CMS will reprocess calendar year 2019 claims for outpatient services provided at excepted off-campus provider-based departments due to an appeals court ruling on site-neutral payments, the agency said Jan. 14.

CMS finalized a rule Jan. 15 to simplify prior authorizations and create a better exchange of healthcare data between payers, providers and patients. 

New York's Nassau County agreed to pay $30.8 million to Nassau University Medical Center's parent organization to settle unpaid debts for medical services provided at the county's jail and the Uniondale-based A. Holly Patterson nursing home, according to Newsday.

Oakland, Calif.-based Kaiser Permanente has awarded $8.15 million in grants to nonprofit and community organizations working to address systemic racism in the U.S.

CMS has officially withdrawn its proposed Medicaid fiscal accountability rule.

Jacksonville, Fla.-based Nemours Children's Health System will implement a $100 million cost-cutting plan and reduce its workforce by 3 percent to 4 percent, according to the Orlando Sentinel. 

Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems had estimated net operating revenue of $11.78 billion to $11.8 billion in 2020, according to the company's preliminary earnings released Jan. 14. 

President-elect Joe Biden unveiled a $1.9 trillion relief package Jan. 14 that includes more than $400 billion to fight the COVID-19 pandemic directly. 

The American Hospital Association said it will suspend political donations to candidates who disputed the results of the Electoral College.

The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission voted Jan. 14 to recommend a 2 percent raise in Medicare payments for hospitals next year.

CMS issued a final rule Jan. 12 that updates the agency's definition of "reasonable and necessary" coverage for services that fall under Medicare Parts A and B.

The owners of hospitals in Chicago and Los Angeles are planning to close the facilities in the first half of this year. 

A former CFO of a Connecticut healthcare staffing agency pleaded guilty to aiding the co-founder of the company with tax evasion, the U.S. Justice Department said Jan 13.

Thirty-five ACOs participating in the Next Generation ACO model achieved shared savings and received bonus payments in 2019, according to partial 2019 performance data released Jan. 13. 

CMS has started auditing a sample of hospitals for compliance with the price transparency rule, an agency spokesperson confirmed to Becker's Hospital Review. 

Nine hospitals and health systems recently posted job listings seeking revenue cycle management expertise.

Twenty-seven percent of the over 1 million fundraisers on GoFundMe from May 2010 to December 2018 were held to help patients cover medical costs, according to research published Jan. 11 in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Credit downgrades outpaced upgrades for U.S. public finance in 2020, and nonprofit hospitals were among the most affected sectors, according to a new report from Fitch Ratings. 

The Health Resources and Services Administration finalized this week its proposal to modify the list of geographic areas considered rural in an effort to extend grant eligibility for hospitals. 

Illinois lawmakers have introduced legislation that would stop hospital closures in the state for three years.