In May, ABL will hold its Round Tables via ZOOM to ensure Social Distancing for our Members. See your Round Table invitation for participation instructions, and the ABL.org Members Only website for all the Healthcare Round Table invitation specifics.


• 5/06 - Orange County Round Table
• 5/12 - Silicon Valley Round Table
• 5/13 - San Francisco Round Table
• 5/15 - Los Angeles Round Table
• 5/21 - East Bay/Oakland Round Table
• Explore Membership in ABL's Executive Round Tables >>>

What's It Gonna Take for the U.S.
to Reopen for Business?

• COVID Emergency Response Hospital, Mazzetti & VivaLnk Implement Game-Changing Technology
• Alphascript is Compounding Hand Sanitizer for Patients and Employees
• Alvaka Networks' Essential Steps for a Ransomware Recovery
• Anthem Blue Cross Supports Pandemic Resources & Offers Virtual Dental Care
• Axene Launches COVID-19 Planning Resource Model
• Bayer Partners with Population Health Research Institute on COVID-19 Treatments
• Blue Shield of California Provides Details on Financial Support Options to Healthcare Providers in Response to COVID-19 Crisis
• Choice in Aging Distributes PPE to Residential Care Facilities
• Cigna Supports Social Connections for Seniors During the Pandemic & Accelerates COVID-19 Research
• Covered California Sees Strong Consumer Interest in Healthcare Coverage During Pandemic
• Elemeno Health's App Implemented by Emergency Physicians, Multiple Hospitals & Public Health Dept
• Hospice East Bay CEO Quoted in Article on Importance of Advanced Directives
• King & Spalding's May 8th Webinar to Cover How to Get Paid by Commercial, Managed Medicare & Medicaid Payers in the Months to Come
• KMD Architects Participates in New Mt. Zion Hospital Unit for Respiratory Illnesses
• LigoLab is Creating Nationwide Lab Network to Balance COVID-19 Testing Capacity
• Nelson Hardiman Examines Operating / Reopening Your Business & Resuming Elective Surgeries Amid COVID-19
• SafeRide Health's YouTube Channel Provides New Demo Videos
• Santa Cruz Surgery Center CEO Spotlighted for Serving in the COVID-19 Battle
• SAVI Group Identifies Promising Technologies Changing Healthcare
• Servicon Systems Shares "Anatomy of an Outbreak"
• SimpleTherapy Offers Free, Unlimited Access to Digital Musculoskeletal Program
• Wipfli Named a Registered Salesforce Consulting Partner

TECH MEMBERS' HEALTHCARE NEWS

• DarioHealth Teams with Vitality Group & Endorsed by UK's ORCHA
• Eckert & Ziegler Gets CE Approval for Innovative Irradiation Applicators Using 3D Printing
• Get Visible Offers Significant Cost Savings on Masks & Sanitizers
• PCIHIPAA Offers Cyber Security & Compliance Program for 90-Days-Free
• Pegasus One on: Implementing a Telehealth System in 2 Weeks
• The Joy Factory Provides its HIMSS20 Virtual Tour

CMS, HHS & COVID-19

• CMS Issues New Round of Waivers and Rule Changes in Response to COVID-19
• CMS Suspends Advance Payment Program
• CMS Permits Independent Freestanding EDs to Participate in Medicare & Medicaid
• HHS Publishes Additional Terms & Conditions for Provider Relief Fund & FFCRA Payments

CALIFORNIA & COVID-19

• California Green Lights Hospitals to Resume Scheduled Surgeries That Are "Essential"
• As California's Lawmakers Reconvene, Not Everyone Agrees On COVID-Only Agenda
• California Doesn't Disclose Coronavirus Deaths at Nursing Homes
• California Lifts Ban on Plastic Bags Amid Virus Concerns

PREPARING FOR A NEW NORMAL

• King & Spalding Provides Tools for Resuming & Continuing Work in "New Normal"
• See Which States Are Reopening and Which Are Still Shut Down
• Can API Vendors Solve Healthcare's Data Woes?

(MOSTLY) NOT ABOUT COVID-19

• California to Widen Pipeline of Psychiatric Nurse Practitioners
• Supreme Court Rules HHS Must Pay $12 Billion to Insurers
• FDA-Cleared AI-Based Medical Triage Tool Now Free for Customers to Help Busy Radiology Dx Departments
• Digital Health Firm Analyzes Aggregated Data from Scales, Smartwatches & Sleep Monitoring Devices Regarding Users' Health Behavior While Locked-Down
• NEA-Backed Personal Genome Diagnostics Gets FDA Clearance for Cancer Diagnostic

The Mazzetti article, "Game-Changing" COVID Technology in a Convention Center & Beyond, describes how Mazzetti CEO Walt Vernon and his staff, along with Andy Leeka, Chief Executive Director of the COVID Emergency Response Hospital, located in the L.A. Convention Center (aka LACC Relief Hospital), and Jiang Li, Ph.D., CEO of VivaLnk, have teamed to implement VivaLnk's reusable wireless monitoring patch in the emergency hospital. The patch continuously monitors patient body temperature, sending data via Bluetooth to the respective hospital nurse station for monitoring and responding accordingly. The multi-patient monitoring application alerts staff based on trends and thresholds, identifying the patient and bed. VivaLnk's technology was deployed for COVID-19 patient monitoring in China at 18 different hospitals, impacting over 2,000 patients. "It's a game changer, especially during this pandemic," said Stacey Gerlich, Captain of the L.A. Fire Department. "Constant monitoring, no cross-contamination because you don't have to touch the patient, no wasting of supplies (PPE), and no disturbing the patient at 2:00 in the morning to take their temperature." (Andy Leeka, Los Angeles, & Walt Vernon, JD, Bay Area)

The FDA has issued guidance that allows pharmacies to prepare (compound) hand sanitizer for consumer use, so Alphascript is now compounding hand sanitizer in addition to the medications it prepares for a variety of chronic, complex conditions. Its hand sanitizers comply with WHO-based formulas to ensure maximum efficacy. Alphascript recently began shipping complimentary bottles in patient packages and will continue this service for as long as they are able while the pandemic persists. (Rus Zukin, Silicon Valley)

In What to Expect During a Ransomware Recovery, Alvaka Networks describes what should be your essential steps to follow in a ransomware recovery situation. The steps include: engage a lawyer; determine what your insurance covers; determine if it's necessary to gather forensic information; consider hiring a ransomware negotiator; decide whether or not you will pay the ransom - based on the extent of the damage, value of the lost data, likelihood of a recovery without paying, and other variables; execute the plan with great vigor, speed and tenacity; and create and implement a new cybersecurity plan. (Oli Thordarson, Orange County)

Anthem Blue Cross recently announced $200,000 in new donations to United Way and Feeding America; funds will be cascaded to food banks, shelters, and other resource centers across California that are helping struggling individuals and families access necessities amid the current pandemic. These latest contributions are part of a $4 million commitment recently made by Anthem Blue Cross and its Foundation to support COVID-19 relief efforts across the state; approximately $1.5 million is already in use. Also, Anthem and TeleDentists have launched a virtual dental care program providing convenient access to dental care 24/7/365 in the event of an emergency, with virtual exams covered at 100%, with no deductibles, copays, paperwork or claims to file through June 30, 2020. (David Pryor, MD, Los Angeles)

Axene Health Partners has released its AHP COVID-19 Planning Resource Model, developed to help those in the real-world position of projecting demand for hospital resources. Currently in use by the San Diego County Health and Human Services Agency, the Model is available for license to healthcare professionals immediately. Meanwhile, Axene's recent blog articles include: "Data, Data, Everywhere, Nor Any Drop to Drink"; "Coping During the Coronavirus Pandemic"; "Financial Risk Preparation: The COVID-19 Pandemic and 'Unknown Unknowns'"; "The Cost of COVID-19"; and "Health Care Provider Pinch: COVID-19's Impact on Provider Revenues." . (John Price, Bay Area)

Bayer recently announced that its Canadian organization, Bayer Inc., is partnering with the Population Health Research Institute (PHRI) in launching a major clinical research program aimed at identifying potential treatments against COVID-19. Two studies will evaluate the safety and efficacy of different combination therapies including Bayer's chloroquine and interferon beta-1b. Also, Bayer has announced it will donate approximately eight million chloroquine tablets for COVID-19 treatment in Germany and one million in Italy. In addition, Bayer said it will give approximately €1 million each to France, Brazil, and Spain. (Rama Penta, Silicon Valley)

As part of a $200+ million commitment to support healthcare providers and hospitals facing financial pressures as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, Blue Shield of California has announced additional details on four programs available to qualifying network providers. Hospitals, medical groups, IPAs, and independent physicians that are currently part of Blue Shield of California's provider network are eligible to apply for these programs. (Greg Buchert, MD, Orange County)

Choice in Aging (CiA) recently partnered with Ombudsman Services of Contra Costa, Solano and Alameda, and Contra Costa County Emergency Operations Center to provide PPE to Residential Care Facilities for the Elderly in Contra Costa County, distributing supplies to 150+ facilities. Meanwhile, Dishing with Debbie, CiA's weekly Facebook Live series, is now being held on Thursdays at 11:30 a.m. Pacific. (Debbie Toth, Bay Area)

Cigna is launching a pilot program to increase social connectivity among its Medicare Advantage (MA) customers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Cigna is reaching out proactively to many of its Medicare customers to monitor their general health and well-being as well as daily needs during COVID-19, including food, housing and transportation. Customers will be able to opt-in to receive follow-up calls from the same Cigna representative to help cultivate meaningful connections. Cigna will also leverage its comprehensive data and analytics to identify MA customers who may be at higher risk for health issues and complications for additional proactive outreach to help answer questions about COVID-19, conduct regular health checks and triage care to a medical professional, if necessary. The pilot program will initially reach 24,000 customers with plans for rapid expansion. Meanwhile, to accelerate research for a COVID-19 treatment, Cigna is providing medications to Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis to initiate a clinical trial that will evaluate antimalarial and antibiotic treatments for COVID-19. (Chris De Rosa, Orange County)

More than 84,000 people have signed up for coverage through Covered California since March 20, when the exchange announced a special-enrollment period in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The pace of sign-ups during this five-week period has been more than 2.5 times the level that Covered California saw during the same period in 2019. The exchange is sending more than 11 million emails to consumers to help them understand their health care coverage options during this unprecedented time. In addition, Medi-Cal enrollment is open year-round for consumers who qualify. (Kathy Keeshen, JD, Bay Area)

Elemeno Health is joining forces with the American College of Emergency Physicians to deploy Elemeno's free best-practices content-sharing app to help emergency department physicians and nurses throughout the U.S. to manage COVID-19. The app provides critical information and continuously updated COVID-19 practices essential to patient care and infection control. Each ED can add their own local workflows to give frontline teams department-specific support. Also, in the past few weeks, Elemeno has launched enterprise-wide for COVID team communication and point-of-care training at El Camino Hospital (both campuses), Marin General, and Sonoma Valley Hospital, as well as with Alameda County Public Health. (Arup Roy-Burman, MD, Bay Area, & Cecile Currier, Silicon Valley)

The Mercury News' recent article, The COVID-19 talk families need to have now: Health care experts say all adults should think about their end-of-life wishes, reports that most people have not completed advanced directives, and that this is adding to the uncertainty in ERs overwhelmed by COVID-19 patients. Frontline providers are "desperate" for any information so they make sure patients' care aligns with what they would want. The article quotes Cindy Hatton, CEO of Hospice East Bay: "For COVID-19 patients who won't recover, hospice care is an option and could allow people to avoid going to the hospital. Hospice workers also can arrange for patients to leave the hospital and die at home. One goal of hospice is to help COVID-19 patients stay in contact with loved ones as much as possible, whether it's by phone or FaceTime if they're in a nursing home or hospital, or by having two family members with them at home, while staying at a safe distance." (Cindy Hatton, Bay Area)

On May 8 and May 22, at 10:30 a.m. Pacific, King & Spalding (K&S) will present a two-part webinar series on key issues facing managed care executives and revenue cycle teams in the COVID-19 pandemic: COVID-19 - How to Get Paid by Commercial, Managed Medicare and Managed Medicaid Payers in the Months to Come. K&S Partner Marcia Augsburger will be among the speakers. Part 1 on May 8th will focus on issues involving reimbursement for COVID-related testing and treatment, along with reimbursement issues unique to Medicare Advantage and managed Medicaid payers, including coding and reimbursement for COVID patients. Part 2 on May 22nd will focus on reimbursement issues arising from changes to policies by commercial payers, including fully insured state-regulated payers, and self-funded employer-sponsored benefit plans under ERISA. Both sessions will address strategies for improving payment for telehealth services, and the issues being raised by states beginning to lift moratoriums on scheduled and elective procedures. (Marcia Augsburger, JD, Bay Area, & Travis Jackson, JD)

UCSF Health recently opened 13 acute- and critical-care beds at its Mount Zion hospital as the first phase of a new, 53-bed respiratory isolation unit that will serve as UCSF Health's primary site for caring for patients with novel coronavirus disease. KMD Architect's healthcare facility planners shared that they are "proud to have served a small but important role in making this happen." (Rob Matthew, Bay Area)

On May 12, at 10 a.m., LigoLab Information Systems will present Fireside Chat: COVID-19 Testing Insights and Practical Guidance for Partner Labs, "a conversation focused on the exchanging of ideas and winning strategies during the pandemic. LigoLab will unveil TestDirectly, its direct-to-consumer portal supporting drive-through workflow and B2B testing, built to help future-proof your lab." Meanwhile, LigoLab is encouraging labs that are looking to start processing COVID-19 tests to reach out to them for help with setup, instrument integration, FDA approval, collection kits, expertise, direct-to-consumer portal, and volume. "We are uniting labs nationwide by organizing logistics and creating a network to help with the load balancing of testing capacity. This month our partner labs in Illinois and Washington joined forces and began sharing testing capabilities, and we are here to empower your lab, too." (Suren Avunjian, Los Angeles)

Recent publications from Nelson Hardiman (NH) include: ADA, Worker's Comp, General Liability, and OSHA - Key Operational Issues to Consider in Operating or Reopening Your Business, which outlines major issues to monitor as we move through the next six months, and Elective Surgeries Resume in California, which examines the "Roadmap for Resuming Elective Surgery after the COVID-19 Pandemic," developed by the American College of Surgeons, American Society of Anesthesiologists, Association of periOperative Registered Nurses, and the American Hospital Association. (Harry Nelson, JD, Los Angeles)

Check out SafeRide Health's YouTube channel, where recent videos include: "Introduction to the Health Plan Portal in the SafeRide platform"; "Introduction to the Booking Portal in the SafeRide Health platform"; "Stand out from the Medicare Advantage crowd with a technology-forward NEMT benefit (webinar replay)"; and more. (Robbins Schrader, Los Angeles)

Santa Clara University Magazine's recent article - These Two Alums Are In It Together, While Staying Apart - spotlights "Lisa Cooper '90 and Quentin Cooper J.D. '97 MBA '98 [who] are juggling their large family, marriage, and busy careers while Lisa shelters in place alone to continue working in health care." An excerpt: "Lisa, CEO of Santa Cruz Surgery Center, says when six Bay Area counties officially ordered residents to shelter in place on March 16, 'I gotta tell you, my initial instincts were to send an email to the board of directors saying I'd come in to the center after hours. But that wasn't sitting right. I wanted to be there to help.' And since there was a possibility of her interacting with ill patients and then becoming a carrier of coronavirus, she rented a place away from her family to keep them safe." That left Quentin, a practicing lawyer, working from home with their six kids. Another excerpt: "Lisa's surgery center is not a hospital, so the number of surgeries there have dropped to only urgent cases. Lisa has been working to help local hospitals in their efforts to combat COVID-19. In mid-April, for example, 'We had 130 medical professionals come to our parking lot to do drive-by testing for antibodies to the virus,' she says. Her clinic has also been volunteered as an alternative site to house coronavirus patients in case hospitals become overwhelmed." (Lisa Cooper, Silicon Valley)

In 5 Promising Technologies Changing Healthcare Today, SAVI Group highlights some promising areas to pay attention to as we move further into 2020 and beyond. In summary, they are: telehealth's tremendous growth due to the COVID-19 pandemic; outsourcing of revenue management operations; 3D printing making it possible for low-income or war-torn areas to gain access to low-cost, customized prosthetics and medical equipment, as well as doctors-in-training practicing on 3D-printed human parts; robots' tremendous help in making minimally invasive surgeries safer and faster; and healthcare systems and networks using Internet of Things to lower project delivery times and costs. (Sumit Mahendru, Orange County)

Stacey Wong of Servicon Systems, Inc. shares this recent Health Care Advisory Board publication - Anatomy of an Outbreak: Part 6 - which "highlights really great info on the COVID impacts to healthcare today and in the future." (Stacey Wong, Los Angeles)

As social distancing has become the current norm, people with a musculoskeletal (MSK) disorder may find that access to in-person physical therapy is challenging and, in many cases, not possible. As such, SimpleTherapy has taken action to ensure that everyone has access to quality, evidence-based exercise therapy regimens to manage their MSK condition from the comfort of home. Through July 1, 2020, SimpleTherapy is providing unlimited access to their digital musculoskeletal program for you and your employees at no cost and without any obligation. More information. (Arpit Khemka, Silicon Valley)

Wipfli has become a Salesforce registered partner, meaning it can provide end-to-end Salesforce implementation and AppExchange cloud solutions. Partner status affirms Wipfli's ability to deliver successful customer implementations, including custom configurations and workflows, across the Salesforce ecosystem. Meanwhile, recent articles from Wipfli include Payroll tax credits available due to COVID-19 and COVID-19 and CMS reimbursement for graduate medical education. (Jeff Johnson and Steve Rousso, Bay Area; Tony Taddey, L.A.; Larry Blitz, Silicon Valley)

DarioHealth Corp. has partnered with Vitality Group, a global health and wellness company, in which Vitality will integrate Dario's digital therapeutics for chronic conditions into its current wellness solution platform and co-market the Dario solution to Vitality's existing client base. Meanwhile, DarioHealth announced an endorsement from U.K.-based ORCHA, highlighting Dario's Diabetes Management Application as being suitable and safe for children and young people. ORCHA is part of NHS England's National Innovation Accelerator program and supports many NHS and local government organizations to drive the uptake of digital health among their populations. (Rick Anderson, West Los Angeles Technology)

Eckert & Ziegler BEBIG has received CE approval for the world's first applicators manufactured by 3D printing and designed for the treatment of gynecological tumors. Made of biocompatible and sterile plastic, the attachments extend the range of applications of conventional applicators. They are now also suitable for targeted, needle-assisted brachytherapy using high-dose-rate afterloading and can significantly increase the three-year survival rate of cancer patients. (Frank Yeager, Monrovia Technology )

ABL Members can significantly reduce their costs on masks and sanitizers by aggregating orders with Jason Ciment, CEO of Get Visible, whose agency manages NextDayScience.com, a supplier of consumables to labs and healthcare companies. Visit nextdayscience.com/blog/masks-sanitizer.htm and contact Jason directly at [email protected]. (Jason Ciment, West Los Angeles Technology)

PCIHIPAA is currently offering 90-days free of its OfficeSafe Cyber Security & Compliance Program, along with three free tools - a network security scan and risk assessment, certified HIPAA officer training, and telehealth and remote work guidance. Also, download PCIHIPPA's free report, 10 Steps to "Practical" HIPAA Compliance. (Jeff Broudy, West Los Angeles Technology )

In Implement a Telehealth System in Just Two Weeks, Pegasus One describes how it can create and install a fully functional telehealth system within two weeks, with all the components and functions of an enterprise-grade system, at a much lower price. Pegasus One adopts a plug-and-play strategy, integrating proven off-the-shelf solutions, that can be quickly customized to its clients' needs, delivering a final product that's well built and easy to use. (Tushar Puri, Orange County Technology)

In this video - The Joy Factory HIMSS20 Virtual Tour - Discover Health-Grade Tablet, Case & Mounting Solutions - The Joy Factory shows and describes its line of device cases that are compatible with the most commonly used sanitization products, and are also made with The Joy Factory's antimicrobial solutions, which are IP68 certified (impervious to dust and water). In the virtual tour, The Joy Factory also talks about its line of kiosks that enable self-service patient check-in/out and data collection, as well as its patient language interpretation solutions. (Sampson Yang, Orange County Technology, & Miranda Su, Monrovia Technology)