What’s happening: The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued its calendar year (CY) 2025 outpatient prospective payment system (OPPS) final rule, including a net market basket update of 2.9%.   

What else to know: CMS also establishes new health and safety standards for obstetrical services to be phased in over two years.  

The IS-800 course is available through FEMA’s website. The course introduces participants to the concepts and principles of the National Response Framework.

The California Hospital Volunteer Leadership Network is expanding. Because you indicated an interest in joining and so we can align your role with your desired interest, please take a moment to complete this short questionnaire by Fri., Nov. 22.

Once all submissions are received, you will be contacted with further direction. For questions, contact Melanie Shanley at (916) 552-7648 or mshanley@calhospital.org.

Developed by the Greater New York Hospital Association, this guidance aims to assist hospitals in the development and implementation of strategies to mitigate cyber disruption impacts.

What’s happening: The California Health Care Foundation’s new playbook shares actionable recommendations to help leadership and frontline staff effectively coordinate, collaborate, and partner on managing the discharge of patients who remain in hospitals for extended stays.   

What else to know: Using four vignettes of fictional patients with complex needs who are awaiting discharge, the playbook demonstrates how Medi-Cal benefits and services can be used to “facilitate a person-centered discharge.”  

What’s happening: The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) anticipates it will delay the proposed Increasing Organ Transplant Access (IOTA) Model start date until after Jan. 1, 2025.  

What else to know: CMS anticipates a start date delay because it is still working to finalize the rule; the agency has not yet shared a new start date.

What’s happening: The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued guidance to hospitals and state surveyors that underscores the importance of following reporting requirements for new hospital respiratory illness data reporting conditions of participation (CoP). 

What else to know: CMS also clarifies in the guidance that psychiatric hospitals and rehabilitation hospitals will report their daily COVID-19, influenza, and respiratory syncytial virus data annually rather than weekly. 

Election Day is just five days away, and the outcome will have significant consequences for our nation, California, and the state’s health care system. The result of the presidential race alone could lead to significant changes in health care policy across the board.  

What’s happening: In a joint letter to the California congressional delegation, CHA and the California Medical Association (CMA) asked members to support access to health care for all Californians in year-end legislation.  

What else to know: Critical federal health care legislation on Medicaid, Medicare, and telehealth will be up for votes in December.  

What’s happening: On Oct. 28, CHA DataSuite issued a hospital-specific analysis of the federal fiscal year (FFY) 2025 Medicare inpatient prospective payment system (IPPS) interim final rule. 

What else to know: The analysis shows hospitals how Medicare inpatient fee-for-service (FFS) payments may change from FFY 2024 to FFY 2025 based on the policies set forth in the FFY 2025 IPPS interim final rule — which includes changes from the FFY 2025 IPPS final rule correction notice.