdraw MFAR
Sep 14, 2020 ||America's Essential Hospitals thanks the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services for recognizing the potential for unintended consequences of its proposed Medicaid Fiscal Accountability Regulation and withdrawing this potentially damaging rule.
view more »America’s Essential Hospitals and more than 20 other advocates and federal agencies today announced an action plan on patient safety. The plan recognizes that systemic racism and other societal inequities can cause harm to concentrate in certain populations, and it calls for using safety data to identify gaps related to social determinants of health.
view more »The Gage Awards honor creative and successful programs at essential hospitals that enhance patient care and meet community needs.
view more »Statement on Manufacturer Data Requests to 340B Covered Entities
Aug 18, 2020 ||Recent actions by pharmaceutical manufacturers hinder access to affordable medications for millions of people who face financial hardships and defy clear statutory requirements that they provide drugs to 340B Drug Pricing Program covered entities.
view more »Statement on OPPS and Physician Fee Schedule Proposals
Aug 4, 2020 ||The Medicare Outpatient Prospective Payment System proposed rule takes a bad policy on Part B drug payments and makes it worse by digging an even deeper financial hole for essential hospitals and their vulnerable patients.
view more »The initiative is expected to produce recommendations that will form the foundation of a comprehensive, member-driven plan of action on structural racism.
view more »Rep. John Lewis championed the mission-driven work of essential hospitals and steadfastly supported policies to safeguard their service to vulnerable patients, communities, and the health care safety net.
view more »Ruling on Outpatient Payment Cuts Jeopardizes Access to Care
Jul 17, 2020 ||The U.S. Court of Appeals decision allows the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to maintain its policy of deep cuts to payments for outpatient care, which will widen gaps in health care access in communities across the country.
view more »New COVID-19 Safety-Net Support Welcome as Crisis Deepens
Jul 10, 2020 ||We appreciate the administration’s efforts to correct earlier funding gaps that left many essential hospitals without the support they need; but there is more work to do.
view more »America’s Essential Hospitals Welcomes New Board Leadership
Jul 1, 2020 ||New chairs begin their tenures on the boards of America’s Essential Hospitals and its research, education, and dissemination arm, Essential Hospitals Institute, which also welcome several first-time member leaders.
view more »This policy change sets the nation back in its work to build greater equity in health care. Although no time would be right for this decision, it is especially harmful now, during the ongoing COVID-19 public health emergency.
view more »Statement on Additional COVID-19 Aid for the Safety Net
Jun 9, 2020 ||Today’s announcement of $10 billion in additional funding for hospitals that provide safety-net care, as well as a future allocation of $10 billion for providers in COVID-19 hot spots, will help ease the financial pain this public health emergency has inflicted on these caregivers.
view more »Essential Hospitals Thank Senators for Letter of Support
Jun 8, 2020 ||We thank Sens. Capito and Menendez, and their Senate colleagues, for their bipartisan efforts to target relief funding to hospitals caring for Medicaid and low-income patients.
view more »We wholeheartedly agree with the leaders of the Senate Finance and House Energy and Commerce committees: Emergency aid allocations so far have disadvantaged essential hospitals, and new distributions must target hospitals that care for many Medicaid patients.
view more »Statement on Police-Involved Killings and Protests
Jun 3, 2020 ||Recent police-involved killings reflect a legacy of injustice and racism that also poses an urgent public health threat. It is incumbent upon health care professionals and systems to confront this and to overcome the inequities that afflict racial and ethnic minorities.
view more »Findings from the association’s annual member survey show essential hospitals face high and growing uncompensated costs and care for patient groups that have suffered disproportionally during the COVID-19 pandemic.
view more »More COVID-19 Funding Must Come Quickly for Essential Hospitals
May 22, 2020 ||We are pleased to see new support for nursing homes, and we urge the administration to move rapidly toward more funding — especially for essential hospitals, which have seen less relief due to methods used to target previous allocations.
view more »HEROES Act Offers Welcome Support for Essential Hospitals
May 15, 2020 ||The HEROES Act would take important steps to support the safety-net mission of essential hospitals, which care for the disadvantaged people and underserved communities disproportionately harmed by COVID-19.
view more »Essential Hospitals Thank House Members for Letter of Support
May 15, 2020 ||More than 90 House members sent a bipartisan letter to the administration calling for targeting of COVID-19 emergency funding to hospitals that serve large numbers of Medicaid and low-income patients.
view more »Essential Hospitals Urge CMS to Withdraw 340B Cost Survey
May 6, 2020 ||America’s Essential Hospitals today called on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to immediately withdraw the agency’s survey on 340B Drug Pricing Program acquisition costs, saying it imposes an unnecessary and costly burden on hospitals as they battle COVID-19.
view more »While this latest round of COVID-19 aid is a positive step, it will not meet the great needs of the essential hospitals on the front lines of this public health emergency.
view more »Essential Hospitals Thank Congress for New COVID-19 Support
Apr 23, 2020 ||America's Essential Hospitals thanks Congress for this additional aid and the inclusion of demographic data reporting to help illuminate and respond to the disproportionate impact COVID-19 has on communities of color.
view more »America’s Essential Hospitals President and CEO Bruce Siegel, MD, MPH, and his wife, pediatrician Maura Cooper, MD, have donated $100,000 to support efforts by the association’s research arm to help member hospitals and their communities respond to and recover from COVID-19.
view more »Essential Hospitals Welcome Targeting of CARES Act Funding
Apr 22, 2020 ||We thank the administration for hearing our concerns about how it targets Public Health and Social Services Fund funding and for directing additional dollars to hospitals bearing the heaviest burden of COVID-19 care and costs.
view more »The department must ensure the next round of CARES Act funding targets hospitals disadvantaged by the formula used to allocate the initial $30 billion distribution.
view more »America's Essential Hospitals is eager for the administration to distribute $30 billion in COVID-19 relief for hospitals but concerned by the allocation methodology, which could put some essential hospitals at a disadvantage.
view more »Statement on Third COVID-19 Stimulus Package Passage
Mar 26, 2020 ||With COVID-19 poised to overwhelm the nation’s health care infrastructure, the Senate vote on funding support is welcome and appreciated as hospital resources are stretched thin. We thank congressional leaders for recognizing the support our member hospitals need during this unprecedented crisis.
view more »Statement on UC Health Working Group Report
Feb 24, 2020 ||America’s Essential Hospitals believes the working group option to allow affiliations with appropriate controls will best support UC Health’s commitment to meeting the health care needs of all Californians.
view more »America’s Essential Hospitals Introduces 2020 Essential Women’s Leadership Academy Class
Feb 19, 2020 ||The association welcomed its third and largest class to a novel program that aims to decrease gender disparities in hospital leadership.
view more »Statement on Ways and Means Surprise Billing Proposal
Feb 11, 2020 ||The Consumer Protections Against Surprise Medical Bills Act of 2020 takes an important step toward a solution to surprise medical bills that protects patients and increases transparency without putting hospitals at a disadvantage in negotiations with insurers.
view more »America’s Essential Hospitals Fills Open Board Seats
Feb 10, 2020 ||America’s Essential Hospitals has appointed two essential hospital leaders to fill at-large vacancies on the association’s board of directors.
view more »The proposal would "cut at the very core of the Medicaid program by introducing unprecedented restrictions on states’ ability to fund their share of the Medicaid program," America's Essential Hospitals says.
view more »CMS Disappoints with Decision to Publish Flawed Star Ratings
Jan 29, 2020 ||Health care consumers need accurate, relevant information to make the best care decisions; the current star ratings do not meet this need. The ratings rely on a methodology that fails to account for differences among hospitals and, therefore, could mislead rather than inform consumers.
view more »Court Decision on Public Charge Threatens Access to Care
Jan 28, 2020 ||The U.S. Supreme Court decision will accelerate the rule’s chilling effect, causing people legally in this country to forgo medical treatment for fear of putting their immigration status at risk. This will increase costs for taxpayers and the entire health care system.
view more »New Resources Share Progress of Essential Hospitals toward Community-Integrated Care
Jan 13, 2020 ||New research shows essential hospitals are building capacity for community-integrated health care — reaching outside their walls to partner with government, social services, and other sectors to improve social determinants of health.
view more »Essential Hospitals Thank Congress for Supporting DSH Cut Delay
Dec 17, 2019 ||Today's House vote on a spending package and Senate support will avert the harm sure to result from a $4 billion payment cut for hospitals that care for millions of low-income people. Now, we must turn to longer-term relief for essential hospitals and their patients.
view more »Statement on Prescription Drug Pricing Reduction Act of 2019
Dec 6, 2019 ||America's Essential Hospitals is pleased to see that bipartisan Senate drug pricing legislation would repeal two years of Medicaid disproportionate share hospital payment cuts.
view more »We thank House and Senate lawmakers for again standing with essential hospitals and vulnerable patients by delaying an unsustainable, damaging cut to Medicaid disproportionate share hospital payments.
view more »Administration Rule on Price Transparency a Threat to Access
Nov 15, 2019 ||Rather than empower consumers with meaningful information, the administration's plan only would give health plans an unfair advantage in negotiations with providers and put access to care at risk.
view more »A new report from Essential Hospitals Institute shows that essential hospitals are taking steps to make themselves and their communities resilient to climate change and to reduce their own carbon footprint, but they face financial and other barriers to these goals.
view more »Transparency Proposal Would Undermine Care, State Flexibility
Nov 12, 2019 ||The proposed regulation would undermine the financial stability of state Medicaid programs by restricting the flexibility states have to meet their commitment to vulnerable patients and avoid spending cutbacks that threaten access to care.
view more »2020 OPPS Rule Threatens Access to Care for Vulnerable
Nov 1, 2019 ||The final rule jeopardizes access to care in underserved communities and flouts court rulings on unlawful federal policies regarding payments to hospitals in the 340B Drug Pricing Program and to provider-based outpatient departments.
view more »Statement on Court Decision to Enjoin Public Charge Rule
Oct 11, 2019 ||America's Essential Hospitals applauds a U.S. District Court's ruling to halt enforcement of the administration's damaging policy to expand the public charge definition.
view more »Essential Hospitals Thank Senate for Vote to Delay DSH Cut
Sep 26, 2019 ||The Senate's bipartisan action, like that of the House, recognizes the vital role essential hospitals play across the country in caring for vulnerable patients and communities — and the threat DSH cuts pose to access to care.
view more »Association Thanks House for DSH Relief in Continuing Resolution
Sep 20, 2019 ||The continuing resolution averts the imminent and deeply damaging $4 billion cut to Medicaid disproportionate share hospital payments.
view more »Essential Hospitals Applaud Court Ruling on Outpatient Payments
Sep 18, 2019 ||The U.S. District Court’s ruling that the government overstepped its authority by cutting payments to hospital outpatient clinics is a victory for vulnerable patients and an important step toward protecting access to care in underserved communities.
view more »Statement on 42 CFR Part 2 Proposed Rules
Aug 26, 2019 ||While the rules help remove barriers to care coordination, the association calls to fully align Part 2 with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.
view more »Public Charge Rule Threatens Immigrants’ Health, Access to Care
Aug 12, 2019 ||The administration’s final rule on the public charge definition worsens the chilling effect that threatens the health of millions of people by making it more likely they forgo care for themselves and their families to avoid putting their legal immigration status at risk.
view more »Statement on 2020 Medicare OPPS Proposed Rule
Jul 29, 2019 ||The proposed rule needlessly prolongs the uncertainty, confusion, and harm the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services created when it unlawfully cut payments to hospitals in the 340B Drug Pricing Program.
view more »In the report, America's Essential Hospitals and other national hospital associations call for digitizing the HCAHPS patient satisfaction survey and capturing social determinants of health that affect survey scores.
view more »Statement on Energy and Commerce Vote on DSH Cuts Repeal
Jul 17, 2019 ||The committee’s action on DSH funding marks a significant step forward in efforts to save the safety net from a fiscal cliff Oct. 1, when a $4 billion DSH funding cut is set to take effect.
view more »Forty-six rising leaders from 22 health systems nationally will explore population health, diversity and inclusion, and health care policy.
view more »America’s Essential Hospitals Announces New Board Leadership
Jul 1, 2019 ||New member leaders for America’s Essential Hospitals and its research and education arm, Essential Hospitals Institute, take office July 1.
view more »Statement on Signing of All-Hazards Preparedness Legislation
Jun 25, 2019 ||We thank President Trump for signing the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness and Advancing Innovation Act of 2019, which will direct more resources to hospitals and other providers on the front lines of disasters and other public health threats.
view more »The Gage Awards honor creative and successful programs at essential hospitals that enhance patient care and meet community needs.
view more »Wright Lassiter III, president and CEO of Henry Ford Health System, in Detroit, will begin his term July 1.
view more »The administration's proposed rule, Nondiscrimination in Health and Health Education Programs or Activities, will worsen access to care and disparities for many of the nation's most vulnerable populations.
view more »We applaud the letter’s organizers, Reps. Eliot Engel (D-NY) and Pete Olson (R-TX), and all their House colleagues for recognizing the severe threat posed by Medicaid disproportionate share hospital payment cuts and standing up for patients, communities, and hospitals.
view more »Statement on 340B Court Decision
May 7, 2019 ||America’s 340B hospitals are pleased with the District Court’s decision and urge the Department of Health and Human Services to follow the judge’s directive to promptly resolve the harm caused by its unlawful cuts to Medicare reimbursement.
view more »New data from America’s Essential Hospitals show that persistently high levels of uncompensated and charity care pushed average margins down to one-fifth that of other hospitals in 2017, reflecting financial pressure that could deepen with federal funding cuts this year.
view more »A new toolkit from the Essential Hospitals Institute will help find and develop professionals who can lead population health initiatives. The toolkit details a core skill set for population health executives and includes a template job description and skill assessment worksheets.
view more »Statement on MACPAC Report to Congress
Mar 15, 2019 ||The Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission analysis shows hospitals that care for Medicaid and uninsured patients still depend on Medicaid disproportionate share hospital payments to meet this mission. Congress must act now to stop the October disproportionate share hospital payment cuts.
view more »Statement on February Hospital Star Ratings Release
Feb 28, 2019 ||We find it unfortunate that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services decided to publish hospital star ratings today even as the agency proposed changes that recognize ongoing flaws in the ratings methodology.
view more »New Research to Examine How Essential Hospitals Respond to Burden of Climate Change on Vulnerable Populations
Feb 25, 2019 ||The project, funded by The Kresge Foundation, will examine what support essential hospitals need to achieve climate resiliency—making hospitals and communities better able to adapt to climate change—and the challenges they face reaching that goal.
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