Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Federal Health Experts Go To Capitol Hill To Outline Plans To Curb Antibiotic Overuse
Modern Healthcare: Lawmakers, Experts Outline Steps To Battle Drug-Resistant Superbugs
Congress can fight antibiotic resistance by funding programs to curb unnecessary prescriptions, speeding up the drug development process and improving testing to determine whether a patient has a virus or a bacterial infection, federal government health experts said Tuesday. They spoke at a hearing by the House Energy and Commerce Committee's Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee on the U.S. public health response to antibiotic resistance. In fiscal 2016, Congress allocated more than $830 million to address antibiotic resistance and the White House has requested $1.1 billion for fiscal 2017. (Muchmore, 6/14)
CQ News: Panel Weighs Antibiotic Resistance As Medicare Aims To Curb Use
A House panel on Tuesday heard from administration officials about the importance of conservative antibiotic use and the challenges in developing new drugs, a day after the release of a proposed federal rule that would require hospitals to develop programs to closely monitor antibiotic use. (Siddons, 6/14)
Kaiser Health News: Medicare Releases Draft Proposal For Patient Observation Notice
In just two months, a federal law kicks in requiring hospitals to tell their Medicare patients if they have not been formally admitted and why. But some physician, hospital and consumer representatives say a notice drafted by Medicare for hospitals to use may not do the job. The law was a response to complaints from Medicare patients who were surprised to learn that although they had spent a few days in the hospital, they were there for observation and were not admitted. ... They may pay higher charges than admitted patients and do not qualify for Medicare's nursing home coverage. (Jaffe, 6/15)
Star Tribune: Which Minnesota Hospitals Get Fined By Medicare?
Minnesota hospitals have lost millions in penalties to the federal Medicare program over the last three years for sub-par performance, though they’re in much better shape than hospitals elsewhere. (Olson 6/15)
