AHA comments on proposals regarding Medicare provider payment, cybersecurity during House subcommittee hearing

The House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health held a hearing Sept. 15 to discuss more than a dozen legislative proposals regarding Medicare provider payment and healthcare cybersecurity. The AHA provided comments to the subcommittee on bills designed to improve long-term physician payments, including proposals to increase the budget neutrality threshold in the Medicare physician fee schedule and a bill to replace the Merit-based Incentive Payment System with the Data-driven Performance Payment System. The AHA also commented on bills to provide grants for the adoption of cybersecurity best practices, direct the Department of Health and Human Services to create a strategy for rural hospital cybersecurity staff training, and improve obstetric emergency preparedness in rural healthcare settings.