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Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Hospitals

January 2024 MedPAC Meeting Transcript
Transcript from the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission's (MedPAC) January 2024 meeting. Covers payment adequacy and updates for physician and other health professional services, hospital inpatient and outpatient services, outpatient dialysis services, hospice services, skilled nursing facility services, home health agency services, and inpatient rehabilitation facility services. Discusses status reports on ambulatory surgical centers, Medicare Part D, and the Medicare Advantage program, as well as policy options for standardized benefits in Medicare Advantage plans. Includes rural references and considerations throughout.
Additional links: Assessing Payment Adequacy and Updating Payments: Hospital Inpatient and Outpatient Services
Date: 01/2024
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Legislative Action Bridging Public Health and Clinical Healthcare
Discusses legislation that relates to equitable access to healthcare, with a focus on telehealth, infrastructure, safety net services, management of healthcare costs, and the expansion of the healthcare workforce. Includes information on access to emergency departments in rural areas and the Rural Emergency Hospital (REH) designation.
Author(s): Ashley Cram, Brianna Gorman
Date: 01/2024
Sponsoring organization: Association of State and Territorial Health Officials
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Frontline Presence, Building Trust, Emergency Preparedness, and Lessons Learned: Q&A with Dr. Tim Putnam
An interview with Tim Putnam sharing rural health leadership insights from his experiences as a rural hospital CEO, a member of a White House task force, and in an academic healthcare policy position.
Author(s): Kay Miller Temple
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 01/2024
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Critical Access Hospital-Local Health Department Partnerships to Address Rural Community Needs
Explores Critical Access Hospital (CAH) involvement in collaborative community health networks that include local public health departments (LHDs), other healthcare organizations, social service agencies, and other community organizations. Uses survey data from the American Hospital Association (AHA) to describe the collaborative partnerships CAHs are engaged in, the organizations with which they partner, and the activities these partnerships undertake. Presents findings from qualitative interviews with four pairs of CAH and LHD leaders regarding challenges and lessons learned from these local-level collaborations. Identifies three areas of activity - community health needs assessments, emergency preparedness planning, and emergent public health crises - that provide an opportunity to encourage collaboration between CAHs and LHDs and address priority needs.
Author(s): Zachariah Croll, Celia Jewell, John Gale
Date: 01/2024
Sponsoring organization: Flex Monitoring Team
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Medicare COVID-19 Hospitalization Trends Report
Reports cases and hospitalization data for Medicare beneficiaries diagnosed with COVID-19 between January 1, 2020, and June 30, 2023. Includes data on beneficiary demographics, case and hospitalization trends, and discharge status among beneficiaries hospitalized for COVID-19. Compares COVID-19 case and hospitalization rates by rural and urban status.
Date: 01/2024
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
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Florida Rural Health Clinics, Rural Hospitals, and Rural Hospitals that are Critical Access Hospitals, 2024
Map of Florida's Rural Health Clinics and rural hospitals, including Critical Access Hospitals.
Date: 2024
Sponsoring organization: Florida Rural Health Association
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Overall Hospital Quality Star Rating: Overview for Flex Programs, Critical Access Hospitals and Rural Stakeholders
Provides an overview of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Overall Hospital Star Ratings posted on the CMS Care Compare website. Describes the methodology for the Overall Hospital Star Ratings, including information on measure selection, measure grouping, measure group scores and hospital scoring, and peer grouping and star rating assignment. Discusses the implications these ratings have on Critical Access Hospitals and other small rural hospitals.
Date: 2024
Sponsoring organization: Rural Quality Improvement Technical Assistance (RQITA) Resource Center
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340B Discount Drug Program Reform Policy Principles
Policy position paper on the 340B program. Explores ways in which the program benefits rural health systems and patients, and the impact of restrictions by drug manufacturers on rural safety net providers .
Date: 2024
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Health Association
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Rural Maternity Innovation Summit Reports
Findings from a March 2024 Clifton, Texas summit that brought together leaders from six innovative and sustainable rural maternity programs. The site report provides case studies, sharing information on maternity services, staffing, financial strategies, and more. The leader report shares strategies and identifies leadership competencies, values, and character traits that support the leaders' abilities to meet the challenges in providing sustainable rural maternity services in rural communities.
Author(s): Erin E. Sullivan, Benjamin Anderson, Mark Deutchman
Date: 2024
Sponsoring organization: University of Colorado School of Medicine Rural Program
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The University of Arizona Center for Rural Health Annual Report FY 2023-2024
Highlights the Center for Rural Health's accomplishments, and describes challenges and opportunities for improving the health of rural Arizonans in the upcoming year. Discusses the State Office of Rural Health, Arizona Health Improvement Plan (AzHIP), Arizona Rural Hospital Flexibility program (AzFLEX), Arizona Small Rural Hospital Improvement Program (AzSHIP), and other programs.
Date: 2024
Sponsoring organization: Arizona Center for Rural Health
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