From Washington, DC

• CBS Sports reports,
  • “The United States Senate unanimously voted Tuesday to pass the HEARTS Act, a bill supported by Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin that will provide grants to schools to support the purchase of automated external defibrillators, CPR and AED training, and the development of cardiac emergency response plans. The Cardiomyopathy Health Education, Awareness, Research and Training in Schools (HEARTS) Act, a bipartisan bill spearheaded by Hamlin and New York state Senator Chuck Schumer, will now only need to be signed by President Joe Biden to become law.
  • “In January 2023, Hamlin had made a routine tackle during a “Monday Night Football” game between the Bills and Cincinnati Bengals when he went into sudden cardiac arrest on the field, with the medical episode leaving him in critical condition as the game was suspended and ultimately never resumed. Hamlin’s life was saved by the response of team athletic trainers and other first responders, and he has since made a full recovery and is now a starter in Buffalo.
  • “Ever since his near-fatal incident, Hamlin has dedicated significant time promoting efforts on the importance of learning CPR and having accessible AEDs in different communities. The HEARTS ACT would create a grant program at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to support such efforts in elementary and secondary schools.”
    
• Fierce Healthcare informs us,
  • “Congressional staffers have told lobbyists that a [healthcare] deal will be reached by the end of the weekend so the House and Senate can vote on the deal before government funding expires next Friday, Dec. 20.
  • “The latest healthcare deal, circulated among lobbyists Friday morning, is seen as solid and unlikely to change through the weekend, people who received the memo told Fierce Healthcare.
  • “The package includes a two-year extension of Medicare telehealth flexibilities and a one-year extension of pre-deductible coverage of telehealth for high-deductible health plans linked to health savings accounts. The package also is likely to include a five-year extension of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ hospital-at-home waiver.
  • “As of Friday morning, the deal also included a physician pay bump and an alternative payment model bonus; funding for community health centers; a five-year reauthorization of the Substance Use Disorder Prevention that Promotes Opioid Recovery and Treatment for Patients and Communities Act; a one- to two-year reauthorization of the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act; and the Medicare Multi-Cancer Early Detection Screening Coverage Act.
  • “The major offsets that Congress will use for the package are a five-month extension of the Medicare sequester, commercial pharmacy benefit manager transparency (PBM), banning Medicaid PBM spread pricing and Medicare Part D delinking, among others.
  • “It seems as though House and Senate leaders have come to an agreement on a wide-ranging end-of-year healthcare package, but the deal could still fall apart.
  • “Congress must pass a continuing resolution to fund the government by Dec. 20. The C.R. is likely to fund the government for 90 days, through March. The C.R. is separate from the health package, but, in the event that a healthcare deal falls apart, expiring healthcare programs may also be extended for 90 days as part of the C.R.”

• Federal News Network informs us,
  • “As agencies work on innovations in their federal hiring and retention strategies, the Office of Personnel Management is taking steps to try to better support the employees working behind the scenes on those efforts.
  • “In a legislative proposal sent to Congress last week, OPM requested statutory authority over the nearly 40,000 federal employees working in human resources positions governmentwide. If enacted, OPM’s proposal would amend Title 5, giving OPM the ability to manage training and development of the HR workforce across all agencies.
  • “Although there has been strong interest in governmentwide efforts to mitigate skills gaps in technology positions and cybersecurity, acquisitions and other mission critical occupations, HR professionals have not received the same level of focus and prioritization, even though they are critical for assisting in the hiring and retention strategies for the entirety of the federal workforce,” OPM wrote in a draft of the legislative proposal, shared with Federal News Network.

• The American Hospital Association News tells us,
  • “The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation [on December 11] released its 2024 Report to Congress that includes updates on 37 models and initiatives (including nine new models), 52 evaluations and other activities from October 2022 through September 2024. During the report period, CMMI stated that more than 192,000 providers and/or plans participated in CMS Innovation Center models and initiatives, serving over 57 million beneficiaries.”
    
• Modern Healthcare reports,
  • “The U.S. Supreme Court handed hospitals another victory when it declined drug manufacturers’ petition to limit contract pharmacies that dispense 340B drugs. But the legal fight is far from over.
  • “Drugmakers turned to the Supreme Court after a district and appellate court upheld an Arkansas law that ensures providers get the same 340B drug discounts for prescriptions dispensed at community pharmacies as they would for medication offered through in-house pharmacies. The 340B drug pricing program aims to bolster hospitals and clinics that treat low-income patients by offering estimated 25% to 50% discounts on prescription drugs.
  • “The high court on Monday denied the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America’s request to review the case. That denial is expected to fuel other state legislation designed to protect 340B drug discounts and community contract pharmacies, healthcare lawyers said. The drug manufacturers may also shift their focus to enforcing a rebate program for 340B drug discounts, they said.”

From the public health and medical research front,

• The Center for Disease Control and Prevention announced today,
  • “COVID-19 activity is beginning to increase from low levels in some areas of the nation. Seasonal influenza activity continues to increase across the country. RSV activity is moderate and continues to increase in most areas of the United States, particularly in young children.
  • “COVID-19
    • “COVID-19 activity, including wastewater levels, emergency department visits, and laboratory percent positivity, are beginning to increase from low levels in some areas of the nation. However, based on CDC modeled estimates of epidemic growth, we predict COVID-19 illness to increase in the coming weeks as it usually does in the winter.
    • “There is still time to benefit from getting your recommended immunizations to reduce your risk of illness this season, especially severe illness and hospitalization.
    • “CDC expects the 2024-2025 COVID-19 vaccine to work well for currently circulating variants. There are many effective tools to prevent spreading COVID-19 or becoming seriously ill.
  • “Influenza
    • “Seasonal influenza activity continues to increase across the country.
    • “Additional information about current influenza activity can be found at: Weekly U.S. Influenza Surveillance Report | CDC
  • “RSV
    • “RSV activity is moderate nationally and continues to increase in most areas of the United States, particularly in young children. Emergency department visits and hospitalizations are increasing in children and hospitalizations are increasing among older adults in some areas.
  • “Vaccination
    • “Vaccination coverage with influenza and COVID-19 vaccines are low among U.S. adults and children. Vaccination coverage with RSV vaccines remains low among U.S. adults. Many children and adults lack protection from respiratory virus infections provided by vaccines.”