Statement From the Teaching Hospitals of Texas on CMS’ COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate for Health Care Providers
“‘Unprecedented’ is the word most frequently used to describe the COVID-19 pandemic. From the national death toll of nearly 730,000 Americans to the disruptions to our ordinary way of life, the novel coronavirus is something most [...]
THOT Applauds Appointment of Ben Raimer, M.D. as President of UTMB
After a national search, the University of Texas System Board of Regents has named Ben Raimer, M.D. president of the University of Texas Medical Branch as its sixth president. “Ben is a longtime friend of THOT, [...]
Waiver Update: Where does it Stand?
It’s anyone’s guess what the election results mean for Texas’ 1115 waiver renewal. Just prior to the election, Commissioner Smith gave updates to THOT as well as the Executive Waiver Committee on HHSC/CMS waiver talks. Here’s [...]
NIH Grant Supports New Drug Trials for Lung Injury and Disease
Lung Therapeutics, Inc. is a pharmaceutical company that targets niche orphan drug indications for lung injury and disease with an emphasis on fibrosis. The company was founded in 2012 with initial support by the University of [...]
Waiver Budget Neutrality: What does it mean for new waiver initiatives?
1115 waivers must be budget neutral; i.e., not cost more than if there had been no waiver. States predict what their costs in Medicaid would have been if there was no waiver and compare those to [...]
Waiver Update
Following last month’s Newsletter reported waiver trifecta: UC report release; disallowance; and request for Texas to resubmit its 1115 waiver; this past month has been relatively calm. We do have some answers to some of the [...]
Hearings Update
Senate Committee on Health and Human Services On September 13th, under Chair Charles Schwertner, the Senate Health and Human Services Committee held a lengthy hearing on its interim 1115 waiver charge[1], taking testimony from HHSC agency [...]
Texas Budget Update
Key HHS Legislative Appropriations Request (LAR) Update: the Budget The Department of State Health Services (DSHS)’s LAR contained a trauma funding surprise. The Legislative Budget Board and Governor’s Office of Budget Planning held an LAR Hearing for Health and [...]
What’s Going On: Waiver Hat Trick
The month of August ended and September began with two wild and unexpected 1115 Waiver Weeks including three key waiver events. Following CMS & Office of Management and Budget visits to Texas’ Statewide Learning Collaborative (SLC), [...]
What’s UP: NAIP, MPAP, QIPP
What’s UP: NAIP, MPAP, QIPP Several THOT providers have invested in new Medicaid Supplemental programs – NAIP; MPAP/QIPP — to fund improved care and support their ability to continue providing services within Medicaid’s underfunded program. However, [...]