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August 30, 2020
MHA's Toward Better Health newsletter will not publish Sept. 6 for the Labor Day holiday. It will be back in your inboxes Sept. 13.
Back-to-School Challenges
The start of the school year is now just days away. On Thursday Gov. Larry Hogan announced all local school systems are authorized to open for in-person instruction. For most children in Maryland, that seems unlikely. Many jurisdictions, including the largest ones, have already decided to begin the school year virtually.

The challenges of opening schools during a global pandemic are formidable. We all want kids to have an in-person learning experience. Yet we need to weigh that against stopping the spread and protecting children and their families.

Prolonged distance learning takes a toll on hospital employees as they balance vital jobs while managing home-based schooling and securing safe, reliable childcare.

Whether instruction is online or in person, this school year is different. For those returning to campus, social distancing measures will be in place, masks will be standard, and hand hygiene will be required. None of that is easy for kids to follow consistently.

The stress of an unconventional school year, coupled with the threat of a spike of COVID-19 during flu season, risks straining our workforce severely. Hospitals’ dedicated caregivers—still on the frontlines of a pandemic—are juggling a lot, personally and professionally.

We’re here to support you and your hospital workforce so you can focus on what you do best: delivering life-saving care to all Marylanders.
Bob Atlas
President & CEO
HSCRC Proposes Changes to Key Payment Policies
At its Aug. 26 Total Cost of Care Work Group meeting, HSCRC staff proposed several changes to its payment policies. Proposals included a Medicare fee-for-service benchmarking comparison for beneficiaries attributed to each hospital under its Medicare Performance Adjustment. Total Medicare spending per beneficiary would be compared to non-Maryland peer groups, with the results used to adjust targeted growth rates. HSCRC staff also proposed hospital-owned physician practices participating in the Maryland Primary Care Program participate in the primary care Care Transformation Initiative or face a penalty equal to care management fees received. MHA will address these proposed changes in our upcoming council and work group meetings. For more information, contact Brett McCone, MHA senior vice president.
The Conversation on Race: Combating Systemic Racism in Health Care
The Maryland Healthcare Education Institute will host a webinar focused on combating systemic racism in health care.

The Conversation on Race: Understanding the Past, Acknowledging the Present, & Shaping the Future, held Sept. 22, will use data, information, and statistics to outline concerns and gives insight to issues around race and race relations in modern times. Current questions as well as societal influences and reactions will be highlighted. This is an opportunity for health care staff to begin an earnest exploration into the topic of race relations, racist behavior and systemic and institutional racism.

For questions or registration information, contact Kelly Yost.
CRISP Expands Capabilities to Help Hospitals Meet New Interoperability and COP Requirements
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services requires hospitals to ensure a “reasonable effort” is made to send electronic notifications to Primary Care Physicians, Skilled Nursing Facilities, and other suppliers at the provider or patient’s request. In response to this change, CRISP expanded its existing offerings to ensure hospitals can meet the new requirements. The new standards were outlined in the federal Interoperability and Patient Access Final Rule and its Condition of Participation. Join a webinar Sept. 22 or Sept. 24 for more details.
Registration Open for Md. American Case Management Association Conference
The Maryland chapter of the American Case Management Association (ACMA) will live stream its 18th annual Case Management and Transitions of Care Conference Sept. 12. The program will be available on-demand Sept. 13-Nov. 10. The sessions will be available through live streaming and pre-recorded webinars and qualify as live and enduring/distance learning CEs. Each session's CE certificate will be identified with the format. A full agenda is available on the Maryland ACMA website, and registration is open.
MHA Urges that CMS Retract Rule Tying COVID-19 Data Reporting to Medicare Participation 
MHA Friday sent a letter to the Maryland Congressional Delegation requesting they urge the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to reject a problematic, proposed interim final rule. The rule, introduced Aug. 25 with virtually no notice, will take effect when it is published in the Federal Register, which could be as soon as this week. In its letter, MHA highlights concerns about the dramatic changes in operations that the rule would cause and the significant penalties for noncompliance it includes.

The rule makes hospital COVID-19 daily data reporting a condition of participation for Medicare, meaning hospitals could be expelled from the Medicare program if they do not comply. Data reporting requirements from CMS and Health and Human Services (HHS) have changed consistently over the past six months. To date, 100% of Maryland hospitals are compliant with CMS reporting requirements, yet tying that requirement to basic participation in Medicare is extremely concerning. In addition, the rule creates civil monetary penalties on laboratories for failure to report on overwhelming data requirements. MHA’s letter to the delegation addresses other areas of concern. For more information, contact Maansi Raswant or Katie Eckert.
Court of Appeals Announces Adoption of Daubert Standard
The Maryland Court of Appeals on Friday announced the adoption of the Daubert standard in a 4-3 decision. This ruling implements the major provision of the Life Care Act of 2020, one of MHA’s 2020 legislative priorities. For more information, contact Brian Frazee.
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