Weekly Legislative & Regulatory Round-up

Week of August 14 - 20, 2010

GAO reports

Consumer-Directed Health Plans: Health Status, Spending, and Utilization of Enrollees in Plans Based on Health Reimbursement Arrangements GAO-10-616

OIG reports

Review of New York State’s Compliance With the Prompt Pay Requirements for the Increased Federal Medical Assistance Percentage Under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 Audit (A-02-09-01037)

Bills introduced

No bills introduced.

Federal Register notices

August 16

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services

Medicare Program; Hospital Inpatient Prospective Payment Systems

for Acute Care Hospitals and the Long-Term Care Hospital Prospective

Payment System Changes and FY2011 Rates; Provider Agreements and

Supplier Approvals; and Hospital Conditions of Participation for

Rehabilitation and Respiratory Care Services; Medicaid Program:

Accreditation for Providers of Inpatient Psychiatric Services

ACTION: Final rules and interim final rule with comment period.

SUMMARY: We are revising the Medicare hospital inpatient prospective

payment systems (IPPS) for operating and capital-related costs of acute

care hospitals to implement changes arising from our continuing

experience with these systems and to implement certain provisions of

the Affordable Care Act and other legislation. In addition, we describe

the changes to the amounts and factors used to determine the rates for

Medicare acute care hospital inpatient services for operating costs and

capital-related costs. We also are setting forth the update to the

rate-of-increase limits for certain hospitals excluded from the IPPS

that are paid on a reasonable cost basis subject to these limits.

We are updating the payment policy and the annual payment rates for

the Medicare prospective payment system (PPS) for inpatient hospital

services provided by long-term care hospitals (LTCHs) and setting forth

the changes to the payment rates, factors, and other payment rate

policies under the LTCH PPS. In addition, we are finalizing the

provisions of the August 27, 2009 interim final rule that implemented

statutory provisions relating to payments to LTCHs and LTCH satellite

facilities and increases in beds in existing LTCHs and LTCH satellite

facilities under the LTCH PPS.

Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information

Technology

Notice of Request for Public Comments

Agency Information Collection Request: 60-Day Public Comment Request

Proposed Information Collection: ONC Temporary Certification

Program's Application, Reporting and Records Requirements--OMB No.

0990-NEW- Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information

Technology.

August 17

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee

(HICPAC)

Meeting

Time and Date: 1:30 p.m.-3 p.m., September 8, 2010.

Place: Teleconference.

Status: Open to the public. Teleconference access limited only

by availability of telephone ports. To participate in the

teleconference please dial 1-888-324-7115 and enter conference code

5959790.

Food and Drug Administration

Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection;

Comment Request; Institutional Review Boards

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is announcing an

opportunity for public comment on the proposed collection of certain

information by the agency. Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

(the PRA), Federal agencies are required to publish notice in the

Federal Register concerning each proposed collection of information,

including each proposed extension of an existing collection of

information, and to allow 60 days for public comment in response to the

notice. This notice solicits comments on the recordkeeping requirements

for institutional review boards (IRBs).

Institutional Review Boards--21 CFR 56.115 (OMB Control Number 0910-

0130)—Extension.

Food and Drug Administration

Guidance for Industry on Organ-Specific Warnings: Internal

Analgesic, Antipyretic, and Antirheumatic Drug Products for Over-the-

Counter Human Use--Small Entity Compliance Guide; Availability

ACTION: Notice.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response

Act of 2002: Biennial Review and Republication of the Select Agent and

Toxin List

ACTION: Extension of public comment period.

August 18

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration

National Registry of Evidence-Based Programs and Practices

(NREPP): Open Submission Period for Fiscal Year 2011

ACTION: Notice.

August 19

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Expanded Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) Testing for

Disproportionately Affected Populations

ACTION: Notice.

August 20

No relevant notices.