Medicare Ruling
HOSPITALS ARE protesting a new Medicare rule that will require them to send weekly reports to the CDC with data on bed capacities and the rates of respiratory illnesses like covid. A MedPage Today report said that groups like the AHA oppose the rule, which takes effect on Nov. 1, claiming that the reporting requirements will be too burdensome. The rule, which was published in the Aug. 28 Federal Register, says that the data play a “critical role in infection prevention and control efforts.” The hospital groups are asking Medicare to replace the rule with a voluntary program that excludes SNFs and inpatient psychiatric facilities.
Palliative Care
Virtual vs. in-person palliative care delivers similar quality of care
A recent JAMA trial that randomized patients with advanced lung cancer to either video palliative care visits or in-person sessions found the two groups were equivalent in terms of patient satisfaction and quality of care. About 1,250 patients were recruited from more than 20 U.S. cancer centers within 12 weeks of being diagnosed with advanced non–small cell lung cancer. While the video visit group met with a palliative care provider in person for their first visit, they continued to have video visits every four weeks, while patients in the in-person arm met as frequently. Participants completed questionnaires when they enrolled and then again every 12 weeks. While the rate of caregiver participation in video visits was lower than during in-person sessions, the study groups posted the same results in caregiver quality of life, patient coping, patient and caregiver satisfaction, and mood symptoms. In an interview, a co-author noted that while “the recommendation is to provide early palliative care, it’s often not done. … We’re looking to see if there are other ways to get patients regular palliative care while seeing the same benefits.”
HEALTH CARE SUPPLIES
FDA greenlights IV-fluid imports while feds pitch in to rebuild plant
A follow-up to last week’s item about the Baxter IV-fluid facility in North Carolina that was shut down due to Hurricane Helene damage: According to a report in The Hill, the FDA has approved importing certain IV fluids from other Baxter production sites around the globe. The list of sites includes the U.K., China, Canada and Ireland. The Baxter plant that was shut down in North Carolina, which typically produced about 60% of the IV fluids used in U.S. hospitals, plans to restart production in phases and resume full production of some IV products by the end of this year. CBS News reported that the Biden Administration has invoked the Defense Production Act to help speed up repairs to the plant. By invoking wartime powers—which was also done during the pandemic to accelerate production of vents, vaccines and test swabs—the federal government can help Baxter clean the plant and restore production as well as help other manufacturers in the U.S. ramp up.
Infection Prevention
What does it take to make sure infection prevention in your hospital is adequately staffed?
A new study in the American Journal of Infection Control reported on pilot findings of a calculator that can give facilities customized infection prevention staffing recommendations. The study found a significant correlation between staffing levels and rates of health-care associated infection rates including catheter-associated UTIs, central-line associated bloodstream infections, C. diff and colon surgical site infections. The historical metric used for infection prevention staffing has been the ratio of infection prevention personnel to the number of beds, with recent studies suggesting ratios ranging from one infection preventionist to every 69 beds to one for every 100 beds. But those studies, these authors argued, don’t take into account staffing that should be more robust because facilities may have burn units, stem cell transplant units, inpatient rehab or higher CMI. The APIC Web site offers a beta version of the calculator. Developers say the tool’s algorithm will be updated as more facilities use it.
M&A
FTC boosts screening to crack down on problematic mergers
The FTC is making companies pursuing mergers and acquisitions in health care provide more information to help the agency screen for antitrust activities. A Fierce Healthcare report said that the FTC is changing its pre-merger notification requirement, known as the Hart-Scott-Rodino Form, for the first time in 45 years. The agency estimated that the new rule will quadruple the amount of time it takes to complete the form from 37 to 144 hours per filing. The AHA described the new reporting requirements as little more than a “tax on mergers,” claiming that the agency is asking for more information than it can possibly process. The FTC said the information required by the new rule will help regulators address “changes in the marketplace” that have made it difficult for them to detect and prevent problematic mergers.
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