News: Feds plan fall vax push for older Americans

Friday, February 2, 2024

Feds plan fall vax push for older Americans

Feb 02, 2024

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By Ben Leonard and Chelsea Cirruzzo

With Daniel Payne and Robert King

Driving the Day

Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra testifies.

HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra has been holding a series of meetings with long-term care facilities to discuss how to increase the Covid vaccination rates of their residents. | Kevin Wolf/AP

PREPPING FOR NEXT FALL — Federal officials are asking groups representing older Americans what they can do to improve Covid-19 vaccine uptake during the next respiratory illness season, Chelsea and Daniel report. This comes after a lackluster number of long-term care residents got the updated Covid shot this season.

The meeting, billed as a White House Long-Term Care Leadership Summit, was one of a series of conversations HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra has hosted with long-term care facilities to remind them of their duty to offer residents the shots. During those meetings, groups asked the administration for more support in persuading residents to get vaccinated.

The summit, also attended by representatives from long-term care industry groups LeadingAge and the American Health Care Association, the provider group the Gerontological Advanced Practice Nurses Association and interest group AARP, was focused on lessons from this year’s fall and winter seasons, according to people who attended.

Dr. David Gifford, AHCA’s chief medical officer, told Pulse in a statement that the conversations can help officials and facilities find a “productive and positive path forward. …”

“As providers, we remain persistent in educating and encouraging families and residents to get vaccinated and appreciate the partnership of the Biden administration to help reinforce the importance of the vaccines,” he added.

Here are the three issues the summit focused on:

— Logistics: A LeadingAge spokesperson told Pulse that officials asked providers what they thought was the best timeline for ordering vaccines ahead of next season. Late last year, LeadingAge President Katie Smith Sloan asked Becerra to allow providers to make smaller vaccine orders to meet dwindling demand, a request that wasn’t met.

— Access: The switch last year to offering Covid vaccines on the commercial market led to reimbursement challenges, and providers want to be reassured that they will be resolved next season.

— Messaging: Providers want to know how to better spread the word to older adults to get the shot.

“Many critical efforts must align — and effective public health messaging is critical, as we discussed yesterday,” said Ruth Katz, senior vice president for policy at LeadingAge, in a statement to Pulse.

In a statement to Pulse, Gifford highlighted the “significant, systemic challenges with vaccine reluctance that requires a collective endeavor by public health officials, other health care providers, and the public to overcome.”

HHS directed Pulse's request for comment to the White House, which did not immediately respond.

WELCOME TO FRIDAY PULSE. The Congressional Digital Health Caucus, led by Reps. Robin Kelly (D-Ill.) and Troy Balderson (R-Ohio), launched on Thursday. Reach us at bleonard@politico.com or ccirruzzo@politico.com. Follow along @_BenLeonard_ and @ChelseaCirruzzo.

Public Health

Supporters of LGBTQ rights hold placards in front of the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington.

OMB is reviewing a rule that would reinstate civil rights protections for gender identity and sexual orientation narrowed during the final months of the Trump administration. | Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP

ANTI-DISCRIMINATION RULE COMING — A final rule to undo Trump-era changes that narrowed civil rights protections for gender identity and sexual orientation in federally funded health programs is being reviewed at the Office of Management and Budget, Chelsea writes.

The rule, which HHS proposed revising in 2022 in the wake of the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision that gave states the right to regulate abortion — would bolster safeguards for people seeking abortions and patients in the LGBTQ+ community under section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act.

It would reverse a rule issued in 2020 that reduced protections that provided access to language and interpretation services, adopted a blanket religious exemption for providers and eliminated provisions that prevented insurers from changing benefits that might discriminate against someone’s HIV status.

OMB has scheduled a meeting on the final rule today.

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At the Agencies

AI RULE HICCUP? A new federal regulation that requires more transparency in the use of artificial intelligence in many clinical settings has hit a snag.

The rule, published on Jan. 9, is in limbo because the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT didn’t allow enough time after Congress received it before finalizing it. A 1996 law requires agencies to wait 60 days, but ONC finalized the rule about a month after it went to Congress, according to the GAO.

The rule is to go into effect at the end of 2024. It’s unclear whether the snafu will delay implementation.

An ONC spokesperson said the agency is “aware of the 60-day requirement and … working to address the discrepancy.” The spokesperson didn’t answer questions asking if there would be a delay.

Details on the rule: The sweeping ONC regulations will apply to clinicians using HHS-certified decision-support software used in the vast majority of hospitals and doctors’ offices.

It will fill a substantial void in regulation and intends to help providers choose safer artificial intelligence. The regulations will require software developers to provide more data to customers with the aim of allowing providers to determine whether AI is “fair, appropriate, valid, effective and safe.”

A potential delay could also impact other issues the rule tackles, including new data standards for interoperability, modified exceptions to rules preventing providers from blocking the flow of patient data and interoperability reporting requirements.

IN THE STATES

STATES LIMITING GENDER-AFFIRMING CARE — Since Arkansas became the first state to pass a law restricting access to gender-affirming care for minors, the number of states to do so has increased more than fivefold, according to a new KFF analysis.

Twenty-three states have enacted laws or policies that limit gender-affirming care, which can include both surgical and nonsurgical treatments that someone might receive to affirm their gender identity.

Gender-affirming care Pulse data wrapper

Earlier this month, Ohio lawmakers voted to override the veto of a bill to ban gender-affirming care for minors.

While 16 of the laws face legal challenges, most remain in effect. Per KFF, an estimated 38 percent of transgender youth live in a state with a law or a policy that limits access to care. Additionally, 21 states penalize providers who offer gender-affirming care.

Why it matters: Many major medical associations have endorsed gender-affirming care and have raised concerns that limiting its access can harm the mental health of minors.

LGBTQ+ rights will likely be a major part of the 2024 election, including on the state and local level, KFF researchers Lindsey Dawson and Jennifer Kates wrote in their analysis.

“These laws and policies have political implications, but importantly also have the potential to affect the wellbeing of young trans people and LGBTQ people more broadly, with implications as well for health care providers, parents, and teachers,” they write.

VETERANS' HEALTH

DIGITAL SYSTEM WOES — Another type of digital system plagues veterans’ care outside of the troubled Oracle Cerner electronic health records, watchdogs say.

Dr. Julie Kroviak of the VA Inspector General's Office told Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee members that veterans centers — which offer social and psychological services and are separate from VA medical centers — aren’t doing enough to document suicide risk. Its electronic records-keeping system is partly to blame, she said, which has “limited functionality” and is “primitive.”

“When and whether vets centers will have the opportunity to modernize their system remains unclear,” Kroviak told lawmakers.

Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) said in a hearing that she’s heard complaints from a local center that the system is slowing down care delivery and is “decades out of date.”

Michael Fisher of the Veterans Health Administration said the agency is reviewing its needs for a future records system.

Why it matters: More than 6,000 veterans die by suicide annually.

The VA’s electronic health record system upgrade project has been on pause since April after costs spiraled and several veterans’ deaths were tied to the new system.

WHAT WE'RE READING

The Boston Globe reports on the Raleigh-Durham area emerging as a biotech threat to Boston.

KFF Health News examines whether the primary care shortage is as substantial as federal data says.

Manatt has its latest review of antitrust enforcement in health care.

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