/ en Fri, 25 Apr 2025 17:21:56 -0500 Fri, 11 Apr 25 15:34:51 -0500 /role-hospitals-queens-health-systems-collaborate-provide-enlightened-cancer-care-hawaiians <div class="container"><div class="row"><div class="col-md-9"><div class="col-md-6"><p><img src="/sites/default/files/2025-04/ths-queens-medical-cancer-700x532.jpg" data-entity-uuid data-entity-type="file" alt="The Queen’s Health Systems. An older woman wearing a scarf on her head sits in a chair receiving cancer treatment from a nurse" width="700" height="532"></p></div><p>The Queen’s Health Systems, based in Honolulu, Hawaii, joined a new collaborative initiative — called Ka Umeke Lama, or “Bowl of Enlightenment” in Hawaiian — that aims to transform cancer care across the islands.</p><p>In Hawaii, over 7,000 residents are diagnosed with invasive cancer annually, and 2,000 residents die each year of cancer. As the population continues to age and the need for cancer care grows, the <a href="https://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/2024/12/17/new-initiative-aims-transform-cancer-care-hawaii/" target="_blank">Ka Umeke Lama initiative</a> aims to improve access to care and cancer outcomes through research, workforce development and culturally informed practices.</p><p>Specific plans include the creation of a centralized clinical research database; the launch of clinical trials that address cancer disparities among different populations; deployment of oncology providers and early detection units to rural and underserved areas; the development of telehealth systems; and use of artificial intelligence-based clinical trial screening and monitoring tools.</p><p>Additionally, Queen’s Health Systems has partnered with the University of Hawaii Cancer Center to provide oncology care in a newly constructed hospital wing — a collaborative project with the Hawaii Cancer Consortium, the members of which also form the Ka Umeke Lama Initiative. This partnership offers early-phase clinical trial treatments, so patients won’t have to travel to other states to receive cutting-edge care options.</p><p><a class="btn btn-primary" href="https://www.queens.org/the-queens-health-systems-and-uh-cancer-center-parnter-to-develop-hawaiis-first-on-campus-cancer-clinical-center/" target="_blank">LEARN MORE</a></p><p> </p></div><div class="col-md-3"><div><h4>Resources on the Role of Hospitals</h4><ul><li><a href="/topics/innovation">Innovation, Research and Quality Improvement</a></li><li><a href="/roleofhospitals">All Case Studies</a></li></ul></div></div></div></div> Fri, 11 Apr 2025 15:34:51 -0500 Reducing Healthcare Disparities /news/headline/2025-04-02-study-early-pregnancy-blood-pressure-patterns-linked-hypertension-risk-14-years-later <p>A National Institutes of Health <a href="https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/blood-pressure-patterns-early-pregnancy-tied-hypertension-risk-14-years-later" title="NIH study">study</a> published April 2 found that blood pressure patterns observed during the first half of pregnancy can determine a woman's risk of developing hypertension up to 14 years after giving birth. The study found that women showing certain blood pressure patterns during the first 20 weeks of pregnancy were more likely to develop hypertension years later. Researchers identified six risk groups of blood pressure trajectory that ranged from ultra-low to elevated-stable patterns. Women with elevated-stable patterns were at the highest risk. </p> Wed, 02 Apr 2025 16:24:45 -0500 Reducing Healthcare Disparities /keck-school-medicine-uscs-primary-care-provider-pipeline-fix <div class="container"><div class="row"><div class="col-md-9"><div class="row"><div class="col-md-7"><img src="/sites/default/files/2025-03/ths-image-keck-school-of-medicine-at-uscs-primary-care-provider-pipeline-fix-700x532.jpg" data-entity-uuid data-entity-type="file" alt=": Keck School of Medicine of USC. A Team Photo: Keck School of Medicine of USC" width="700" height="532" class="align-left"></div><p>Primary care physicians may not be the flashiest health care professionals, but they deliver a core, foundational element of patient care. Because they provide preventive care and offer crucial referrals to medical specialists and other services, they are integral to health care systems. They’re also in short supply worldwide, a problem that is expected to worsen in the future. </p><p>To address this growing issue, the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California uses an immersive model called the Primary Care Initiative to inspire medical students to pursue careers in primary care. Launched in 2011, the PCI also includes the Primary Care Program, which focuses on community-based primary care for underserved urban populations. A recent alumni questionnaire showed that of the 61 respondents who were matched into primary care residencies and were practicing or had almost completed residency training, 70% were still practicing primary care or on track to do so. </p><p>“There’s a paucity of role models in medical schools who are primary care physicians,” said study senior author Jo Marie Reilly, M.D., founding director of PCI and a professor of family medicine at the Keck School of Medicine. “We provide a forum for students to see the breadth and scope of primary care services and envision what their own careers could be.”</p><p>The study in which the questionnaire results were highlighted, published in Family Medicine, also showed that 90% of practicing physicians who responded served urban communities, in keeping with the Primary Care Program’s focus. <br><br><a class="btn btn-primary" href="https://keck.usc.edu/news/usc-medical-school-program-helps-drive-primary-care-careers-through-community-focused-training">LEARN MORE</a></p></div></div><div class="col-md-3"><div><h4>Resources on the Role of Hospitals</h4><ul><li><a href="/workforce-home">Workforce</a></li><li><a href="/roleofhospitals">All Case Studies</a></li></ul></div></div></div></div> Tue, 25 Mar 2025 19:14:56 -0500 Reducing Healthcare Disparities /news/headline/2025-01-16-aha-releases-2025-advocacy-agenda <p>The AHA yesterday released its 2025 <a href="/system/files/media/file/2025/01/AHA-2025-Advocacy-Agenda-20250114.pdf" title="advo agenda 2025">Advocacy Agenda</a> that details the association's key priorities for Congress, the Administration, regulatory agencies and courts. The agenda is focused on ensuring access to care; strengthening the health care workforce; advancing quality, equity and health care system resiliency; leading innovation in care delivery; and reducing health care system costs for patient care.</p> Thu, 16 Jan 2025 15:42:41 -0600 Reducing Healthcare Disparities /advocacy-agenda <div class="raw-html-embed"><div class="container"> <div class="row"> <div class="col-md-8"> <h2><span>Introduction</span></h2> <p>America’s hospitals and health systems are unwavering in their commitment to delivering safe and quality care to every patient, in every community. The blue and white “H” symbol is a beacon of healing, hope and health in every community nationwide.</p> <p>Despite this steadfast commitment, hospitals and health systems face formidable challenges. They continue to grapple with significant workforce shortages, escalating costs of care, inadequate government reimbursement and a heavy regulatory burden.</p> <p>In 2025, the ���������� Association (AHA) will engage with Congress, the Administration, regulatory bodies and the judiciary to shape public policy to advance hospitals’ efforts to provide quality patient care. The AHA also will focus on ensuring the long-term viability of hospitals to serve their communities and promote health and wellness.</p> <p>By addressing these challenges head-on, the AHA supports hospitals and health systems in their crucial role of caring for patients and advancing health, ensuring that the promise of the “H” symbol remains strong and reliable.</p> <p>Our 2025 Advocacy Agenda is focused on:</p> <ul class="diamond"> <li class="diamond"><strong>Ensuring Access to Care</strong></li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Strengthening the Health Care Workforce</strong></li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Advancing Quality and Health Care System Resiliency</strong></li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Leading Innovation in Care Delivery</strong></li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Reducing Health Care System Costs for Patient Care</strong></li> </ul> <p>The following includes a detailed list of our advocacy priorities and key highlights. Please explore this page and the Advocacy link in our website navigation for more resources and information on the priorities in this document and our latest advocacy campaigns.</p> </div> <div class="col-md-4"> <div class="external-link spacer"><strong><strong><a class="btn btn-wide btn-primary" href="/system/files/media/file/2025/01/AHA-2025-Advocacy-Agenda-20250114.pdf" target="_blank" title="Click here to download the AHA 2025 Advocacy Agenda PDF.">Download the 2025 Advocacy Agenda PDF</a></strong></strong></div> <p><a href="/system/files/media/file/2025/01/AHA-2025-Advocacy-Agenda-20250114.pdf" target="_blank" title="Click here to download the AHA 2025 Advocacy Agenda PDF."><img alt="���������� Association 2025 Advocacy Agenda cover." src="/sites/default/files/2025-01/Page-1-AHA-2025-Advocacy-Agenda-20250114.png"></a></p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="container"> <h2><span>Detailed Advocacy Agenda</span></h2> <div class="col-md-12 cc_tabs"> /* reset */ .cc_tabs ul.a-container { margin: 0; padding: 0; list-style: none; } .cc_tabs input[type=checkbox] { display: none; } /* style */ .cc_tabs .a-container { width: 100%; margin: 20px auto; } .cc_tabs .a-container label { display: block; position: relative; cursor: pointer; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; padding: 10px 20px; color: #63666a; background-color: #eee; border-bottom: 1px solid #ddd; -webkit-transition: all .2s ease; -moz-transition: all .2s ease; -ms-transition: all .2s ease; -o-transition: all .2s ease; transition: all .2s ease; margin-bottom:15px } .cc_tabs .a-container label:after { content: ""; width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #aaa; border-right: 6px solid transparent; border-bottom: 8px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid transparent; position: absolute; right: 10px; top: 16px; } .cc_tabs .a-container input:checked + label, .cc_tabs .a-container label:hover { background-color: #003087; color: #fff; } .cc_tabs .a-container input:checked + label:after { border-top: 8px solid 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border-top-left-radius: 15px; border-top-right-radius: 15px; font-weight: 700; } @media (max-width:452px){ .cc_tabs .tab button{ padding: 10px 5px 10px 5px; width: calc(50% - 4px); font-size: 17px; margin: 0px 2px; } } /* Change background color of buttons on hover */ .cc_tabs .tab button:hover { background-color: #003087; color:#fff } /* Create an active/current "tab button" class */ .cc_tabs .tab button.active { background-color: #003087; color: #ffffff } /* Style the tab content */ .cc_tabs .tab .tabcontent { float: left; padding: 15px 12px; border: 1px solid #ccc; width: 100%; height: auto; } .cc_tabs .tablinks:after { content: '\2610'; color: #777; font-weight: bold; float: right; margin-left: 5px; } .cc_tabs .tablinks.active:after { content: "\2611"; } <div class="tab">Key HighlightsEnsuring Access to CareStrengthening the Health Care WorkforceAdvancing Quality and Health Care System ResiliencyLeading Innovation in Care DeliveryReducing Health Care System Costs for Patient Care</div> <div class="tabcontent" id="highlights"> <ul class="a-container"> <li class="a-items"> Highlights <div class="a-content"> <ul class="diamond"> <li class="diamond"><strong>Extend the Enhanced Premium Tax Credits</strong> to ensure millions of Americans can continue to access health insurance and prevent hospitals from shouldering an even greater financial burden.</li> <li class="diamond">Ensure essential health care services are available in all communities by <strong>safeguarding federal funding for Medicare, Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program and the Health Insurance Marketplaces.</strong></li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Reject additional payment cuts</strong> that do not recognize legitimate differences among provider settings (<strong>so-called site-neutral or facility-fee payment policies</strong>).</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Protect the 340B Drug Pricing Program</strong> to ensure hospitals can maintain vital patient services and expand access to care.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Ensure Medicaid is fully funded</strong> to allow hospitals to continue to serve the Medicaid, uninsured and marginalized populations in their communities, including through support of the current FMAP rates, the Medicaid Disproportionate Share Hospital program, Upper Payment Limits and Directed Payments, and the financing sources that sustain them.</li> <li class="diamond">Bolster support for hospitals and health systems so they can <strong>prepare for and respond to natural and man-made disruptions, including natural disasters, cyberattacks and supply chain failures.</strong></li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Hold commercial health insurers accountable</strong> for ensuring appropriate patient access to care, including reducing the excessive use of utilization management programs, ensuring adequate provider networks, reducing account receivables and limiting inappropriate denials for services.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Bolster the health care workforce</strong> by enacting important protections against violence in health care settings, eliminating federal restrictions that limit the ability of providers to practice at the top of their license, and increasing funding for clinical training programs.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Enact regulatory and administrative relief</strong> from burdensome policies that take caregivers away from providing patient care and increase costs for patients and the health care system.</li> </ul> </div> </li> </ul> </div> <div class="tabcontent" id="accesstocare"> <ul class="a-container"> <li class="a-items"> Financial Stability of the Health Care System <div class="a-content"> <ul class="diamond"> <li class="diamond">Ensure essential health care services are available in all communities by <strong>safeguarding federal funding for Medicare, Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program and the Health Insurance Marketplaces.</strong> Government programs currently reimburse providers significantly less than the cost of delivering care.</li> <li class="diamond">Ensure patient access to critical care and other outpatient services by <strong>rejecting additional payment cuts</strong> that do not recognize legitimate differences among provider settings (also known as so-called site-neutral or facility-fee payment policies) and policies that restrict patient access to certain sites of care (also known as site-of-service policies).</li> <li class="diamond">Preserve the gains in health coverage made over the past decade, including by <strong>extending the Enhanced Premium Tax Credits</strong> for coverage through the health insurance marketplaces.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Protect the 340B Drug Pricing Program</strong> to ensure hospitals can maintain vital patient services and expand access to care by reversing harmful policies and holding drug manufacturers accountable to the program rules, <strong>especially community pharmacy arrangements.</strong></li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Ensure Medicaid is fully funded</strong> to allow hospitals to continue to serve the Medicaid, uninsured and underserved populations in their communities, including through support of the current FMAP rates, the Medicaid Disproportionate Share Hospital program, Upper Payment Limits and Directed Payments, and the financing sources that sustain them.</li> <li class="diamond">Pursue a new <strong>“metropolitan anchor hospital”</strong> designation for certain hospitals that provide critical health care services to marginalized and underrepresented communities.</li> <li class="diamond">Ensure the <strong>Federal Emergency Management Agency follows through on its commitment to reimburse hospitals</strong> appropriately and timely for the resources they provide during public health emergencies and other disasters.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Mitigate Medicare payment reductions to ensure patient access to physicians.</strong></li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Rein in rising drug costs</strong> by taking steps to increase drug manufacturer competition, improve drug pricing transparency and hold pharmacy benefit managers accountable for illegal practices that increase costs and reduce coverage for patients and providers.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Enact regulatory and administrative relief</strong> from burdensome policies that take caregivers away from providing patient care and increase costs for patients and the health care system.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Protect not-for-profit hospitals’ tax-exempt</strong> status so they can continue providing community benefits tailored to their communities’ unique needs, demographics and policy realities.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Protect access to clinical laboratory services in hospital-based laboratories.</strong></li> <li class="diamond">Protect access to care by <strong>preserving the existing ban on the growth and expansion of physician-owned hospitals.</strong></li> </ul> </div> </li> <li class="a-items"> Coverage and Access <div class="a-content"> <ul class="diamond"> <li class="diamond"><strong>Ensure access to care for veterans</strong> by working with the Department of Veterans Affairs as it implements the next generation of comprehensive community care for veterans.</li> <li class="diamond">Support policy and federal oversight changes to <strong>ensure the appropriate use of donated organs in time for a successful transplant</strong>, the ability to effectively use new strategies for harvesting and preserving organs until donated and coordinated, and rational regulation of transplant centers, donor hospitals and organ procurement organizations.</li> </ul> </div> </li> <li class="a-items"> Rural Hospitals <div class="a-content"> <ul class="diamond"> <li class="diamond">Protect rural communities’ access to care by <strong>making permanent critical programs, including the Medicare-dependent Hospital designation, Low-volume Adjustment and ambulance add-on payment.</strong></li> <li class="diamond">Improve rural health programs by <strong>reopening the necessary provider designation for Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs), reversing cuts to Rural Health Clinic payments, removing the 96-hour condition of payment for CAHs and further strengthening Medicare-dependent and Sole Community Hospitals</strong> by allowing participating hospitals to choose from an additional base year when calculating payments.</li> <li class="diamond">Advance rural health care alternatives to ensure care delivery and financing by <strong>supporting and refining the Rural Emergency Hospital model.</strong></li> <li class="diamond">Continue to support legislation that would <strong>place a floor on the area wage index, effectively raising it for hospitals below that threshold with new money.</strong></li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Support Medicare Advantage payment parity for CAHs</strong> to ensure the long-term health of providers and facilities that care for patients in rural areas, considering the volume of Medicare Advantage enrollment in those communities.</li> </ul> </div> </li> <li class="a-items"> Post-Acute Care <div class="a-content"> <ul class="diamond"> <li class="diamond"><strong>Bolster patient access to post-acute care by establishing appropriate network adequacy requirements</strong> for long-term care hospitals, inpatient rehabilitation facilities, skilled nursing facilities and home health agencies.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Eliminate the proposed minimum staffing requirements for skilled nursing and long-term care facilities</strong> and instead press for long-term solutions to health care workforce shortages.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Provide stability under the long-term care hospital prospective payment system</strong> through legislative and regulatory reforms that provide adequate reimbursement for high-cost patients and those with high acuity levels.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Ensure Medicare Advantage beneficiaries have access to the same post-acute care benefits as Traditional Medicare beneficiaries</strong> by holding plans accountable through robust oversight and enforcement.</li> <li class="diamond">Reduce administrative burden for post-acute care providers by <strong>eliminating unnecessary data reporting requirements.</strong></li> </ul> </div> </li> <li class="a-items"> Behavioral Health <div class="a-content"> <ul class="diamond"> <li class="diamond"><strong>Implement policies to better integrate and coordinate behavioral health services with physical health services</strong>, including developing alternative payment models and bundled payments that incorporate behavioral and physical health services and financially supporting the implementation of team-based care models.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Eliminate Medicare’s 90-day lifetime limit for inpatient psychiatric admissions.</strong></li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Repeal the Medicaid Institutions for Mental Disease exclusion</strong>, which prohibits the use of federal Medicaid funds to cover inpatient mental health services for patients aged 21 to 64 in certain freestanding psychiatric facilities.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Reauthorize key programs in the SUPPORT for Patients and Communities Act</strong>, which would extend expiring payments, grants and other programs for substance use disorder treatment and prevention.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Increase targeted funding for facilities that provide specialty mental health services</strong> (including pediatric, geriatric and multi-substance use disorders) and <strong>invest in the behavioral health workforce</strong> by creating dedicated Medicare-funded graduate medical education slots for these specialties.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Make permanent the Certified Community Behavioral Health Center demonstration program.</strong></li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Eliminate or amend outdated and unnecessary Conditions of Participation for psychiatric facilities</strong> related to emergency care and treatment planning documentation.</li> <li class="diamond">Strengthen enforcement through significant <strong>penalties for health plans that violate the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act and subsequent rules.</strong></li> </ul> </div> </li> <li class="a-items"> Commercial Insurer Accountability <div class="a-content"> <ul class="diamond"> <li class="diamond"><strong>Hold commercial health insurers accountable for ensuring appropriate patient access to care</strong>, including by reducing the excessive use of prior authorization, ensuring adequate provider networks, limiting inappropriate denials for services that should be covered and prohibiting certain specialty pharmacy policies, like insurer-mandated “white bagging,” that create patient safety risks and limit patient access to certain medications in hospital settings.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Ensure stronger enforcement of federal rules related to Medicare Advantage</strong> through increased oversight and insurer scrutiny.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Increase oversight and accountability of commercial health plans through increased data collection, reporting and transparency</strong> on core plan performance metrics that are meaningful indicators of patient access, such as appeals, denials and grievances, and reporting on using algorithms and artificial intelligence in utilization management programs.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Establish a prompt payment standard for Medicare Advantage</strong> to ensure timely claims payment.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Apply guardrails to insurer algorithms and artificial intelligence use</strong> to ensure these tools do not inappropriately create barriers for patients to access medical care.</li> <li class="diamond">Ensure patients can rely on their coverage by <strong>disallowing health plans from inappropriately delaying and denying care</strong>, including by making unilateral mid-year coverage changes.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Prevent improper insurer manipulation of oversight tools</strong> designed to ensure premium dollars are spent on patient care (e.g., medical loss ratio requirements).</li> <li class="diamond">Advocate for regulatory and legislative solutions to <strong>prevent health plans from enacting inappropriate fees for electronic payments.</strong></li> </ul> </div> </li> </ul> </div> <div class="tabcontent" id="workforce"> <ul class="a-container"> <li class="a-items"> Workforce Shortages <div class="a-content"> <ul class="diamond"> <li class="diamond"><strong>Address physician shortages</strong>, including shortages of behavioral health providers, by increasing the number of residency slots eligible for Medicare funding while rejecting cuts to Medicare graduate medical education.</li> <li class="diamond">Encourage the <strong>continuation of visa waivers for physicians in medically underserved areas and recapture of unused employment visas for doctors and nurses.</strong></li> <li class="diamond">Address nursing shortages by <strong>reauthorizing nursing workforce development programs</strong> to support recruitment, retention and advanced education for nurses and other allied health professionals and investing in nursing schools, nurse faculty salaries and hospital training time.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Reduce administrative burdens that take clinicians away from the bedside and contribute to burnout</strong>, such as excessive and unnecessary prior authorization use and inappropriate coverage denials that require substantive clerical rework by staff.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Support apprenticeship programs for nursing assistants and other critical support staff positions.</strong></li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Adopt policies to expand loan repayment and other incentive-based programs to retain existing talent and attract new talent</strong>, including through continued funding of the National Health Service Corps and National Nurse Corps.</li> </ul> </div> </li> <li class="a-items"> Workforce Safety <div class="a-content"> <ul class="diamond"> <li class="diamond"><strong>Strengthen workplace safety by enacting federal protections for health care workers against violence and intimidation</strong> and providing hospitals with grant funding for education and training programs, coordination efforts with state and local law enforcement, and physical plant improvements.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Reject additional federal workplace violence regulations that would be duplicative of the rigorous accreditation requirements hospitals already face</strong> and that would add administrative burden.</li> <li class="diamond">Protect health care workers from threats against them in their homes by <strong>permanently removing the requirement that practitioners rendering telehealth services from their homes report their home addresses on Medicare enrollment or claims forms.</strong></li> </ul> </div> </li> <li class="a-items"> Licensure Standards <div class="a-content"> <ul class="diamond"> <li class="diamond">Support efforts to <strong>allow non-physicians to practice at the top of their licenses.</strong></li> <li class="diamond">Allow non-physician licensed practitioners to provide and be paid for certain clinical services, including behavioral health services, by <strong>expediting licensure processes, allowing for general rather than direct supervision and removing unnecessary practice restrictions as clinically appropriate.</strong></li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Promote medical licensure reciprocity to allow practitioners to work across state lines.</strong></li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Remove unnecessary and stigmatizing language around mental health from licensure and credentialing processes.</strong></li> </ul> </div> </li> </ul> </div> <div class="tabcontent" id="quality"> <ul class="a-container"> <li class="a-items"> Quality <div class="a-content"> <ul class="diamond"> <li class="diamond"><strong>Advocate for streamlined Conditions of Participation</strong> and other regulatory standards that promote safe, high-quality care without increasing administrative burden.</li> <li class="diamond">Pursue strategies and support public policies aimed at <strong>improving maternal and child health access and outcomes.</strong></li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Enhance the effectiveness and lower the burden of the Physician Quality Payment Program</strong> by advocating for more accurate and meaningful cost measures and appropriately pacing the implementation of new program approaches, such as the Merit-based Incentive Payment System Value Pathways.</li> <li class="diamond">Promote approaches to <strong>account for health-related social needs in quality measurement and value programs where appropriate</strong> to ensure appropriate performance comparisons and payment adjustments.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Advocate for measures that matter in advancing quality and patient safety</strong> and that help hospitals and health systems identify important opportunities to ensure all patients achieve the best possible outcomes for their conditions. Work to ensure federal, state, and payer performance assessments use these same measures in order to reduce measurement burden.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Advocate to discontinue measures</strong> that either fail to provide meaningful, credible information to advance patient quality or safety or have administrative burdens that outweigh their value to improving care.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Promote meaningful changes</strong> in federal funding of research to improve the delivery of safe, effective care, the efficiency of care, the effective use of care teams, and the leadership and governance processes most likely to yield improvements in patient outcomes and experience of care.</li> </ul> </div> </li> <li class="a-items"> Resiliency and Preparedness <div class="a-content"> <ul class="diamond"> <li class="diamond"><strong>Advocate for increased annual appropriations for the Hospital Preparedness Program</strong> to ensure that the health care infrastructure is ready to respond to crises. Continue efforts to ensure that most of this funding is awarded to hospitals and health systems to enhance emergency preparedness and surge capacity.</li> <li class="diamond">Support federal incentives and investments to improve <strong>hospitals’ disaster preparedness and operational resiliency.</strong></li> <li class="diamond">Prevent and address shortages of critical medical drugs, devices, blood and blood products, and supplies, including working with Congress and the federal government to bring about policy changes that will <strong>avert future shortages by strengthening the medical supply chain.</strong></li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Advance policies that assist in protecting health care services, data and patients from cyberattacks</strong> while supporting efforts to deliver broader gains in computer security by shifting the burden of cybersecurity away from individual health systems.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Continue to support federal incentives and investments to improve the security posture of hospitals and health systems</strong>, including regulatory relief for hospitals and health systems that suffer a cyberattack despite having recognized cybersecurity practices in place, and push back on any new cybersecurity regulation not inclusive of the entire health sector.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Advocate for increased accountability of third-party technology vendors in HIPAA.</strong></li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Support regulation of artificial intelligence that enables continued innovation while providing reasonable guardrails</strong> to ensure patient safety and improved outcomes for all patients.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Support clear minimum privacy standards in HIPAA</strong> that account for how data is used, shared and created in hospitals and health systems.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Support the continued development of clinician burden reduction technologies</strong> to help caregivers reduce administrative requirements to spend more time on direct patient care.</li> <li class="diamond">Advocate for the adoption of a <strong>universal patient identification number</strong> to support patient safety efforts.</li> <li class="diamond">Continue to support federal investments in <strong>improving broadband infrastructure</strong>, especially in rural and underserved areas of the country.</li> </ul> </div> </li> </ul> </div> <div class="tabcontent" id="innovation"> <ul class="a-container"> <li class="a-items"> Leading Innovation in Care Delivery <div class="a-content"> <ul class="diamond"> <li class="diamond"><strong>Support the move to value-based care</strong>, with a particular focus on solutions for the longterm financial viability of hospitals and health systems by offering some level of predictable, up-front payment.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Advocate for incentive payments</strong> to support hospitals and health systems’ transition to taking on higher levels of risk.</li> <li class="diamond">Advocate for implementing <strong>new voluntary payment models</strong> so hospitals are not forced to bear the expense of participation in these complicated programs if they do not believe it will benefit patients.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Create a permanent CMS hospital-at-home program</strong>, shown to be a safe and innovative approach to caring for patients in the comfort of their homes that leads to high patient satisfaction and, for some patients, results in shorter recovery times.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Remove barriers</strong> to cross-sector and interagency coordination and support investments to provide accountable care.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Make permanent coverage of certain telehealth services</strong> made possible during the COVID-19 pandemic, including lifting geographic and originating site restrictions, allowing Rural Health Clinics and Federally Qualified Health Centers to serve as distant sites, expanding practitioners who can provide telehealth and allowing hospital outpatient billing for virtual services, among others.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Implement a special registration process for telemedicine providers</strong> to ensure access to telemedicine prescribing of controlled substances for practitioners who register with the Drug Enforcement Agency. Preserve pandemic-era waivers until the special registration process begins.</li> </ul> </div> </li> </ul> </div> <div class="tabcontent" id="reducingcosts"> <ul class="a-container"> <li class="a-items"> Reducing Health Care System Costs for Patient Care <div class="a-content"> <ul class="diamond"> <li class="diamond"><strong>Ensure patients do not face financial barriers to care because of unaffordable deductibles or otherwise “skinny coverage,”</strong> such as health sharing ministries and short-term limited-duration coverage products.</li> <li class="diamond">Reduce the prevalence of individuals faced with unaffordable medical bills by <strong>addressing the root causes of medical debt</strong>, such as skyrocketing deductibles and other benefit designs that push costs onto consumers.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Support price transparency efforts by ensuring patients have access to the information they seek when preparing for care</strong>, including cost estimates when appropriate, and creating alignment of federal price transparency requirements to avoid patient confusion and overly burdensome duplication of efforts.</li> <li class="diamond">Advocate that No Surprises Act price transparency regulations leverage existing workflows and appropriate technology to <strong>enable patient access to information without significant administrative burden for providers.</strong></li> <li class="diamond">Reduce unnecessary costs in the system by pursuing <strong>medical liability reform.</strong></li> <li class="diamond">Reduce regulatory burden by identifying and advocating for the <strong>repeal of unnecessary and duplicative Conditions of Participation</strong> that increase hospital inefficiency and reduce the time providers can spend caring for their patients.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Mitigate unreasonable proposed changes to the False Claims Act and related enforcement practices.</strong></li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Preserve the ability of hospital and health system clinical laboratories to develop new and innovative diagnostic tests, known as laboratory-developed tests (LDT)</strong>, to address unmet patient needs and improve existing diagnostic tests without imposing burdensome and unnecessary regulatory oversight.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Ensure public policies are aligned across government regulatory bodies</strong> so hospitals are not held to conflicting regulations.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Reduce regulatory barriers to hospitals improving the environment</strong>, such as Medicare Conditions of Participation that lock hospitals into compliance with outdated and less energy-efficient physical plants or deter from efforts to reduce the use of anesthesia gases and inhalers.</li> <li class="diamond"><strong>Prevent the imposition or increase of tariffs on vital medical supplies</strong>, including drugs, devices and raw materials used to manufacture devices and drugs in the U.S., as these will further raise medical services costs and potentially force hospitals to use less effective alternatives that could increase the patient harm risk.</li> </ul> </div> </li> </ul> </div> function openCity(evt, cityName) { var i, tabcontent, tablinks; tabcontent = document.getElementsByClassName("tabcontent"); for (i = 0; i < tabcontent.length; i++) { tabcontent[i].style.display = "none"; } tablinks = document.getElementsByClassName("tablinks"); for (i = 0; i < tablinks.length; i++) { tablinks[i].className = tablinks[i].className.replace(" active", ""); } document.getElementById(cityName).style.display = "block"; evt.currentTarget.className += " active"; } // Get the element with id="defaultOpen" and click on it document.getElementById("defaultOpen").click(); </div> </div> <div class="container"> <hr> <h3>AHA Advocacy Campaigns</h3> <p>Please visit <a href="/advocacy/action-center">www.aha.org/advocacy/action-center</a> to get involved and learn more about the ���������� Association’s 2025 public policy advocacy agenda.</p> </div> ul.diamond { list-style: none; margin-left: 20px; padding-left: 0; } li.diamond { padding-left: 1em; text-indent: 1em; } li.diamond:before { content: "◆"; color: #9d2235; padding-right: 10px; margin-left: -36px; } .resource-block-header .resource-block-title small { color: black; } </div> Wed, 15 Jan 2025 06:00:00 -0600 Reducing Healthcare Disparities <div class="container"><div class="row"><div class="col-md-12"><div class="row"><div class="col-md-8"><p>The AHA’s Societal Factors that Influence Health Framework is designed to guide hospitals’ strategies to identify patients' social needs, the social drivers of health in their communities and the systemic causes that lead to health inequities so all stakeholders can take action around these critical issues.</p><p>Use this slide deck to foster conversations with your team and community about how your organization can make an impact on the societal factors that influence health.</p><hr><div class="row"><div class="col-md-4"><a href="/system/files/media/file/2024/12/SocietalFactors_SlideDeck_December2024.pptx"><img src="/sites/default/files/2024-12/addressing-societal-factors-influence-health-presentation-cover.png" alt="Addressing the Societal Factors that Influence Health Presentation cover image" width="700" height="394"></a></div><div class="col-md-8"><h4>Addressing the Societal Factors that Influence Health: A Framework for Hospitals and Health Systems</h4><div class="spacer"><a class="btn btn-primary" href="/system/files/media/file/2024/12/SocietalFactors_SlideDeck_December2024.pptx" target="_blank">Download Presentation</a></div></div></div></div><div class="col-md-4"><div class="panel panel-default"><div class="panel-heading"><h3 class="text-align-center"><strong>Additional Resources</strong></h3></div><div class="panel-body"><a href="/societalfactors"><img src="/sites/default/files/2025-01/societalfactors_framework_2024.jpg" alt="Societal Factors framework infographic shows concentric circles with Person: Social Needs - center, Community: Social Drivers of Health - middle ring, and System: Systemic causes - outer ring encircling both" width="728" height="728" class="align-center"></a><p><a class="btn btn-wide btn-primary" href="/societalfactors" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" data-view-context="top-level-view">Societal Factors that Influence Health Framework</a></p></div></div></div></div></div></div></div> Thu, 19 Dec 2024 12:25:22 -0600 Reducing Healthcare Disparities /advancing-health-podcast/2024-11-06-thinking-outside-box-reduce-behavioral-health-stigma-and-disparities <p>For historically underserved populations, stigma and lack of access to behavioral health services can present huge barriers to treatment. In this conversation, Matthew Hoag, director of integrated behavioral health at Denver Health, shares how the organization is innovating through integration to meet the behavioral health needs of its communities, including with its state-of-the-art mobile opioid treatment unit.</p><hr><div></div><div class="raw-html-embed"> <details class="transcript"> <summary> <h2 title="Click here to open/close the transcript."> <span>View Transcript</span><br>   </h2> </summary> <p>00:00:00:11 - 00:00:26:11<br> Tom Haederle<br> Often, people with severe mental illness lead shorter lives, sometimes up to 25 years less. For historically underserved populations and minorities, this can be compounded. A recent Kaiser Family Foundation report found that rates of death by suicide are rising faster among black, Hispanic, and other people of color than whites. There are many reasons for this, including access to care, stigma, and even implicit bias in the health care system itself.</p> <p>00:00:26:13 - 00:00:48:12<br> Tom Haederle<br> There isn't one magic solution to all of these problems, but as Denver Health has found out, the integrated care system goes a long way towards reducing health disparities and providing the care that patients need and deserve.</p> <p>00:00:48:15 - 00:01:11:13<br> Tom Haederle<br> Welcome to Advancing Health, a podcast from the ���������� Association. I'm Tom Haederle with AHA communications. In this podcast, hosted by Rebecca Chickey, senior director of Behavioral Health Services with AHA, we learn how Denver Health's commitment to integration as a tool for increasing access to behavioral health has benefited the communities it serves by reducing stigma and health disparities.</p> <p>00:01:11:15 - 00:01:23:25<br> Tom Haederle<br> As Matthew Hoag, director of Integrated Behavioral Health for Denver Health, says, a patient can now discretely get all of their health conditions addressed in one place. And that's incredible. Here's Rebecca.</p> <p>00:01:23:28 - 00:02:07:12<br> Rebecca Chickey<br> It is my honor indeed to be here with Matthew Hoag from Denver Health. He has so much experience in the value of integrating physical and behavioral health. And it's an honor for myself and our listeners today to be able to listen and learn from him. Today, we're really going to focus on the value of integrating physical and behavioral health in terms of how it can help reduce health disparities for historically underserved communities, individuals, and communities of color, as well as those individuals who suffer from severe and persistent mental illness, such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.</p> <p>00:02:07:15 - 00:02:50:06<br> Rebecca Chickey<br> The reason that these things are so important is what Matthew's going to share with us. But I want to put in just a couple of thoughts. One, when you hear what he says about the importance of integration and the value that that delivers for individuals with severe and persistent mental illness, one of the really important things is that is what people often refer to as bi-directional integration, meaning individuals with severe mental illness often die 17 to 25 years earlier than those individuals without. And that's not due to suicide. That is due to their inability because of poor management in many cases of their mental illness.</p> <p>00:02:50:09 - 00:03:23:20<br> Rebecca Chickey<br> And then health disparities exist across the board for communities of color. And when you begin to look at it through the lens of behavioral health care, unfortunately, the magnitude of those disparities often goes up. So with that as general background, Matthew, can you tell me just a little bit about the realities - as I started talking about - and the vulnerabilities around mental health disparities, and what are those challenges that those individuals face?</p> <p>00:03:23:22 - 00:03:48:18<br> Matthew Hoag<br> Thank you. Rebecca. Before we start, too, I just want to acknowledge my privilege as a as a white male. And just hammer home that I choose to work in a community health center here at our Denver health hospital because I believe in our organization's mission to provide all in our community access to the highest quality and equitable health care, regardless of the patient's background or ability to pay</p> <p>00:03:48:18 - 00:04:18:15<br> Matthew Hoag<br> so really appreciate the opportunity to talk on these topics. You know, what we know is that an estimated 43% of people with mental health concerns are connected to care, and that's a pretty alarming statistic. Some of the realities and challenges for individuals of color, include implicit bias, which comes up quite a bit in how patients might be identified or selected for referrals to behavioral health or identified or even properly diagnosed.</p> <p>00:04:18:15 - 00:04:39:19<br> Matthew Hoag<br> And so this this plays a huge impact for individuals of color. The other thing that's kind of difficult within behavioral health is it can be very difficult to navigate our complex health system, but even more specifically, our sometimes complex behavioral health system, because it can be difficult to know what somebody feels like they need to be connected to.</p> <p>00:04:39:19 - 00:05:01:26<br> Matthew Hoag<br> And so if there isn't really good screening, really good assessments, sometimes individuals and families are at a loss of where to go or where to start, or who even to ask to begin that journey. I think another area that we see, and that we're trying really hard as an organization to impact, is a lack of diversity among our care teams.</p> <p>00:05:01:28 - 00:05:26:02<br> Matthew Hoag<br> We, at Denver Health have community health centers. And what I love about Denver Health is these community health centers are situated in very historic neighborhoods within Denver County, we're I think the fifth largest federally qualified health system in the country. We strive to have those clinics be a reflection of those communities they serve. Really requires us to have staff as a reflection of those patients.</p> <p>00:05:26:04 - 00:05:50:24<br> Matthew Hoag<br> Why that's important is because trust. Trust is incredibly important with the care team to be able to break down some of these racial disparities. Now, where does integrated behavioral health come in with this? I could talk about integrated behavioral health all day. We have really good research that shows that improves patient outcomes, reduce total cost of care, increase access above all to behavioral health.</p> <p>00:05:50:24 - 00:06:14:17<br> Matthew Hoag<br> And we also see that patients like what is incredibly valuable to me is that when I have a medical provider pull me in to consult with a patient for a behavioral health concern, sometimes that patient has been coming to that clinic for ten, 15 years. Their parents had gone there. Their parents still go there for care. Their kids get their vaccinations, get wellness exams there.</p> <p>00:06:14:21 - 00:06:35:22<br> Matthew Hoag<br> And so when I come into the room, I have this unparalleled level of support and trust already because that medical provider who has that trust with that patient says, this is Matt. He's an expert in X, Y, and Z depression, whatever substance treatment. And he wants to come talk with you to see how we can support that goal or support.</p> <p>00:06:35:22 - 00:06:41:19<br> Matthew Hoag<br> You know, let's talk a little bit more about, you know, what's going on over here. And that's the value of integrated care.</p> <p>00:06:41:21 - 00:07:15:15<br> Rebecca Chickey<br> You have talked about the importance of trust. The fact that it's real time, meaning you can call in a medical provider or you can be called in as the expert to help that patient real time. Is that something that you see has also been beneficial in terms of reducing the stigma, because you've used the term trust a couple of times, but often we hear the horrible word, the big thing in the room, the stigma of even seeking or talking about mental health treatment or my anxiety or panic attack.</p> <p>00:07:15:18 - 00:07:17:13<br> Rebecca Chickey<br> Is that another aspect of this?</p> <p>00:07:17:15 - 00:07:51:23<br> Matthew Hoag<br> Absolutely. Stigma, I'm glad you brought that up. Stigma is all about what we're trying to reduce and what our integrated behavioral health can be really substantial. Early on in my career with integrated behavioral health, I specialized within substance treatment and co-occurring as well with other behavioral conditions. But one thing I always when I walked into the room, as I always try to keep in the focus, that it is very likely that the individual that I'm about to meet has had a negative interaction or has been judged for a behavioral health or substance treatment condition at some point prior to meeting me.</p> <p>00:07:51:26 - 00:08:09:09<br> Matthew Hoag<br> And so I try to think about how I approach that from a culturally sensitive way, but also identify and create some safety where I can. I'm very fortunate to have that collaborative medical team to help with that trust, but it's something that we have to be very, very cognizant about because it is a reality that's in the room.</p> <p>00:08:09:11 - 00:08:32:09<br> Rebecca Chickey<br> It's so very important because stigma exists for all of us, regardless of your ethnicity, the location or culture that you've been brought up in, your skin color. But unfortunately for many, many different cultures and even genders, we still see the statistics show that women are more likely to ask for help than men, regardless of everything else.</p> <p>00:08:32:12 - 00:08:45:24<br> Rebecca Chickey<br> And then within certain cultures that stigma is at a much higher bar. So it's just uplifting and hopeful that, integration can address those in a way that is seamless in many ways.</p> <p>00:08:46:01 - 00:09:27:27<br> Matthew Hoag<br> Absolutely. And I think what folds into the trust piece is the cultural competency of our staff. And so, you know, our organization and our integrated behavioral team places part of our values as a team is around diversity, equity and inclusiveness and belonging and how that shows up in our clinical practice, being able to identify microaggressions within teams and being able to have open discussions about how that influences us as providers, but also impacts our ability to deliver effective clinical care. Something that is also really important with this - in order to have and to recruit for diverse care teams, is we often put a lot of emphasis on recruitment, but retention is also really</p> <p>00:09:27:27 - 00:09:32:00<br> Matthew Hoag<br> important for keeping that healthy for our teams.</p> <p>00:09:32:03 - 00:09:38:27<br> Rebecca Chickey<br> As we begin to wrap up, are there a couple of things that you think have made Denver Health's program successful?</p> <p>00:09:39:00 - 00:10:06:18<br> Matthew Hoag<br> I think the thing I most appreciate about where I work is the individuals I work with as well. We're a large organization, and we have done some pretty cool things that are a little out there, but we're not afraid to try that. One particular project I want to highlight is we just last year launched a mobile opioid treatment unit, and this was a collaboration between our brick and mortar opioid treatment program and our community health services.</p> <p>00:10:06:18 - 00:10:27:15<br> Matthew Hoag<br> And so this mobile unit actually goes out to two of our qualified health centers, our eastside and westside clinic. And we do walk-ins for opioid treatment, particularly for methadone. And what's amazing about that is if, you know, you know how sometimes there's some realities and difficulties with accessing Opidone and it's, you know, very regulated, very structured.</p> <p>00:10:27:18 - 00:10:46:12<br> Matthew Hoag<br> You usually have to go really early in the morning to receive that. We did something where we enhanced a lot of current patients care, because we have patients who go to the Eastside Health Center, then go across town to you know, their opioid treatment program. It's not quite integrated, but what I would call is it's very co-located and very collaborative.</p> <p>00:10:46:15 - 00:11:07:05<br> Matthew Hoag<br> But a patient can discreetly now get all of their health conditions addressed in one place. And that's incredible. Especially with fentanyl opioid epidemic being able to enhance care in a way that is trauma informed as well as, kind of helping break down some of those barriers to access. I like that we get to do that.</p> <p>00:11:07:10 - 00:11:15:12<br> Matthew Hoag<br> I'm incredibly grateful, and it feels incredibly special to be able to try to do things like that, to really enhance care for all of our patients.</p> <p>00:11:15:15 - 00:11:37:06<br> Rebecca Chickey<br> So the key point, I think, for the listeners is to not be afraid to try. That was unusual. That's out of the box. I think sometimes when we're young, we try everything, right? Sometimes to the demise of our parents or whoever is bringing us up. But we're not afraid to try. And sometimes I think the world changes that perspective.</p> <p>00:11:37:07 - 00:11:56:04<br> Rebecca Chickey<br> So, we need to remember. Don't be afraid to try, because you're all you're trying to do is to improve outcomes and reduce the cost of care and improve somebody's life. Thank you so much for sharing your time and your expertise with us today. Thank you for the work that you're doing across the fine mountain city of Denver.</p> <p>00:11:56:06 - 00:11:59:01<br> Rebecca Chickey<br> And thank you for your passion for your work.</p> <p>00:11:59:03 - 00:12:00:12<br> Matthew Hoag<br> Thanks for having me.</p> <p>00:12:00:14 - 00:12:08:25<br> Tom Haederle<br> Thanks for listening to Advancing Health. Please subscribe and rate us five stars on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.</p> </details> </div> Wed, 06 Nov 2024 07:19:28 -0600 Reducing Healthcare Disparities /bhmb-person-centered-care <h1 class="repository-intro">Maternal Health: Person-centered Care</h1><p class="repository-intro">To work toward reducing known health disparities, AHA has developed numerous resources that emphasize the importance and impact of person-centered care. </p> Fri, 06 Sep 2024 15:06:35 -0500 Reducing Healthcare Disparities /news/headline/2024-08-19-aha-podcast-boston-medical-center-leading-way-toward-health-equity-and-justice <p>Boston Medical Center is the winner of the AHA’s 2024 Foster G. McGaw Prize, which recognizes the efforts of hospitals and health systems to improve the health and well-being of their communities. In this conversation, Thea James, M.D., vice president of mission with BMC, discusses the organization's evolution with health disparity work and the creation of the Health Equity Accelerator to achieve health justice in their communities. <a href="/advancing-health-podcast/2024-08-19-boston-medical-center-leading-way-towards-health-equity-and-justice"><strong>LISTEN NOW</strong></a> </p><div></div> Mon, 19 Aug 2024 16:03:09 -0500 Reducing Healthcare Disparities /news/headline/2024-07-31-aha-blog-reducing-barriers-behavioral-health-and-substance-use-disorder-treatment <p>Mary Thompson — a member of AHA’s Committee on Behavioral Health and president of Trillium Place, a mental health and addiction recovery organization affiliated with Carle Health — explains how the Illinois-based organization works to integrate physical and behavioral health services to improve access to care among historically underrepresented communities and eliminate health disparities. <a href="https://ifdhe.aha.org/news/blog/2024-07-30-integration-care-reducing-barriers-behavioral-health-and-substance-use-disorder-treatment"><strong>READ NOW</strong></a></p> Wed, 31 Jul 2024 17:03:09 -0500 Reducing Healthcare Disparities