What’s happening: On Feb. 2, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a letter providing guidance on Section 71116 of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which eventually limits the total managed care payment rate received by hospitals to Medicare levels after a temporary grandfathering period. This letter supersedes the guidance CMS released on Sept. 9, 2025.
Hospitals and health systems are getting some financial relief and operational predictability, thanks to a bipartisan health care spending bill signed by President Trump earlier this week.
What’s happening: The agenda is set for CHA’s Rural Health Care Symposium, which will be held March 23-24 in Sacramento. This unique symposium, which is dedicated to California’s rural hospital leaders, will explore the specific challenges rural hospitals face and offer valuable insights into a range of critical health care topics.
What’s happening: The Office of Health Care Affordability’s (OHCA) board met on Jan. 28 to discuss several issues, including enforcement of the spending targets and whether to consider resubmissions of hospital data for the purposes of defining “high-cost” hospitals and assessing compliance with the spending targets.
What’s happening: Following this month’s release of the 2025-26 spending plan for managed care organization (MCO) tax proceeds generated under Proposition 35 (2024), CHA has submitted recommendations to Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) Director Michelle Baass.
What’s happening: On Feb. 5 at 11 a.m. (PT), the Department of Health Care Services will host an “all-comer” webinar to walk through its implementation plan for House Resolution (H.R.) 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which will make sweeping changes to Medicaid.
What’s happening: On Jan. 26, CHA submitted comments to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on the calendar year (CY) 2027 Medicare Advantage (MA) proposed rule.
What’s happening: Following last year’s announcement of the Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP), CHA has been in close communication with the Department of Health Care Access and Information (HCAI), which is responsible for determining how the funds are spent and implementing proposals the federal government approves.
Earlier this week, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) announced it would delay adopting emergency regulations for acute psychiatric hospital staffing until June 1, rather than its original deadline of Jan. 31.
What’s happening: Last week, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) released All Facilities Letter (AFL) 26-02, which reminds facilities that an online evaluation is available to help improve the post-survey process.