Updates in Health Policy and Advocacy-Slides

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The Society of Hospital Medicine (SHM) Public Policy Committee (PPC) is a multidisciplinary group that advises SHM on health policy, advocates for hospital medicine-related issues, and meets regularly to strategize advocacy efforts. Their scope includes influencing federal agencies such as HHS, CMS, CDC, NIH, and VA.<br /><br />Key advocacy areas for 2024 include several hot topics: Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) cuts that reduce hospitalist reimbursement by 5.4% over two years amid inflation, observation status reforms to count outpatient observation time toward skilled nursing facility (SNF) eligibility, split-shared billing rules between physicians and advanced practice providers (APPs), policies addressing the opioid crisis including expanded buprenorphine prescribing under MAT and MATE Acts, and Medicare Advantage prior authorization reforms aimed at transparency and timeliness.<br /><br />The PPC supports legislation like the Strengthening Medicare for Patients and Providers Act (HR 2474), which would establish automatic inflation adjustments, and the Provider Reimbursement Stability Act (HR 6371), proposing updates to the Medicare conversion factor to prevent steep payment cuts. The committee also advocates for clearer use of the complexity code G2211, reflecting increased outpatient visit complexity.<br /><br />SHM’s advocacy includes engaging on Capitol Hill through events like Hill Day, grassroots networks, and member involvement to influence policy impacting hospital medicine practice and patient care. Members are encouraged to participate in advocacy actions and education, with resources such as free opioid education available. Ongoing efforts aim to ensure hospitalists have stable reimbursement, fair billing practices, and improved patient access under Medicare policies.<br /><br />For more information or to get involved, SHM members can contact Sarah Conway (sjc@jhmi.edu) or Jennifer Cowart (cowart.Jennifer@mayo.edu) and access advocacy resources via the SHM website.

Keywords

Society of Hospital Medicine

Public Policy Committee

hospital medicine advocacy

Medicare Physician Fee Schedule

observation status reforms

split-shared billing

opioid crisis policies

Medicare Advantage prior authorization

Strengthening Medicare for Patients and Providers Act

Provider Reimbursement Stability Act