News

On Dec. 27, a federal judge ruled that the Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS’s) nearly 30-percent cut to Medicare payment rates for many hospitals participating in the 340B drug discount program was unlawful. ... Read More >>

WSHA recently commented with concerns about the second pre-draft rules by the state Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) that would expand the class of workers who qualify for overtime pay. ... Read More >>

I was dismayed when I heard late Friday evening that a federal judge from my home state of Texas ruled the entire Affordable Care Act unconstitutional because Congress repealed the tax penalty enforcing the law’s individual mandate.... Read More >>

Dec. 17, WSHA submitted a comment letter to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services supporting a proposed rule requiring drug manufacturers engaging in direct-to-consumer television advertising disclose the list price of the drug. ... Read More >>

The Nursing Care Quality Assurance Commission will be hosting a series of stakeholder workshops in Jan. 22, 23 and 24 to discuss rules relating to nurses’ standard of practice and continuing competency requirements.... Read More >>

The Medical Quality Assurance Commission (MQAC) will be hosting two workshops on Jan. 16 to discuss rules relating to the development of a clinical support program to assist practitioners with practice deficiencies and modernizing MQAC’s governing regulations, particularly with respect to updating rules regarding physicians to align with current national industry and best practice standards.... Read More >>

Significant portions of Washington’s new nurse staffing law (HB 1714) take effect on Jan. 1. As required by law, hospitals need to submit their nurse staffing plans to the Department of Health (DOH) by Jan. 1. ... Read More >>

Today Gov. Jay Inslee released his full proposed budget for the 2019-2021 biennium. The budget is positive for health care, and especially behavioral health, as it contains significant investments in the state’s behavioral health system. WSHA is very pleased to see significant new funding for health care in this budget.... Read More >>

WSHA’s Government Affairs team has published its December 2018 state regulatory update to its State Regulatory Issues webpage. Members will find a comprehensive view of state rulemaking activities that affect them. ... Read More >>

WSHA has filed a comment opposing the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS’s) proposed rule “Inadmissibility on Public Charge Grounds.” The rule would use an immigrant’s receipt of Medicaid and possibly the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) — among other public services — to deny them status in this country on the basis that they are a “public charge.”... Read More >>