MHA Today | December 15, 2021

Staff Contact: Jane Drummond

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit Court today issued an order staying part of a district court’s nationwide, preliminary injunction that prohibits the enforcement of the federal COVID-19 vaccine mandate for health care workers. The Fifth Circuit order allows the mandate to resume in the 28 states that are not parties to the lawsuit but left intact the district court’s preliminary injunction for the 12 named plaintiffs. This order does not impact the 10 states engaged in a similar lawsuit filed in Missouri, where a preliminary injunction staying the health care worker mandate is currently in effect. The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals has yet to take action on the Biden administration’s appeal seeking to overturn that preliminary injunction.

Staff Contact: Jane Drummond

St. Louis and Jackson Counties filed a Motion to Intervene with the Cole County Circuit Court, seeking to join a lawsuit in which the court recently nullified several public health regulations. The ruling calls into question the authority of local public health agencies to engage in pandemic response activities. The Attorney General, who represented the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services in the case, announced he will not appeal and has sent letters to the state’s local health agencies directing them to cease activities prohibited by the ruling.

The counties claim the circuit court’s judgement went far beyond the relief sought by the plaintiffs and created significant confusion among local health officials regarding their authority to combat infectious diseases. They seek permission to become parties to the case so that they may appeal.

Staff Contact: Jane Drummond

The U.S. Supreme Court declined two emergency petitions to block New York State’s vaccination mandate for health care workers. The plaintiffs claimed the mandate is unconstitutional because it does not provide exemptions from the vaccine requirement for those with sincerely held religious beliefs. A New York district court previously had granted a preliminary injunction in one case, which was vacated by the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Injunctive relief was denied in the other case.

The plaintiffs asked the court to block the mandate until the lower courts had fully disposed of both cases. The court denied both petitions without comment; however, Justices Gorsuch and Alito dissented. Justice Thomas indicated he would grant the petition but did not join the dissent.

The court previously denied a similar challenge to Maine’s vaccine mandate. In rejecting that petition, Justices Kavanaugh and Coney Barrett noted that the court’s emergency docket was not the appropriate place to reach the merits of these issues.

Staff Contact: Jon Doolittle

Jane Drummond, MHA’s General Counsel, has accepted the position of Senior Vice President of Governmental Relations for MHA,  effective upon Daniel Landon’s retirement on Thursday, Dec. 30. In her new role, Drummond will retain the title of General Counsel for the association.

Drummond began her career as a health care attorney in a preeminent health law practice, and in 2005-06 served as General Counsel both to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services and Governor Matt Blunt’s office. She subsequently was appointed by Gov. Blunt as the Director of the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services in 2006. After several years in a private law practice, Drummond joined MHA as General Counsel and Vice President of Legal Affairs in 2014.

“We look forward to working with Jane and the rest of our strong Governmental Relations team as we begin the 2022 state legislative session,” said Jon D. Doolittle, MHA President and CEO.

Staff Contact: Brian Kinkade

Gov. Parson’s Office of Administration and legislative budget writers announced consensus estimates for state general revenue collections for fiscal years 2022 and 2023. Revenues for the current year are projected to fall by 0.5%, which is a $400 million improvement over the 4.1% decrease on which the current year’s budget is based. The decreasing revenues from FY 2022 reflect the pandemic-driven disruption in the timing of revenue collections in previous years. General revenue for FY 2023, which begins July 1, 2022, are projected to grow by 2.1%, or $234 million, to $11.4 billion.

Staff Contact: Sherry Buschjost

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services released Hospital Outpatient Quality Reporting Specifications Manual version 15.0a, effective for encounters Jan. 1 to Dec. 31, 2022, unless otherwise specified. A complete list of the changes may be found in the associated release notes.

Staff Contact: Stephen Njenga

The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services is offering webinar at 11 a.m. CST Friday, Dec. 17, to highlight the Missouri Network of National Diabetes Prevention Program, as well as the Umbrella Hub Network for DPP. Through this statewide network, hospitals can access information key to improving care delivery and reimbursement.

HabitNu, an evidence-based solution to combat the prevention and management of lifestyle diseases, will serve as the sponsoring hub to enable interested organizations to deliver the NDPP and help with recruitment, data collection, reporting and program delivery, as well as submission and reimbursement of insurance claims.

Staff Contact: Stephen Njenga

The National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities announced funding to develop and translate medical technologies aimed at reducing disparities in health care access and health outcomes. Priority health disparity populations include racial and ethnic minorities, socioeconomically disadvantaged individuals, sexual and gender minorities, and medically underserved populations in rural and urban areas. Additional details, including application instructions and the online application process, are available online. The application deadline is May 2, 2024.

Staff Contact: Dave Dillon

The holiday season can be stressful in a normal year, and the COVID-19 pandemic continues to compound the anxiety, stress, isolation and loneliness many Missourians experience.

Along with the Missouri Behavioral Health Council and Missouri Department of Mental Health, MHA released an infographic highlighting the numbers of Missourians who are suffering from issues associated with loneliness and explores its impact on health. Key strategies also are identified to help combat loneliness and social isolation.