MHA Today | March 31, 2021

Staff Contact: Daniel Landon or Rob Monsees

The state House of Representatives debated, amended and gave first-round approval to the state budget bills. The following actions took place.

• Numerous amendments to restore funding to implement Medicaid expansion were blocked or defeated. On a 9-20 party-line vote, the House Budget Committee previously eliminated the funding recommended by Gov. Parson.
• An MHA amendment to reduce the cuts imposed by a new Medicaid outpatient fee schedule proposed by the MO HealthNet Division was defeated by a 69-79 vote.
• A budget directive barring Medicaid payments to not-for-profit hospitals that deny medically necessary services to Medicaid enrollees in the fee-for-service or managed care sectors was removed.

The House is expected to give final approval to the budget bills on Thursday. The Senate then will craft its version of the budget, and negotiations will resolve differences between the House and Senate versions.

Staff Contact: Daniel Landon or Rob Monsees

After extended debate, the Missouri Senate gave first-round approval to a new version of Senate Bill 63, which would authorize a statewide prescription drug monitoring program. Proponents fended off a number of amendments that would limit or impede the program.

Staff Contact: Bill Anderson or Daniel Landon

The state House Downsizing State Government committee approved a new version of House Bill 1222. Among other changes, it would repeal the state’s certificate of need laws that require state approval of some health care capital expansion projects.

Staff Contact: Andrew Wheeler

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services instructed Medicare Administrative Contractors to hold all claims with dates of service on or after Thursday, April 1. The claim hold is due to the likelihood that the House will pass legislation that extends the suspension of the 2% Medicare sequester reduction. The Senate already voted on and supports the suspension. CMS is issuing these instructions to “minimize the volume of claims the MACs must reprocess if Congress extends the suspension.”

Staff Contact: Shane VanOverschelde

The Hospital Industry Data Institute posted the full federal fiscal year 2020 inpatient and outpatient physician loyalty report for subscribers to the Premier Reporting Package. This report displays a list of physicians by name and the frequency in which they were attending physicians across combinations of various categories, including inpatient/outpatient setting, hospital, patient ZIP code, diagnosis-related group and payer. This data is delivered in a ready-to-query Microsoft Access database file and is located in the following location.

• Folder: Strategic Planning/Premier Reports
• File: MO0000_Phy_Loy_2020.zip

Hospitals interested in subscribing to the 2021 HIDI Premier Data Package should review the package information. Current subscribers with questions about downloading files should contact HIDI.

Staff Contact: Sherry Buschjost

MHA updated the acute care, critical access hospital and specialty services quality reporting guides to reflect requirements effective with Jan. 1, 2021, dates of service. The guides support hospitals with reporting quality measures through various reporting programs and feature direct sources of information to stay up to date on measure specifics.

Staff Contact: Stephen Njenga

The County Health Rankings and Roadmaps released the new 2021 County Health Rankings data and resources on its website. CHR&R is offering a webinar at 2 p.m. CDT Tuesday, April 13, to introduce new additions to 2021 data, as well as website features and resources that can help improve community health. Registration is required.

Staff Contact: Alison Williams

The Missouri Alliance for Innovation on Maternal Health — a partnership between the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services and MHA, in collaboration with the MO HealthNet Division’s Maternal/Fetal/Infant Subcommittee for Substance Use Disorder and The Uplift Connection powered by Missouri Foundation for Health — needs your help identifying perinatal SUD resources available throughout Missouri. If you provide perinatal SUD services, please complete this survey and/or disseminate it to as many appropriate providers as possible.

The results of the survey will inform a much-needed public-facing resource directory for providers and mothers alike. Only certain information will be made publicly available — all other information is for planning purposes to inform and shape future projects that will improve the lives of Missouri mothers. The survey will take approximately 20 minutes to complete, and responses are requested by Monday, April 12.

Staff Contact: Sarah Willson or Daphney Partridge

The Missouri Department of Mental Health is offering complimentary Mental Health First Aid virtual courses to individuals who live or work in Missouri. The training provides skills needed to recognize signs of mental health and substance use, as well as how to offer and provide help, or guide a person toward appropriate care. For information on training, including virtual, in-person and youth options, visit http://mhfamissouri.org/events/.

Staff Contact: Sherry Buschjost

Claims detail reports for the outpatient imaging efficiency measures are available for facilities participating in the Hospital Outpatient Quality Reporting Program for calendar year 2023 payment determination. The OIE measures include the following.

• Magnetic Resonance Imaging Lumbar Spine for Low Back Pain (OP-8)
• Abdomen Computed Tomography – Use of Contrast Material (OP-10)
• Cardiac Imaging for Pre-Operative Risk Assessment for Non-Cardiac, Low-Risk, Surgery (OP-13)

The CDRs include data from July 1 through Nov. 30, 2020, and only include a portion of the data that may be used to calculate results for 2022 public reporting and CY 2023 payment determinations. The full data collection period for CY 2023 payment determination will be July 1, 2020, through June 30, 2021, for all OIE measures. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, data collected from Jan. 1, 2020, through June 30, 2020, will not be used for measure calculation (including the identification of measure exclusions). Additional information is available.

Staff Contact: Leslie Porth or Christy Carel

MHA is offering three prestigious awards, presented to health care organizations and leaders, that recognize outstanding personal achievement as well as sustained improvements in the delivery of health care.

The Aim for Excellence Award identifies and honors Missouri hospitals’ innovation and outcomes. This year, the award will recognize member organization-based projects that addressed a specific COVID-19 challenge. Applications are due by Friday, April 30.

The Visionary Leadership Award recognizes outstanding achievements in clinical and health outcomes by a hospital or health system chief executive. When completing the nomination, consider the nominee’s role and accomplishments that extend beyond the hospital. Nominations are due by Friday, May 7.

The Trustee of the Year Award honors up to two individual trustees who currently serve on a Missouri hospital or health system governing board. The selection criteria is based on leadership skills, grassroots advocacy, community involvement, meeting participation and personal development. Nominations are due by Tuesday, June 1.

All awards will be presented during MHA’s Annual Convention in November.

Staff Contact: Mary Becker

Yesterday, Gov. Parson toured a vaccine clinic at Mercy Hospital Jefferson, located in Festus, Mo. While there, he also met with hospital president Eric Ammons and members of the leadership team to discuss increased vaccine allocation. Parson said, “I’m so grateful to Eric and his team for being on the front lines of this pandemic since day one. Our hospitals have played a critical role in the early days of the vaccine distribution and continue to be one of the main providers of the vaccine for Missouri residents.”