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Rural Health
News by Topic: Policy

Nov 6, 2026 - Notice of a final rule with comment period from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) making changes to the Medicare Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) and the Medicare Ambulatory Surgical Center (ASC) payment system for calendar year 2027, including changes to the amounts and factors used to determine the payment rates for Medicare services paid under the OPPS and those paid under the ASC payment systems. Among other things, this rule updates and refines requirements for the Hospital Outpatient Quality Reporting Program and Ambulatory Surgical Center Quality Reporting Program; finalizes the implementation of provisions of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2026, regarding off-campus outpatient departments of a provider; and announces notices of closure of teaching hospitals and opportunities to apply for available slots. Comments are due by January 4, 2027. This rule is effective January 1, 2027.
Source: Federal Register
Nov 5, 2026 - Notice from the U.S. Census Bureau seeking comments on the proposed extension of an information collection titled "Generic Clearance for Internet Panel Pretesting and Qualitative Survey Methods Testing." The clearance will be used to conduct pretesting of decennial and demographic census and survey questionnaires, as well as communications and marketing strategies and data dissemination tools for the Census Bureau, prior to fielding them. Comments are due within 30 days of this notice.
Source: Federal Register
Nov 5, 2026 - Notice from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) seeking comments on the following information collections: 1) Collection Requirements for Compendia for Determination of Medically-accepted Indications for Off-label Uses of Drugs and Biologicals in an Anti-cancer Chemotherapeutic Regimen; 2) Quality Bonus Payment Appeals; and 3) The In-Center Hemodialysis Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems Survey Mode Experiment. Comments are due by December 7, 2026.
Source: Federal Register
Nov 5, 2026 - The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is allowing an additional 30 days for the nominations of candidates to be considered for appointment as members of the Tribal Intergovernmental Advisory Committee (TIAC). TIAC facilitates intergovernmental communication between HUD and leaders of federally recognized tribes on all HUD programs and provides advice on the development of HUD's American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) housing priorities. Nominations are due by December 4, 2026.
Source: Federal Register
Nov 5, 2026 - Describes a proposed rule from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services offering regulatory revisions to Conditions of Participation, Conditions for Coverage, and Requirements for Participation for Medicare- and Medicaid-participating providers and suppliers. Impacted facilities include Critical Access Hospitals and Rural Emergency Hospitals, among others. Also requests comments regarding other policies such as long-term care facility discharge; data reporting requirements; physician supervision of certified registered nurse anesthetists, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners; transplant program certification; and other policies addressing Medicaid institutional workforce.
Source: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Newsroom
Nov 5, 2026 - Pre-publication notice of final rule from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) updating the home health payment rates for calendar year (CY) 2027. This rule also finalizes changes to the Home Health Quality Reporting Program (HH QRP) and summarizes potential initiatives to improve alignment between the HH QRP and the expanded Home Health Value-Based Purchasing (HHVBP) Model. Among other things, this rule finalizes permanent and temporary behavior adjustments and recalibrates the case-mix weights and updates the functional impairment levels; comorbidity subgroups; and low-utilization payment adjustment (LUPA) thresholds for CY 2027; and summarizes and responds to comments received on the July 6, 2026, proposed rule regarding the provision of home health palliative care services and a home health specific wage index. The home health prospective payment system and HH QRP provisions of this rule and the regulatory changes at 42 CFR 484.245 are effective January 1, 2027. The remaining regulations are effective 60 days after the date of filing for public inspection. Publication is scheduled for November 9, 2026.
Source: Federal Register
Nov 5, 2026 - Pre-publication notice of a final rule from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) addressing: 1) changes to the Physician Fee Schedule and Medicare Part B payment policies; 2) policies for the Medicare Prescription Drug Inflation Rebate Program under the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022; 3) limiting Medicare coverage of certain individuals; 4) the Ambulatory Specialty Model; 5) updates to drugs and biological products paid under Part B; 6) Medicare Shared Savings Program requirements; 7) updates to the Quality Payment Program; 8) updates to policies for Rural Health Clinics (RHCs) and Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs); 9) updates to the Ambulance Fee Schedule regulations; 10) codification of the Inflation Reduction Act and Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2026 provisions; 11) updates to Clinical Laboratory Fee Schedule regulations; and 12) updates to the Medicare Promoting Interoperability Program. These regulations are effective January 1, 2027.
Source: Federal Register
Nov 4, 2026 - Notice from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services making corrections to the November 2, 2026, notice regarding an information collection titled "Pre-Claim Review Demonstration for Home Health Services."
Source: Federal Register
Nov 4, 2026 - The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is seeking comments on a new information collection titled "Loan Modernization Initiative." USDA Rural Development is developing an online loan application for direct loan assistance and will expand functionality for direct loans, guarantees, and grant making, as well as provide the ability for primary loan servicing application submission. Information collected will be used to ensure that program funds go only to eligible applicants and projects and will allow USDA to track that recipients stay eligible in accordance with program regulations. Comments are due by December 4, 2026.
Source: Federal Register
Nov 3, 2026 - Notice of final rule from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) finalizing revisions to 45 CFR 84.4(g) in the regulation implementing section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as it applies to recipients of HHS funding to exclude gender dysphoria from the definition of "disability" and "individual with a disability." This rule is effective January 4, 2027.
Source: Federal Register