IHA Daily Briefing: October 3

Informational Medicaid IMPACT Revalidations Town Hall Oct. 16
The Illinois Dept. of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS) is currently conducting IMPACT Medicaid provider revalidations. To assist providers with navigating the IMPACT enrollment system and answer questions, HFS is hosting monthly, virtual town hall meetings. IHA recommends hospitals participate in these town hall meetings if you have an upcoming revalidation. The next town hall is Oct. 16 from 10-10:45 a.m. CT. Click here to register or view the town hall meeting schedule.

IHA urges all providers to check their revalidation cycle due date and submit necessary information to complete their revalidation. To view the revalidation due dates of servicing providers affiliated with your hospitals, click here for step-by-step instructions. If you do not complete your revalidation, you will be disenrolled from IMPACT and providers can no longer bill for services provided to Illinois Medicaid enrollees, including those enrolled in managed care organizations.

Black, Hispanic Infants in Cook County Face Greater Risk of Sleep-Related Death
In Cook County, infants die suddenly and unexpectedly about once a week, almost always in an unsafe sleep situation, according to a recently released studyconducted by the Cook County Medical Examiner's Office and Rush University Medical Center. The study also revealed disparities in infant sleep-related deaths, finding that Black infants in Cook County died suddenly and unexpectedly in their sleep at a rate 14 times higher than white infants, and Hispanic infants die at a rate 2.3 times higher than white infants. The study documented 208 sleep-related Sudden Unexpected Infant Deaths between 2019-2023, with nearly 99% occurring in unsafe sleep environments-such as co-sleeping or the presence of soft bedding. Though sleep-related infant death can occur any time, 83% of the babies died before they were six months old, with deaths peaking between one and two months of age.

The report notes that many of the affected infants were born prematurely, and mothers were young and living in unstable housing conditions. The deaths happened most frequently in Chicago's South and West side neighborhoods. Health officials stressed the importance of adhering to the "ABCs" of safe sleep: Alone, on the Back, in a Crib. The full report, which provides detailed findings and recommendations, is available here.

Health-ISAC Issues Threat Bulletin About LockBit 5.0 Ransomware
Saying the new LockBit ransomware variant "emerges as most dangerous yet," the Health Information Sharing and Analysis Center (Health-ISAC), a nonprofit organization that works to share threat intelligence, issued an Oct. 1 alert saying LockBit 5.0 represents "an elevated risk" to healthcare and other organizations.

The LockBit 5.0 variant is the latest iteration of the ransomware-as-a-service group, which resurfaced in September after law enforcement disrupted the group in early 2024. The alert said the group has enhanced its capabilities to target Windows, Linux and VMware ESXi environments. LockBit 5.0 employs heavy obfuscation and evasion techniques, improved usability for affiliates, and enhanced encryption techniques.

Health-ISAC's alert includes recommended mitigations, including advising organizations to reassess their defenses, strengthen protections for ESXi hosts, and implement layered security measures to mitigate risk.

AHA, Microsoft Extend Rural Health Resiliency Offerings
The American Hospital Association (AHA) and Microsoft recently announced several new and updated offerings as part of the Rural Health Resiliency program to help hospitals and health systems deflect cyberattacks. The program offers free and discounted services to eligible rural hospitals, including Critical Access Hospitals and Rural Emergency Hospitals.

Resources include free cybersecurity assessments, cloud capability evaluation, curated cyber and artificial intelligence (AI) training, and foundational cyber certifications for rural hospital information technology staff.

Microsoft also announced two new programs:

• A Windows 10 Extended Security Update with a one-year extension to support Windows 10 operating systems.
• An AI-based Claims Denial Navigator tool for claims management.

Eligible Families Urged to Apply for LIHEAP Utility Bill Assistance
Eligible families can now apply for the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), which supports income-eligible households with utility costs for natural gas, propane and electricity. As of Oct. 1, eligible families can apply by visiting the Illinois Dept. of Commerce and Economic Opportunity website or by visiting their local administering agency (a list of partners throughout the state can be found here). Families can also call 1-833-711-0374 for assistance in 30 languages.

The priority application system will ensure families most in need are able to apply first. The first group eligible includes older adults (60 years and older); individuals with a disability; families with children 5 years old or younger; and households that are disconnected from their utilities, have a disconnection notice or have less than 25% in their propane tank. All other income eligible households can start applying Nov. 1.

Families who earn up to two times the federal poverty level are eligible to receive support through LIHEAP. A chart with eligible income thresholds can be found on this webpage. All families who meet the qualifications and provide proper documentation will receive support until funding is exhausted.

The Joint Commission to Launch Peer Learning Initiative
The Joint Commission this week announced plans to launch a new initiative in January 2026 that will highlight high-performing accredited hospitals and encourage peer-to-peer learning. Joint Commission surveyors will document performance strengths observed during hospitals' triennial accreditation survey. These strengths will be included in a report that is shared with the organization. A team in Joint Commission's Central Office will then review the report and may reach out to the organization to gather additional details to develop resources for other hospitals based on the performance strength(s).

The Joint Commission said that organizations are not obligated to contribute to the development of these resources. However, those participating will be able to review and approve all their own materials before they become available to other Joint Commission-accredited organizations through a searchable database. Click here for more information.