HEALTHCARE & GOVERNMENT

• California Governor Declares State of Emergency Over Monkeypox; NYC Does as Well
• HHS Expands Availability of Monkeypox Vaccine to More Than 1.1 Million Doses
• House Passes Bill Extending Telehealth Waivers Through 2024
• Hospitals Get 4.3% Increase in Inpatient Payment Rates in CMS Final Rule; ALSO, Rehab, Psychiatry & Hospice Get Medicare Pay Hikes

HEALTHCARE TRENDS

• New Numbers Show More Californians are Getting Reinfected With COVID-19
• Amazon to Buy One Medical for $3.9 Billion, Expanding Healthcare Footprint
• Blue Shield of CA, Walgreens Aim to Serve Healthcare Deserts in LA & Bay Area with New "Health Corners"
• Mental Health Startups Still Attracting Investor Attention
• Study: Low Health Literacy, Poorer Neighborhoods Associated with Audio-Only Telehealth Use
• Traveling-Nurse Bubble Bursts - Temp Nurses' Average Salaries are Falling
• LA County General Hospital Set to Become Affordable Housing
• AARP: Many Baby Boomers Will Soon Need Adult Supervision: Shortage of Caregivers for the Elderly is Becoming a Crisis

OPINIONS ON LOWERING THE COST OF CARE

• New Outpatient Services Will Lower Costs & Improve Care
• Looking Beyond "Pharmacy Benefits" Can Save Patients Real Money
• Americans Got Fat Because of Marketplace Innovations - But They Can Help Us Slim Down, Too
• Mental-Health Care Is Increasingly Being Treated with Telehealth

Change Healthcare reports that E-prescribing has undergone major changes, including federal and state governments introducing new Electronic Prescriptions for Controlled Substances (EPCS) mandates. To help providers, digital health, telehealth, EHRs, and EMRs comply, Change Healthcare has created an interactive map that tracks EPCS mandates. Any organization serving providers can also quickly integrate e-prescribing into their PMS or EMR with Change Healthcare's Clinical Exchange ePrescribe offering, bringing benefits that include pharmacy connections, workflow efficiencies, prescribing accuracy, and patient safety.
ALSO, watch Change Healthcare's on-demand webinar - CMS Audit Recovery Programs - How CMS Audit Programs Work, which can help providers with compliance and audit prevention. (Marcia Augsburger, JD, Bay Area)

Debbie Toth, CEO of Choice in Aging (CiA) has been appointed to California Health and Human Services Agency's Disability and Aging Community Living Advisory Committee (formerly known as California Olmstead Advisory Committee). The committee will help advance community living, inclusion, and integration in California, including advising state agencies on policies and programs.
MEANWHILE, the Pleasant Hill Foundation recently gave CiA $10,000 for their Aging in Place Campus, which when coupled with the $10 million from Senator Bill Dodd in the recent California budget, brings CiA ever closer to its "dream of a community where people age safely with dignity and choices." CiA says it's more than halfway there. (Debbie Toth, Bay Area)

For the third consecutive year, El Camino Health (ECH)'s Los Gatos and Mountain View hospitals earned five stars, the highest ranking possible, from CMS. The national average among hospitals is three stars. In CMS's program, the more stars, the better a hospital performed on the available quality measures of mortality, safety of care, readmission, patient experience, effectiveness of care, timeliness of care, and efficient use of medical imaging. AND, for the fifth time, ECH has been named to the 2022 Fortune/Merative 100 Top Hospitals list, as one of the top-performing large community hospitals in the U.S. ECH is also the only large community hospital in California to earn an additional distinction as an Everest Award winner, having set national benchmarks for both the fastest rate of improvement during the past five years and highest current year performance. (Cecile Currier, SV)

Hospice East Bay has launched a Pet Peace of Mind program to offer pet care to patients and their families. The program includes feeding, delivery of food and supplies, cleaning up pet waste, dog walking, cat playing, transportation to vet and grooming appointments, temporary housing, and assistance with permanent adoption when the time comes. (Cindy Hatton, Bay Area)

HumanGood has launched a new website that will be a resource for seniors seeking affordable housing information, as well as a digital home for partnerships and charitable giving programs.
AND, HumanGood recently received a number of awards and recognitions in the National Mature Media Awards. Top honors were won for the company's guide to life plan communities and for its website, mobile resources, and more. (Tara McGuinness, Bay Area)

Illumination Foundation along with CalOptima and Orange County Health Care Agency were selected as one of eight teams to join Partnerships for Action: California Health Care & Homelessness Learning Collaborative. This new initiative will support partnerships between healthcare and homeless service organizations to pilot projects focused on improving care delivery and health and housing outcomes for Californians experiencing homelessness. It will also address new opportunities made possible through CalAIM, the state's ambitious Medicaid transformation effort that is focused on redesigning healthcare delivery for high-need populations. (Pooja Bhalla, OC)

All 39 Kaiser Permanente (KP) hospitals earned "high performing" recognition in U.S. News & World Report's 2022-23 Best Hospitals rankings. The annual rankings analyze how well hospitals perform when it comes to 35 specialty care areas, common procedures, and common patient conditions. U.S. News evaluates more than 4,500 hospitals nationwide. High performers are among the top 10% to 20% of all hospitals rated.
MEANWHILE, because debt, bad credit, and other money matters can affect a person's physical and mental health, KP has granted $2.5 million to Change Machine, an organization that connects people to financial coaching. (Marcos Vasconcelos, Bay Area)

In When Do You Need Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) for Mental Health, Life Adjustment Team explains that an ACT program is a structured, evidence-based therapeutic program designed to improve outcomes for people with severe mental illness who are at risk of psychiatric crises and hospitalizations, as well as incarceration. The ACT model involves the cooperative efforts of a multidisciplinary team and active outreach to support an individual's development within the community. People with severe symptoms of mental illness have been shown to benefit from ACT through reduced hospitalizations, increased housing stability, and the improved quality of life that an ACT program can help foster through therapy, education, and developing skills. In addition, ACT may reduce staff burnout and increase client satisfaction, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness.
AND, in What is a Coping Kit and How Can It Help, Life Adjustment Team shares that an on-the-go coping kit is one way to help manage anxiety and depression. It is a collection of items that can include a stress ball, headphones, a journal, a list of coping strategies, and any personal items that may be soothing to you. When you're feeling anxious or down, take a few minutes to look through your kit. Find a tool that will help you relax and get back in the right frame of mind. Make it part of your strategy to overcome difficult situations. This can help people to feel more in control of their mental health and better equipped to manage difficult emotions. (Cynthia Sampson, LA)

LifeLong Medical Care partnered with The Praxis Project to document the incredible work of LifeLong's Heart 2 Heart team. This team exemplifies what it means to be of service to the community by meeting patients where they are and increasing access to Lifelong's many services for those who otherwise would not receive the care they need. Click to watch the 8-minute video. (Mike Stacey, MD, Bay Area)

In Role of Anatomic Pathology Software in Optimizing Lab Workflow, LigoLab says that anatomic pathology is considered the most direct method to diagnose complex health issues. Along with clinical testing, it builds the foundation of diagnostic medicine. Collecting tissues, preparing microscope slides, examining samples, capturing findings, and producing results is a long process that asks for the utmost precision and efficient coordination. An anatomic pathology laboratory information system (LIS) helps speed up this process by automating it. Pathology lab reporting software solutions are designed to facilitate improved communication and collaboration between professionals handling the specimen at different stages of clinical testing and diagnosis. The software helps with patient management, data tracking, and quality assurance.
MEANWHILE, the LigoLab LIS & RCM Laboratory Operating Platform and its TestDirectly DTC Portal were both featured in the July issue of Clinical Lab Products (pages 54-55). (Suren Avunjian, LA)

Mazzetti is among the first 61 organizations to sign on to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Health Care Sector Climate Pledge, and shares that the White House and HHS have re-opened the opportunity to make pledges through the fall.
MEANWHILE, in Five Things Healthcare Business Executives Should Know About ESG, Mazzetti states that the World Health Organization says climate change is the "single biggest health threat facing humanity," and notes that healthcare organizations have historically embraced the social pillar of environmental, social and governance (ESG) leadership. The healthcare industry will feel the impact of climate change consequences more than other industries because it's a societal safety net, according to Mazzetti. "Given your board's fiduciary responsibilities, its members may already be pushing for your system to tackle ESG. Here are some of the issues healthcare executives need to understand to work alongside board members in reducing climate change risks to the organization and the communities it serves." (Walt Vernon, JD, Bay Area)

The FDA has granted 510(k) clearance to the MedWand from MedWand Solutions. Immediately available is the MedWand Evaluation Kit, which includes a MedWand device, and an Android OS medical tablet that is pre-configured with VirtualCare application software and private access to the cloud based VirtualCare telemedicine platform. This Evaluation Kit allows potential end-users to perform clinical evaluation of the MedWand device itself and explore advanced telemedicine workflows enabled by the VirtualCare platform. The company is also accepting orders and production slot reservations for their MedWand Mobile Clinic and Remote Clinic configurations.
ALSO, MedWand CEO Bob Rose is the featured guest on a recent Revenue Maze podcast episode - "Creating a Closed Loop," in which Bob shares tips on how companies can grow their revenue. (Bob Rose, OC)

In its Priority Telehealth Update, Regulators Turn Their Eyes to "Tele-Fraud," Nelson Hardiman (NH) reports that on July 20, 2022, the OIG for the Department of HHS announced a Special Fraud Alert on the subject of "tele-fraud" (telehealth-related fraud). In part, this can be seen as part of the "normalization" of telehealth across multiple government agencies. From CMS to the DOJ, there appears to be recognition that, in the post-pandemic era, telemedicine will be a permanent feature of government-funded U.S. healthcare. The recent Special Fraud Alert follows months of investigations, trial convictions, and reports related to telemedicine providers utilizing inducements and kickbacks to incentivize providers into ordering various medical tests and billing services that are deemed neither medically necessary nor clinically appropriate. The Alert details multiple types of "suspicious" activities that could signal fraudulent behavior.
PLUS, NH will present Part 3 of its Telemedicine Abortion Webinar Series on August 17, at 11 a.m. Managing Partner Harry Nelson will be a presenter.
AND, Harry was interviewed on NTD News discussing a House panel investigation into health data sharing, and on Newsy TV News regarding ambiguity with abortion laws when it comes to medical emergency. (Harry Nelson, JD, LA)

OneLegacy's Tom Mone recently spoke with the Los Angeles Business Journal (LABJ), discussing the critical work his organization is doing to advance health equity in the communities it serves and providing a glimpse at how pandemic-spurred innovations are helping reshape organ, eye, and tissue donation. Tom will also join LABJ on August 25 for the Healthcare Care Leadership Symposium, where he will take part in a roundtable discussion on Southern California's healthcare system and its impacts around the County.
MEANWHILE, OneLegacy recently launched its One of Eight video campaign with the goal of inspiring the nearly 20 million Californians who are not registered as donors to "get the dot." (Tom Mone, LA)

Parentis Health has acquired Quality Life Homes licensed residential home care facilities for elderly and memory-impaired individuals. The Quality Life facilities, all located in Laguna Niguel, will transition to the Verona Court brand, expanding Parentis Health's footprint.
ALSO, Dr. M.R. Rajagopal, Chairman of Pallium India, recently joined Parentis Health CEO Tarek El Nabli for a video conversation about the future of healthcare, the continuity of care, and what it means to be a clinician in today's world. Rajagopal, a Nobel Peace Prize Nominee, has been called the "Father of Palliative Care." (Tarek El Nabli, OC)

In this on-demand webinar from PreludeDx - Experts in Surgical Oncology and Radiation Oncology Discuss Evaluation, Application and Results of DCISionRT in Clinical Practice, Troy Bremer, PhD; Julie Margenthaler, MD, FACS; and Chirag Shah, MD, discuss the evaluation and use of DCISionRT in real-world settings, the resulting changes in practice of precision medicine, and the introduction of DCISionRT with novel residual risk subtype. (Dan Forche, OC)

Satellite Healthcare and Modulim, a health technology company that delivers point-of-care microvascular and data insights to save limbs and improve lives, have announced a strategic partnership to standardize use of Modulim's Limb Assessment, Management, and Preservation (LAMP) solution. The partnership will establish a first-of-its-kind peripheral arterial disease (PAD) Center of Excellence using Clarifi technology at the Tri-County Vascular Access Center in San Jose, CA. The LAMP solution is being implemented at Satellite's dialysis and vascular access centers over the course of the next 12 months and is aimed at reducing hospitalizations related to foot complications for chronic kidney disease and end-stage renal disease patients.
ALSO, Satellite Healthcare recently celebrated the opening of its newly constructed, state-of-the-art dialysis center in San Jose, immediately adjacent to Regional Medical Center's San Jose Hospital, for patients who receive kidney care treatment. (Jeff Goffman, SV, & Bernadette Vincent, Bay Area)

In The Benefits of Outsourcing Medical Operations, SAVI Group suggests that medical practices and healthcare organizations can reap many benefits when deciding to outsource certain tasks and operations traditionally done by in-house staff members. This is especially applicable when it comes to medical billing and coding work, as experts in this field can do many things to help medical practices save money and run more financially savvy organizations.
AND, in Simple Ways to Improve Medical Practice Operations, SAVI Group delves into investing in proper scheduling and communicating proactively with patients. (Sumit Mahendru, OC)

In its article - Medicare sequestration is back: Payment reductions for skilled nursing facilities in 2022, Wipfli looks at the reinstatement of sequestration, along with some other reimbursement reductions for 2022 and a list of annual changes Wipfli expects. According to Wipfli, the key to success in not having to deal with that pesky AR balance after full payment is to accurately maintain and update your EMR software to coincide with these annual and off-cycle updates.
ALSO, watch Wipfli's on-demand webcast - Recruiting and Retaining with Competitive Employee Benefits.
MEANWHIILE, Wipfli has been named to Accounting Today's 2022 Top 100 VAR list, an annual ranking of the leading value-added resellers in the accounting space. This is the 12th time Wipfli has been recognized by Accounting Today as a top VAR. (Jeff Johnson, John Dao & Steve Rousso, Bay Area)

Zymo Research, in collaboration with the Institute of Virology, University Medical Center Freiburg, Germany, demonstrated data showing their DNA/RNA Shield inactivating transport medium completely inactivated recent Monkeypox virus isolates. This data comes at a critical time as Monkeypox cases continue to climb worldwide and scientists are seeking methods to safely collect and transport samples without compromising the genetic integrity. (Yap Ching Chew, Ph.D., OC)