CHANGE HEALTHCARE CYBERSECURITY ATTACK

MGMA Government Affairs is closely monitoring the cybersecurity attack against Change Healthcare and its impact on medical groups. We have been hearing from MGMA members about the wide-ranging effects they are experiencing. MGMA sent a letter to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) asking for guidance, financial resources, enforcement discretion, and more to support group practices and patient access to care. 

We will continue update members as information becomes available.

CONGRESS REACHES SHORT-TERM AGREEMENT TO AVOID SHUTDOWN

Congress has reached an agreement on a short-term deal to fund the federal government before the March 1 deadline for a partial government shutdown. Congress has taken a tiered approach to attempting to fund the federal government for 2024 and passed numerous short-term funding bills over the last few months. This agreement is similar as it extends funding for some government agencies to March 8, and funding for the rest to March 22.

As part of these funding packages, Congress has been discussing numerous healthcare policies and potentially addressing the Medicare conversion factor cut that went into effect on Jan. 1, 2024. MGMA is continuing to advocate to reverse the full 3.37% cut, which remains our top priority. If you have not already, please send a pre-populated letter to your representatives through MGMA’s Contact Congress portal urging them to address the full cut in the 2024 appropriations package.

NIST RELEASES UPDATED CYBERSECURITY GUIDANCE

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has updated its Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) for the first time since 2014. This guidance document is meant for all industry sectors to help reduce cybersecurity risk; NIST has developed resources to help users navigate the framework.

This follows additional recent actions from NIST and HHS meant to strengthen cybersecurity. NIST and HHS Office of Civil Rights (OCR) released an updated resource that reviews the HIPAA Security Rule and includes suggestions for medical groups to manage risk.

“WASHINGTON POLICY OUTLOOK” SESSION AT MGMA SUMMIT

Attending MGMA Summit next month? You won't want to miss MGMA Government Affairs' "Washington Policy Outlook" on Tuesday, March 12, from 12:55 p.m. to 1:45 p.m. ET. Discussions will center around the latest legislative and regulatory developments impacting group practices such as Medicare reimbursement, telehealth, quality reporting, and more.

For more information on MGMA Summit, including how to register, please click here.