Action Items
Write to your member of Congress ask ask them to repeal Section 510 from the FY24 Labor-HHS appropriations bill!
Make sure to view the study released by AHIMA last month and conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago: Social Determinants of Health Data: Survey Results on the Collection, Integration, and Use.
Capitol Hill Update
President’s Budget: On Thursday, March 9, President Biden sent his Fiscal Year 2024 (FY24) budget proposal to Congress, outlining his Administration’s priorities for this year’s federal budget. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) FY24 Budget in Brief outlines the proposals for the department, including requests for:
- an increase of $38 million for the HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR);
- an increase of $37 million for the HHS Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC);
- a $7 million increase for the Health Resources and Services Administration’s (HRSA) funding for telehealth to support services in rural and underserved areas;
- a $79 million increase for the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ).
Patient ID: It’s FY24 appropriations season, and AHIMA, in conjunction with the Patient ID Now coalition, is continuing its effort to repeal Section 510 from the Labor-HHS appropriations bill which bans federal funds from being used to promulgate or adopt a unique health identifier. Take action by writing to your member of Congress and ask them to support the effort to finally remove Section 510 from the federal budget!
AHRQ: AHIMA joined 151 healthcare organizations requesting $500 million in funding for the Agency for Healthcare and Research and Quality (AHRQ), the federal agency tasked with studying and improving the United States healthcare system. This request reflects the need to expand and accelerate Health Services Research (HSR) investments to inform decision-making on the health care system as it recovers from the pandemic.
Federal Agency Update
ICD-10: The ICD-10 Coordination and Maintenance Committee, co-chaired by the US Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), held a virtual public meeting on March 7-8 to discuss ICD-10-CM and ICD-10-PCS code proposals. Comments are due either April 7 (for proposals being considered for implementation on October 1, 2023) or May 5 (proposals slated for April 1, 2024 or October 1, 2024 implementation). See the ICD-10-CM meeting materials and ICD-10-PCS materials.
Electronic Prior Authorization: AHIMA submitted comments to the CMS proposed rule on electronic prior authorization and payer API implementation. Comments highlighted the need for increased patient control of their data and the challenges related to the technical requirements proposed.
Cybersecurity: The HHS Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) released the Healthcare and Public Health (HPH) Sector Cybersecurity Framework Implementation Guide to help healthcare organizations defend themselves against attacks.
SDOH: The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) released a Framework for Advancing SDOH Data Use and Interoperability focused on utilizing standards and data, infrastructure, policy, and implementation strategies to further SDOH goals. ONC is also hosting SDOH Exchange Learning Forums in May and June.
Privacy: The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has continued its focus on enforcing privacy requirements, announcing actions against GoodRx and BetterHelp.
TEFCA: Health Gorilla, one of the six accepted applications to become a QHIN as part of the Trusted Exchange Framework and Common Agreement (TEFCA), announced they will be partnering with CLEAR to provide individual access (IAS) services. IAS Services will give patients the ability to access their health information on TEFCA.
Volunteer Opportunities
Volunteer to Contribute to AHIMA’s C&M Comments: We are seeking ICD-10-CM and ICD-10-PCS coding experts to assist with the development of comment letters on code proposals presented at the ICD-10-CM/PCS Coordination and Maintenance (C&M) Committee meeting held on March 7-8. Interested? Email our Policy and Government Affairs team at advocacy@ahima.org by Tuesday, March 21. Please indicate if you are interested in ICD-10-CM, ICD-10-PCS, or both.
Member Engagement in Advocacy
Grassroots Advocacy Award
As a reminder, AHIMA has new criteria for its annual Grassroots Award. The AHIMA Grassroots Advocacy Award recognizes the top state or district that has exhibited significant grassroots and advocacy engagement on policies areas identified by the AHIMA Advocacy Agenda. Want to learn how you can be involved in contributing to your state’s engagement numbers for federal advocacy? See the documents below for more information.
AHIMA Grassroots Advocacy Award
AHIMA Grassroots Advocacy Award Points System
How to Report Grassroots Engagement
Please contact your component association or advocacy@ahima.org with any questions.
Prepare for Your Component Association Hill Day Event with Best Practices Checklist
AHIMA and advocacy leader volunteers developed a “Best Practices Checklist” and we are excited to share it with all AHIMA members and Component Association (CA) leaders.
Noteworthy Articles
Fixing the health care worker shortage may be something Congress can agree on (NPR, February 2023)
Prior authorization reform vital to combat nationwide clinician burnout crisis, US surgeon general says (Fierce Healthcare, March 2023)
More Links
AHIMA Advocacy Agenda
Advocacy Training Modules
Congressional District Meeting Resource Guide
AHIMA Action Center