Government

HHS Announces LEAP in Health IT Awardees Focused on Health Equity

Government
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) announced two awards totaling $2 million under the Leading Edge Acceleration Projects in Health Information Technology (LEAP in Health IT) funding opportunity. LEAP in Health IT awardees seek to create methods and tools to improve care delivery, advance research capabilities and address emerging challenges that inhibit the advancement of interoperable health IT.
FDA, Veterans Health Administration Collaborate to Help Accelerate Medical Device Innovation and Advancement of Care
Government
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) are announcing a collaboration intended to help accelerate American medical device innovation to further improve and benefit public health. Veteran Affairs’ VA Ventures Innovation Institute, located in Seattle, will host up to 12 FDA staff to foster robust collaborations between the two agencies.
HHS Approves Groundbreaking Medicaid Initiatives in Massachusetts and Oregon
Government
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), approved groundbreaking Medicaid section 1115 demonstration initiatives in Massachusetts and Oregon. Both demonstrations aim to test improvements in coverage, access, and quality with innovative approaches to ensure more eligible people retain their Medicaid coverage, including by approving Oregon’s demonstration to keep children enrolled in Medicaid up to age six — preventing gaps in coverage that can cause children to lose access to needed care in their formative early years.
Biden-Harris Administration Makes More Medicare Nursing Home Ownership Data Publicly Available, Improving Identification of Multiple Facilities Under Common Ownership
In another effort to improve nursing home transparency, safety and quality, and accountability, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), is making additional data publicly available that provide more information about the ownership of all Medicare-certified nursing homes. This data will, for the first time, give state licensing officials, state and federal law enforcement, researchers, and the public an enhanced ability to identify common owners of nursing homes across nursing home locations.
HHS Announces Health Resources and Services Administration-Funded Health Centers Partnering With National Cancer Institute-Designated Cancer Centers to Improve Equity in Cancer Screening
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), awarded over $5 million to 11 HRSA-funded community health centers to facilitate access to life-saving cancer screenings and early detection services for underserved populations.  These first-of-their-kind partnerships are bringing health centers together with National Cancer Institute (NCI)-Designated Cancer Centers. Today’s announcement advances President Biden’s Cancer Moonshot goals, which aim to close the cancer screening gap, decrease the impact of preventable cancers, and support patients and caregivers.
House Passes Prior Authorization Relief Bill
The House voted overwhelmingly to reform prior authorization under the Medicare Advantage program to help ensure America’s seniors get the care they need when they need it. It’s a bill the American Academy of Ophthalmology helped craft to rein in an abusive insurance company practice. We urge the Senate to quickly advance the legislation to the Senate floor.
NIH Launches Bridge2AI Program to Expand the Use of Artificial Intelligence in Biomedical and Behavioral Research
e National Institutes of Health will invest $130 million over four years, pending the availability of funds, to accelerate the widespread use of artificial intelligence (AI) by the biomedical and behavioral research communities. The NIH Common Fund’s Bridge to Artificial Intelligence (Bridge2AI) program is assembling team members from diverse disciplines and backgrounds to generate tools, resources, and richly detailed data that are responsive to AI approaches. At the same time, the program will ensure its tools and data do not perpetuate inequities or ethical problems that may occur during data collection and analysis.
HHS Takes Action on Executive Order Launching a National Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing Initiative
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced actions the department will take following the Executive Order signed September 12, 2022 by President Biden launching a National Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing Initiative (NBBI).
HHS Awards $2 million grant to Establish National Center of Excellence on Social Media and Mental Wellness
As part of the Biden-⁠Harris Administration’s Strategy to Address the National Mental Health Crisis, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), awarded $2 million in funding to the American Academy of Pediatrics to establish a National Center of Excellence on Social Media and Mental Wellness.
HHS Announces Over $20 Million in Awards to Reduce Disparities in Maternal and Infant Health
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), announced investments of over $20 million to improve maternal and infant health and implement the White House Blueprint for Addressing the Maternal Health Crisis – PDF. Funding aims to help reduce disparities in maternal and birth outcomes, expand and diversify the workforce caring for pregnant and postpartum individuals, increase access to obstetrics care in rural communities, and support states in tackling inequities in maternal and infant health.
Essilor Agrees to Pay $16.4 Million to Resolve Alleged False Claims Act Liability for Paying Kickbacks
Essilor International, Essilor of America Inc., Essilor Laboratories of America Inc. and Essilor Instruments USA (collectively, “Essilor”), headquartered in Dallas, have agreed to pay $16.4 million to resolve allegations that the company violated the False Claims Act by causing claims to be submitted to Medicare and Medicaid that resulted from violations of the Anti-Kickback Statute. 
FBI Warns Healthcare Workers of Scammers
The FBI is warning individuals employed in the healthcare industry of ongoing widespread fraud schemes in which scammers impersonate law enforcement or government officials in attempts to extort money or steal personally identifiable information (PII).
CMS Releases Proposed Rule to Improve Medicaid & CHIP Quality Reporting Across States
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released a notice of proposed rulemaking to promote consistent use of nationally standardized quality measures in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). This will help identify gaps and health disparities among the millions of people enrolled in these programs.
Inaugural PandemicX Accelerator Graduates Cohort Creating a Model for Future Public-Private Collaboration
The Biden-Harris Administration is working to increase tech innovations and health equity in the wake of COVID-19 by launching a novel program to accelerate private-public collaboration called PandemicX. The inaugural PandemicX 2022 cohort, which was comprised of 15 health technology startups, will highlight their tech innovations in a special PandemicX finale webinar.
Biden-Harris Administration Makes Hundreds of Thousands More Vaccine Doses Available to Support Monkeypox Response
The Biden-Harris Administration, through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), announced that it is making up to 442,000 doses of the JYNNEOS vaccine available for states and jurisdictions to order under an accelerated Phase 3 of the National Vaccine Strategy (NVS) to combat the current monkeypox outbreak.  
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