IHA is at the center of healthcare advocacy in Washington, D.C. Our efforts focus on legislation in Congress and policy proposals within federal regulatory agencies to advance healthcare in Illinois.
Urge Sens. Durbin and Duckworth NOT to extend the 2% Medicare sequestration cut or use unspent COVID Provider Relief Funds (PRF) to offset the cost of the bipartisan infrastructure package.
The pandemic exposed the critical need for additional federal investment in our healthcare infrastructure, in particular the need for more physicians. IHA joins other organizations in urging action.
IHA requests that members of the Illinois Congressional Delegation consider policies and investments to support healthcare infrastructure in Illinois.
Contact Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth to thank them for their support for Illinois hospitals and urge them to include urgent hospital priorities in the next COVID-19 legislation.
Join over half of Illinois’ 340B hospitals in committing to AHA’s 340B “Good Stewardship” Principles to communicate how the program enables you to stretch scarce resources to care for patients.
Contact your representatives in the U.S. House and Senate and urge them to include urgent hospital priorities in the next COVID-19 legislation.
IHA is eager to partner with members of the Illinois Congressional Delegation on our shared goal of building a better, stronger, more equitable healthcare system.
On Dec. 28 the president signed the Consolidated Appropriations Act into law, which includes funding for the federal government through the 2021 fiscal year, COVID relief and additional provisions.
Congress is working to pass funding bills and may consider a COVID-19 relief package by year-end. Please urge your US Senators and Representatives to support critical hospital priorities.
IHA is advocating for several actions to support hospitals during COVID-19, including additional funding, suspension of Medicare sequestration cuts and resources for frontline healthcare workers.
In this unprecedented crisis, hospitals and healthcare professionals continue to provide care in extraordinary circumstances. See a summary of IHA's latest Federal COVID-19 Legislative Priorities.
HHS drastically changed the definition of “lost revenue” for purposes of applying Provider Relief Fund (PRF) dollars. New Sept. 19 guidance severely restricts how hospitals may direct PRF dollars.
Congress is negotiating the next COVID-19 relief legislation. Action is needed to ensure additional federal support for hospitals and health systems.
Congress is working on the next COVID-19 relief legislation, and we need to make sure hospital and health system priorities are included.
Among IHA's COVID-19 legislative priorities are: additional resources for hospitals, safeguarding frontline providers from legal action, and protecting and increasing health insurance coverage.
Congress is working on the next COVID-19 relief legislation. Reach out to your Representatives and Senators to ensure urgent hospital priorities are included in the next bill.
Hospitals have experienced billions in short-term losses. As they prepare for an expected surge this fall, resources are needed to address financial stability for hospitals and their communities.
As the number of COVID-19 cases continues to seriously impact Chicago, Cook County and other areas of the country, IHA requests an additional targeted distribution for high-impact areas.
Members of Congress are now discussing additional legislation to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.
IHA is urgently requesting that Congress approve funding support for hospitals and health systems be included in a new COVID-19 response bill.
Please join hospital and health system colleagues from across the state as we make our voices heard on Capitol Hill during IHA’s annual Federal Advocacy Day April 20-21.
Proposed legislation to address surprise billing includes rate setting and unrelated provisions on price transparency and contracting opposed by IHA.
IHA and IPC sent a joint letter to the Congressional delegation thanking them for supporting federal funding for the Poison Control Center program.
IHA supports the Rural America Health Corps Act (S. 2406), which would help address workforce shortages in rural communities.
Illinois’ rural hospitals support federal action to ban “balance billing,” along with a standard process of negotiation between providers and health plans.
Legislation being considered by Congress would ban “balance billing,” but still unresolved is an approach for determining provider payment.
Members of Congress are in their home districts for the August recess and need to hear from hospitals about surprise billing.
IHA supports the Social Determinants Accelerator Act of 2019 to improve social determinants of health for participants in the Medicaid program.
Members are urged to contact their U.S. Representative to oppose setting a benchmark rate for payment to providers for certain out-of-network and emergency services.
We support legislation to protect patients from surprise bills that uses “baseball-style” arbitration to resolve disputes between providers and health plans.
IHA urges Congress to use successful state-level laws, such as those in Illinois, which preserve the standard process of negotiation, as a model for federal legislation.
IHA letter urges the Illinois Congressional delegation to use successful state laws as a model for federal legislation on surprise billing.
The Medicare Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act of 2019 would increase the number of Medicare-funded residency positions by 15,000 over five years, beginning in fiscal year 2021.
Members are urged to comment on the rule by Dec. 10.
IHA opposes the Inadmissibility on Public Charge Grounds proposed rule concerning legal immigrants.
Contact your U.S. Representative now and ask him/her to sign the Roskam-Thompson letter on OPPS site-neutral cuts.
This memo summarizes legislation passed by the U.S. House to address the opioid crisis.
IHA has strong concerns about proposed changes to Methods for Assuring Access to Medicaid Services-Exemptions for States with High Managed Care Penetration Rates and Rate Reduction Threshold.
IHA urges the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to approve the Illinois Hospital Assessment Program redesign to preserve access to care for Illinois Medicaid beneficiaries.
The Illinois Congressional Delegation urges CMS to expeditiously review and approve Illinois state plan amendments, which include reforms to modernize the state’s Hospital Assessment Program.
IHA asks the Illinois Congressional Delegation to urge the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to review and approve the State Plan Amendments for the redesigned Hospital Assessment Program.
Use IHA’s talking points in your advocacy for the 340B Drug Pricing Program, which allows certain hospitals to offer affordable prescription drugs to financially vulnerable and fragile patients.
In a letter to U.S. senators, IHA provided requested input on healthcare price transparency and shared Illinois’ progress on offering patients relevant and meaningful price information.
The Rural Hospital Access Act (H.R. 1955/S. 872) would make permanent the Medicare-dependent Hospital and enhanced Low-volume Adjustment programs. Urge Congress to support it.
Ask your U.S. Representative to co-sponsor H.R. 4392 to protect the 340B Drug Pricing Program from a 30 percent pay reduction that could cost hospitals $1.6 billion.
IHA supports preserving the tax exemption for private activity bonds, which are a vital source of affordable financing that enables non-profit hospitals to make investments in their facilities.
Urge Congress to support Rural Medicare Extenders. Funding for the Medicare-dependent hospital and enhanced low-volume adjustment programs expires Sept. 30, 2017.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a final emergency rule requiring healthcare employers to protect workers against on-the-job COVID-19 infection.
Early in the COVID-19 crisis, Congress and HHS temporarily lifted longstanding barriers to expanding telehealth in Medicare. See IHA's federal position paper on extending telehealth flexibilities.
IHA appreciates the commitment of the Subcommittee on Health to ensuring all individuals have access to the care they need and its recognition of the critical role of virtual care.
The 340B Drug Pricing Program is critical in expanding access to lifesaving prescription drugs and comprehensive healthcare services for low-income and uninsured individuals.
Telehealth flexibilities benefit patients across Illinois. See case examples from UChicago Medicine, La Rabida Children's Hospital, Hospital Sisters Health System and more.
IHA supports federal legislation to protect patients from surprise medical bills, which may occur after a patient receives emergency care or out-of-network services at an in-network facility.
IHA responded to a Congressional task force RFI on key priorities affecting health status and outcomes in rural and underserved communities.
On October 9, 2019, the US Dept. of Health and Human Services proposed significant amendments to the Stark, Anti-Kickback and Civil Monetary Penalty laws.
Today, President Donald Trump signed the bipartisan SUPPORT for Patients and Communities Act, H.R. 6 (115).
CMS seeks input on concerns about current Physician Self-Referral law; deadline is Aug. 24
IHA urges Congress to require Medicare Administrative Contractors to extend the site-neutral exception opportunity to those HOPDs that relocated after Nov. 2, 2015.
IHA urges Congress to support the Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act (H.R. 2267/S. 1301) and prevent cuts and overly burdensome regulations to the Medicare Graduate Medical Education program.
IHA’s position paper on the 340B Drug Pricing Program outlines why the program is critical to patients and hospitals and the specific actions Congress can take to protect it.
Illinois receives less federal funding per Medicaid beneficiary than any other state and has one of the lowest Medicaid matching rates in the country.
U.S. Reps. Michael Bost, Rodney Davis and Randy Hultgren from Illinois signed a letter in support of maintaining tax-exempt status for private activity bonds in the final tax reform bill.
See IHA's talking points on the Inpatient Prospective Payment System proposed rule on the phase-in of Worksheet S-10 data for uncompensated care that hospitals provide beginning in FFY 2018.
IHA supported the Drug-price Transparency in Communications Act to address recent dramatic increases in prices for generic and specialty prescription drugs.
Illinois Sens. Richard J. Durbin and Tammy Duckworth, along with a majority of U.S. senators, urged federal officials to protect the 340B Drug Pricing Program.
Fifteen U.S. representatives from Illinois joined a majority of House members in asking federal officials to abandon proposed changes to the 340B Drug Pricing Program.
Learn more about Illinois' 223 hospitals, which together have 1.5 million inpatient admissions and 38 million outpatients visits a year.
Pharmaceutical manufacturers participating in Medicaid must discount outpatient drugs to qualifying hospitals and other providers who see a large number of low-income patients and rural populations.
IHA looked at lost spending, econmic impacts and Medicare cuts by Congressional District in our preliminary estimates of repealing the Affordable Care Act without a replacement plan.