This month’s edition of Health Policy News includes a summary of the final 2023 Health Insurance Exchange and Qualified Health Plan rules and guidance—updated from our summary of the proposed guidance—with a focus on key payment parameters and changes that impact state insurance markets and regulators.
Additionally, we continue to reflect upon what is next for COVID-19 and ways to prepare for the next pandemic. This month’s second piece builds upon our after-action and data utilization articles from last month’s edition, delving deeper into the scientific achievements related to COVID-19 and steps critical to preparing for future pandemics.
Finally, in a different type of article for HPN, we provide a short summary of the verdict and sentencing in the criminal case against nurse RaDonda Vaught, along with some reference materials from the case, as we begin to reflect upon what it may mean for the medical profession.
As a reminder, the Health Policy News team will release a summer edition, so stay tuned for timely content and a preview of our annual fall white paper and accompanying health policy webinar schedule.
The Department of Health and Human Services Releases 2023 Final Exchange Rules & Guidance for Health Issuers
As the deadline for submission of Qualified Health Plans (QHPs) approaches, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released the final 2023 Notice of Benefit and Payment Parameters (NBPP) and the 2023 Final Letter to Issuers in the Federally-facilitated Exchanges (Letter) on April 28th, 2022. The guidance largely finalizes proposals HHS included in the draft regulations and accompanying guidance released in January 2022. Click here to access the full summary with text in red that reflects the final guidance.
Preparing for the Next Pandemic
During the last two years, everyday life has been defined by numerous challenges created by COVID-19, including societal restrictions, overflowing hospitals, and consistent illness and death. While COVID-19 itself seems to be here to stay at least for the foreseeable future, thankfully, the pandemic seems to be reaching its end with the help of vaccinations and gained natural immunity. It is an achievement worth appreciating, but we must also be mindful of the heavy cost the virus took on our society and the ever-present dangers that future pandemics pose. Three key areas—utilizing scientific advances, harnessing the regulatory and spending power of the government, and investing in healthcare workers—must be addressed before the next viral threat wreaks havoc on American life, with potentially deadlier consequences. To read more about the ways these three areas will be critical in our continued pandemic response refinement, click here.
A Look into the RaDonda Vaught Verdict & Its Impact on the Medical Profession
On December 26, 2017, Vanderbilt nurse RaDonda Vaught mistakenly injected a patient with a paralyzing drug instead of the anti-anxiety medication ordered by the provider. She was found guilty of criminally negligent homicide and gross neglect for this mistake. Organizations and individual nurses have spoken about the potential impact of this case, concerned that it marks a new era of nursing in which nurses are operating with a lack of support from their hospital system. To read more about the case and the potential impact it may have, click here.
