Webinars and Member Engagement | |
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CHIME Leads Telehealth Letter to Hill with Nearly 100 Signers
Key Takeaway: Today, CHIME, alongside 93 other organizations, sent a letter to Majority Leader Thune, Minority Leader Schumer, Speaker Johnson, and Minority Leader Jefferies calling for an extension of pandemic-era telehealth flexibilities. A heartfelt thank you to our members and foundation firms who joined us in this advocacy—your support makes a difference!
Why It Matters: The letter urges Congress to extend the telehealth flexibilities set to expire on March 31, 2025, for as long as possible, and at a minimum, through the end of the year, to provide certainty for clinicians and their patients. We expect to know later this week whether or not Congress will extend flexibilities past the current expiration date when lawmakers vote on a government funding bill.
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House Republicans Release Seven-Month CR
Key Takeaway: With less than a week to go until the March 14 deadline, House Republicans released a seven-month continuing resolution (CR) (text; summary) over the weekend that would fund the government through the remainder of fiscal year (FY) 2025.
Why It Matters: Characterized by leadership as a “clean” stopgap that is void of extraneous policy riders, the bill seeks to boost defense and border security funding by $6 billion while reducing a slew of non-defense accounts by $13 billion. From the health care perspective, the package is largely consistent with the CR passed in December 2024 — it includes various “extender” policies and programs like Community Health Centers and continues certain Medicare telehealth flexibilities through Sept. 30, 2025.
What’s the likelihood of the bill passing? As of now, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) intends to bring the CR up for a final vote on Tuesday, and he is likely going to need near-full support from the Republican conference if it is to pass the narrowly-divided chamber. Of note, House Democratic leadership issued a statement yesterday opposing the full-year CR, saying that “we are voting no” on the newly-released stopgap. On the Senate side, Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA), the Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, heavily criticized the proposed CR and called on Congress to finish bipartisan negotiations on a broader funding deal. However, it is not clear if her view is reflective of the entire Senate Democratic caucus, as there may be some among the minority that choose to vote for the CR if the House manages to pass it given Democrats’ general distaste for government shutdowns.
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Senate HELP Holds Hearing for NIH Director Nomination
Key Takeaway: The Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee held a hearing on the nomination of Dr. Jay Bhattacharya (testimony) to serve as Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Lawmakers, particularly Democrats, used the hearing to raise concerns about recent actions taken by President Trump and the so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), with many Democrats criticizing funding freezes and federal workforce reductions.
Why It Matters: Some Republicans also joined Democrats in opposing the administration’s cap on NIH’s indirect cost funding. The Committee also pressed Dr. Bhattacharya on his views regarding vaccine safety, drug pricing, and his policy priorities if confirmed.
In response to concerns about the administration’s policies, Dr. Bhattacharya emphasized that he was not involved in these decisions but pledged to review them if confirmed. Aligning himself with President Donald Trump and Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.’s "Make America Healthy Again" (MAHA) initiative, he committed to prioritizing chronic disease research by ensuring its focus and funding at NIH. Drawing on his experience during the COVID-19 pandemic, in which his alternative approach led to public criticism from health officials, Dr. Bhattacharya reiterated his focus on agency transparency and protecting free speech within the scientific community. He specifically pledged to protect scientific dissent as part of his broader efforts to restore public trust in the NIH.
Next steps: On Thursday, HELP will vote on Dr. Bhattacharya’s nomination. The committee will also consider Dr. Marty Makary’s nomination for commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
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CHIME Submits Comments on Proposed HIPAA Security Rule
Key Takeaway: CHIME has submitted comments on the Biden administration’s proposed HIPAA Security Rule, which you can find here. The proposal – from the Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR), would make sweeping changes to the existing Security Rule. You can find our Cheat Sheets on the proposal here, and here.
Help spread awareness of our advocacy efforts by liking or reposting coverage of the letter on CHIME’s LinkedIn!
Why It Matters: In our comments, CHIME strongly urged HHS to consider our request for the rescission of this proposed rule, which CHIME led in a joint provider stakeholder letter in February. We also express significant concerns about the regulatory, financial, and operational burdens this rule would impose on our members. A huge thank you to our incredible members for generously sharing their feedback, expertise, and time on this important letter—the Public Policy team truly appreciates your support!
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White House Amends Tariff Orders to End Duty-Free Treatment
Key Takeaway: The Trump administration issued a pair of executive orders (EOs) amending previous orders regarding new tariffs on Canada and Mexico. You can find the Fact Sheet here.
Why It Matters: The new tariffs specify that duty-free treatment will end once the Secretary of Commerce notifies the President that adequate systems are in place to efficiently process and collect applicable tariff revenue.
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Commerce Secretary Issues Statement on “Revamping” BEAD Program
Key Takeaway: Department of Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick released a statement announcing that the Department has launched a rigorous review of the Broadband, Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program, and is “ripping out the Biden Administration’s pointless requirements.”
Why It Matters: Congress created the BEAD program in 2021 to expand Americans’ access to high-speed internet. According to the statement, “because of the prior Administration’s woke mandates, favoritism towards certain technologies, and burdensome regulations, the program has not connected a single person to the internet and is in dire need of a readjustment.” Further, “It is revamping the BEAD program to take a tech-neutral approach that is rigorously driven by outcomes, so states can provide internet access for the lowest cost.”
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OCR Investigates Alleged Discrimination in Healthcare Workforce and Training to Restore Merit-Based Opportunity
Key Takeaway: In alignment with President Trump’s EO 14173, Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity, HHS’ OCR announced investigations into four medical schools and hospitals under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VI) and Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act (Section 1557).
Why It Matters: These investigations are in response to allegations and information OCR received that certain medical schools and hospitals that receive HHS funding may operate medical education, training, or scholarship programs for current or prospective workforce members that discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, or sex. National policy under EO 14173 directs federal agencies to enforce long-standing civil rights laws and “to combat illegal private sector [diversity, equity and inclusion] DEI preferences, mandates, policies, programs, and activities.” Under the EO, each agency, in coordination with the Attorney General (AG), is required to identify “nine potential civil compliance investigations” of corporations, associations, foundations, and institutions of higher education with endowments over 1 billion dollars as part of a strategic enforcement plan.
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FBI: Beijing Leveraging Freelance Hackers & InfoSec Companies to Compromise Computer Networks Worldwide
Key Takeaway: The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) released a Public Service Announcement highlight that the Chinese government is using formal and informal connections with freelance hackers and information security (InfoSec) companies to compromise computer networks worldwide.
Why It Matters: Chinese government agencies, including its primary intelligence service the Ministry of State Security (MSS) and its domestic police agency the Ministry of Public Security (MPS), task companies that advertise legitimate cybersecurity services with using their expertise to gain unauthorized access to victim networks. The result is an ecosystem of InfoSec companies and freelance hackers that encourages indiscriminate global cyber activity while providing the Chinese government with a layer of plausible deniability.
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Treasury Sanctions China-based Hacker Involved in the Compromise of Sensitive U.S. Victim Networks
Key Takeaway: The Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated Zhou Shuai, a Shanghai-based malicious cyber actor and data broker, and his company, Shanghai Heiying Information Technology Company, Limited (Shanghai Heiying). In collaboration with another malicious cyber actor, Zhou Shuai illegally acquired, brokered, and sold data from highly sensitive U.S. critical infrastructure networks. Treasury stated in the press release: “Malicious cyber actors, particularly those operating in China, continue to be one of the greatest and most persistent threats to U.S. national security.”
Why It Matters: The designation follows a series of recent Treasury designations aimed at combatting increasingly dangerous cyber activity committed by cybercriminals in China. The Department of Justice (DOJ) unsealed indictments charging Yin Kecheng and Zhou Shuai based on their malicious cyber activity. Furthermore, the Department of State announced a Transnational Organized Crime Rewards Program offer of up to $2 million for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of either cybercriminal.
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FBI Warns of Data Extortion Scam Targeting Corporate Executives
Key Takeaway: The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) issued an alert to inform businesses of a scam involving letters delivered in the mail from unidentified criminal actors to corporate executives, claiming to have come from a ransomware group.
Why It Matters: The scam involves criminal actors masquerading as the “BianLian Group.” These cyber criminals target corporate executives by sending extortion letters threatening to release victims’ sensitive information unless payment is received. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) encourages organizations to review the alert; and to report incidents and anomalous activity to CISA’s 24/7 Operations Center at Report@cisa.gov or (888) 282-0870.
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Policy Team Picks of the Week | |
College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME)
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