#24 • A Healthy Dose of Healthcare News • April 9, 2021

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It’s been a busy week in federal health policy, and the Biden administration’s departure from the healthcare-related priorities of its predecessor’s is increasingly noticeable. Just today, the CDC — which was founded in 1946 to combat malaria in the South — declared racism to be a public health crisis.

In this edition, you will read about #24.1. HHS revoking Michigan and Wisconsin’s Medicaid work requirements, #24.2. Cuomo’s repeal of care facilities’ liability protections, #24.3. a hike of funding for HHS in Biden’s budget, #24.4. COVID-19 passport controversies, #24.5. a COVID-19 rapid test coming home, and #24.6. infrastructure spending for caregivers.

#24.1. Medicaid Work Requirement Waivers Revoked in Michigan, Wisconsin (Bloomberg Law)

Section 1115 of the Social Security Act allows states to apply for so-called Medicaid waivers, which allow them to innovate in the way they run their Medicaid program toward better care quality and lower health expenditure at no extra cost to the federal government. Many states have taken advantage of such waivers, and the Trump Administration approved multiple ones, including those of Michigan and Wisconsin, which were just rescinded by the Biden Administration. The Department of Health and Human Services took similar steps three weeks ago against Arkansas and New Hampshire’s work requirements. Michigan’s Democrat Governor Gretchen Whitmer, elected in 2018, praised the reversal, and Wisconsin’s new governor is also a Democrat, which suggests that they will not fight the move in court.

#24.2. Cuomo signs repeal of nursing home and hospital liability protections (The Hill)

The new law eliminates the Emergency Disaster Treatment Protection Act, which was passed almost exactly a year ago to protect healthcare facilities and professionals from certain types of liability during the COVID-19 pandemic. This change comes just a couple of months after Governor Andrew Cuomo came under fire for massively undercounting COVID-19 deaths in nursing homes.

#24.3. Biden budget seeks more for schools, health care and housing (Associated Press)

President Joe Biden’s $1.5 trillion budget calls for a 23.1% increase in discretionary spending for HHS, for a total of $133.7 billion. It includes new funding to fight the opioid crisis, support the CDC and $6.5 billion to create a biomedical research agency that would conduct research on cancer, diabetes, and Alzheimer’s. After the great success of the public-private partnership of 2020 over the COVID-19 vaccine, it surprises some observers that creating a new agency is the new administration’s preferred way of tackling disease.

#24.4. DeSantis order bans COVID-19 passports, bars businesses from requiring proof of vaccination (USA Today)

COVID-19 vaccine “passports” have been making headlines. New York launched its own in partnership with IBM. The Biden Administration came out saying that it would not move to mandate its possession, and it underlined the importance that personally identifiable information be kept off the hands of the government. Now, DeSantis is actively prohibiting businesses in the state of Florida from requiring proof of vaccination from patrons, as such requirements would “create two classes of citizens,” according to the order. DeSantis also expressed concerns over large corporations accessing medical information. The order will be in place for 90 days, and the Governor asked the legislature to consider codifying it.

#24.5. U.S. okays Abbott’s rapid COVID-19 test for at-home screenings in those without symptoms (Reuters)

In addition to a successful vaccine rollout, Americans will soon have one more weapon in their COVID toolbox: Abbott’s BinaxNOW, a rapid (15-minute) antigen test to be used at home. The shallow nasal swab test will soon be available for over-the-counter purchase at pharmacies across the country, and while the company hasn’t yet set a price for it, a representative stated that it will sell it to retailers for under $10. The availability of this test will help more people go back to work and school, including people who can’t or don’t wish to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, such as children and childbearing-age women.

#24.6. Joe Biden wants to spend $2 trillion on infrastructure and jobs. These 4 charts show where the money would go. (USA Today)

In March, President Biden signed a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 legislation (the American Rescue Plan Act) that drastically increased ACA subsidies, put pressure on states to expand Medicaid, and covered COBRA at 100%. Next up in government-funded healthcare: more money (a whopping $400 billion) toward healthcare services for the elderly and people with disabilities, via Medicaid. It would also raise caregivers’ wages for social justice purposes.

Previous editions of A Healthy Dose of Healthcare News here.