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California HealthlineThe Senate on Tuesday voted 92-8 in favor of the House-approved measure, which calls for providing a 0.5% annual payment increase through 2019 for providers who participate in Medicare and then transitioning to an incentive-based payment system designed to encourage participation in alternative payment models. The bill includes several other measures related to health spending, such as funding for community health centers, which serve low-income individuals in every state. In addition, the bill includes a two-year extension of funding for the Children's Health Insurance Program. Further, the bill would delay fully enforcing CMS' so-called "two-midnight" rule for two...

CQBy Melissa AttiasCongress may have finally put an end to the cycle of 17 short-tem “doc fixes” with the passage of legislation that would change the way Medicare pays doctors. But the bill’s handling, or sidestepping, of other programs sets the stage for future fights.The Senate cleared the package to replace Medicare’s sustainable growth rate formula late Tuesday in a 92-8 vote and President Barack Obama said in a statement that he “will be proud to sign it into law.” While most physician lobbyists are basking in their successful effort to do away with the SGR, it won’t be...

The Durango HeraldBy Bruce LesleyIt’s encouraging that Denver is taking action on child abuse and neglect (Herald, April 8). But Washington also has work to do. Federal foster-care funding’s shrinking pool covers fewer than half of foster children today, and fewer by 2024. States tap other social-services funding, but that just shifts resources from one set of kids and families to another. Worse yet, federal funding short-changes prevention efforts that help parents manage mental health, substance abuse, financial distress and other abuse and neglect risk factors. Reform legislation in Congress would ensure that federal funds cover...

Washington – The bipartisan children’s advocacy group First Focus Campaign for Children today endorsed legislation, sponsored by Senator Dick Durbin (D-Illinois) and Congressman David Cicilline (D-Rhode Island), to prohibit child labor in tobacco-related corporate agriculture. The endorsement letter was also signed by more than 50 other children’s, health, and labor, and justice advocates.“Senator Durbin and Congressman Cicilline get it,” said First Focus Campaign for Children president Bruce Lesley. “We don’t let kids consume tobacco products – we sure shouldn’t let kids risk their lives to produce them.”The legislation responds to reports by Human Rights Watch that children have...

Washington – Today, Senator Michael Bennet offered an amendment to the Medicare “Sustainable Growth Rate” (SGR) legislative package that would have extended funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) through 2019, when the program’s authorization ends. Without congressional action, CHIP funding ends in October. The base bill passed last month by the U.S. House of Representatives provides $5.7 billion to extend CHIP funding through 2017. The bill’s short-term CHIP extension is part of a much larger $214 billion package aimed at permanently securing health care for seniors. Senator Bennet’s amendment failed on a recorded vote of 50-50.The First Focus...

Washington – United States Senator Ron Wyden (D-Oregon) Thursday committed to push for a four-year extension of the bipartisan Children’s Health Insurance Program, indicating that he would “pull out all the stops to get a CHIP bill that is four years” during U.S. Senate debate over Medicare provider payment reform legislation. The U.S. House of Representatives passed a reform package last month, which included a two-year CHIP extension. Advocates for children, including the First Focus Campaign for Children, have urged the Senate to deliver a four-year extension, which would fund CHIP through its current authorization, which expires in 2019.Oregon Governor...

SitNewsThursday, the House Health and Social Services Committee passed House Bill 27 sponsored by Representative Les Gara (D-Anchorage). The bill seeks to improve the lives of foster youth in Alaska by getting them into permanent loving homes, so they don’t keep suffering damage and neglect caused by bouncing between multiple temporary foster homes and schools. Rep. Gara thanked the members of the Health and Social Services Committee for their work on the bill.“Foster youth deserve stability, love, and the same chances as all other children,” said Rep. Les Gara, who grew up in foster care. “Forty percent of our...

Huffington PostBy Eleanor GoldbergSouth Dakota saw some of the biggest drops in homelessness across a number of demographics last year. Yet advocates say they still have their work cut out for them and are developing solutions to get more help and funding.Overall homelessness in South Dakota declined by 19.1 percent last year, according to Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) figures. And the number of people living in shelters that are considered “unfit” for habitation — which includes cars and abandoned buildings — plummeted by a whopping 83.8 percent…Read more

Boston GlobeBy Bruce LesleyYES, GOVERNOR Charlie Baker must invest in stronger efforts to protect against child abuse and neglect (“Baker promised DCF reform, now he must budget for it”). But Congress also has room for improvement in its investments.The shrinking pool of federal foster care funding covers less than half of foster children today, and will cover fewer by 2024. States tap other social services funding, but that just shifts resources from one set of kids and families to another. Worse, federal funding gaps shortchange prevention efforts that help parents manage mental health, substance abuse, financial distress, and other...

Washington – The United States House of Representatives today passed a $210 billion legislative package intended to fix a widely-lamented Medicare provider payment system. The bill also extends the bipartisan Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting program (MIECHV) for two years. CHIP is widely credited with reducing the uninsured rate for children to record levels, even in the wake of a recession that cost millions of children their employer-sponsored healthcare. MIECHV is a voluntary, evidence-based initiative providing coaching and support for new parents. Home visiting has been shown to improve the health...