News

Although we overshot the legislative session deadline by a bit, this year ended without the extended negotiations we saw last year. We are grateful to the legislators who made some difficult compromises in order to conclude on time.... Read More >>

The American Hospital Assocation (AHA) has launched a special webpage to help hospitals and health systems know how to protect themselves from cybersecurity threats. The page includes a suite of resources, including podcasts on emerging threats, questions for hospital leaders and trustees, and fact sheets.... Read More >>

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has delayed enforcement of partd of the Medicaid Drug Rebate Program and Medicaid reimbursement rules for outpatient drugs. The rule took effect April 1, but certain provisions won't be enforced until July 1. ... Read More >>

Last week, the Washington State Legislature reached agreement on a supplemental budget and concluded its special session. Overall, WSHA is very pleased with the results of the 2016 state legislative session. The budget is very good for hospitals and health systems, provides significant new funding for mental health and makes no significant cuts to hospitals or health care.... Read More >>

Certain changes to Medicare billing requirements may require a delay in payment for some rural health clinic services. We believe the delays in billing will be relatively minor, but are interested in hearing more from those with rural health clinics.... Read More >>

To prepare for the SFY 2013 Disproportional Share Hospital (DSH) audit, the state’s consultant, Myers and Stauffer will be conducting a provider training on April 7, 2016 from 10:30a.m.-1:00 p.m. Myers and Stauffer performs the federally-required annual DSH audits for Washington and several other states. During the provider training session, Myers and Stauffer will provide a brief recap of the DSH rule and go through the survey process in detail.... Read More >>

On April 28 from 10:00-11:30 a.m., the Health Care Authority will be hosting a webinar to provide hospital staff an overview of the state’s Medicaid readmissions policy and an explanation of the quarterly hospital reports HCA sent each facility as part of its program on potentially preventable readmissions.... Read More >>

The Health Care Authority (HCA) is encouraging payers and providers to complete its survey on value based payments, “Paying for Value Survey: Measuring Health Care Payment and Delivery System Transformation in Washington State.” The survey will track movement towards value-based payment adoption, barriers to adoption, and implementation of accountable health care strategies.... Read More >>

The Health Care Authority is still in process of providing additional information on its changes to Apple Health enrollment under which clients will be retroactively enrolled in managed care from the beginning of the month. The information will be provided in the form of a Frequently Asked Questions document, generated in response to questions raises by WSHA and WSHA member hospitals.... Read More >>

As of April 1, the Southwest Washington region, containing Clark and Skamania County, is the first to go-live with behavioral health financial integration. This means that physical health services, all levels of mental health services and drug and alcohol treatment are coordinated through managed care plans.... Read More >>