Okay, folks, grab your strongest coffee and your policy decoder rings! It's Friday, May 16th, 2025, and the digital health universe has been spinning faster than a centrifuge in a sci-fi movie. Let's untangle this week's delightful chaos with your CTeL policy scoop – served with a side of snark and a whole lot of insight!
Another week, another whirlwind of policy pronouncements, tech triumphs, and a few "wait, what did they just say?" moments. Let's dive into the deep end!
CTeL In Action: We're Not Just Watching, We're Doing!
Missed Hill Day Boot Camp? No Worries, We Recorded the Drills! If you couldn't make our prep session for maximum Hill Day impact, don't sweat it. We bottled that strategic goodness for you; get ready to wow those staffers!
CTeL Member Community: Shining Bright! Rural Healthcare Gets a Virtual Boost: Big kudos to VirtuAlly and Teledigm Health for partnering up to bring virtual nursing to rural healthcare systems. Because access to care shouldn't depend on your zip code! FDA Says "YES!" to At-Home Screening: Cheers to Teal Health for getting FDA approval for the first-ever at-home cervical cancer screening device! Talk about empowering patients and innovating care. Curious Cat? Want to see what other brilliant research and news your fellow CTeL members are churning out? Our exclusive [CTeL Member Community Page] has the goods (Membership required – it has its privileges!).
Upcoming Webinar Alert! Untangling the Medicare Monster! Topic: Medicare Enrollment and Reassignment for Virtual/Hybrid Care Providers: Architecture and Execution Date & Time: May 28th at 3:00 PM ET Starring: Patrick Cunningham, Founder of Re-Architect Health The Lowdown: If navigating Medicare enrollment for your virtual/hybrid care practice feels like wrestling an octopus, this one's for you. We're talking compliance, operational savvy, and how not to get lost in the bureaucratic maze. [Register Here – Your Sanity May Depend On It!]
Industry Intel: The Bots Are Restless!
Is an AI Chatting You Up? UCSD Says You Should Know! UC San Diego Health is making waves (in NEJM AI, no less!), calling for clear disclosure when AI is used in patient communications. They want national standards, because transparency is the new black.
Robo-Coders to the Rescue! OHSU Slashes Workload. Oregon Health & Science University Hospital saw a hefty 28% drop in coder workload and a sweet 0.60% dip in automated denials after unleashing AI-driven autonomous coding. The machines are learning... to save us from paperwork!
OpenAI Dips a Toe in the Health AI Pool (With a Scorecard). OpenAI just published "HealthBench," their new evaluation framework for AI in health. Their guiding philosophy? Evaluations should be Meaningful (real-world impact, not just exam scores), Trustworthy (doc-approved!), and Unsaturated (meaning, current AI has plenty of room to grow, keeping developers humble and hungry).
Administration Action: Hold Onto Your Hats!
Mental Health Parity Rule: Now You See It, Now You Don't? In a classic DC two-step, HHS has told a court it won't be enforcing the Biden Administration's mental health parity final rule from last year. Instead, they're pondering rescinding it or cooking up a new proposed rule. Whiplash, anyone? (Puzzled? [Read CTeL’s Fact Sheet on the Rule] to see what's at stake.)
CMMI's New Mantra: Prevention, Empowerment, Choice (Oh, and Tech!). The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) dropped its new guiding principles for model selection. They're big on evidence-based prevention, empowering patients, and driving choice. And yes, they plan to "promote efficiency through devices and technology." We like the sound of that!
CMS Wants Your 2 Cents on Digital Health Tech (CTeL's Sending a Novel!). CMS put out an RFI (Request for Information) on improving digital health tech for Medicare patients, seeking input on creating a "seamless, secure, and patient-centered digital health infrastructure." CTeL is already drafting our magnum opus. Got thoughts? Email lydiah@ctel.org to contribute to our comment letter!
New Surgeon General Pick: Get Ready to 'Make America Healthy Again' (Alternative Medicine Edition). President Trump has tapped Casey Means for Surgeon General, praising her "impeccable ‘[Make America Healthy Again]’ credentials." Means, known for critiquing the medical establishment and promoting alternative medicine, also has close ties to HHS Secretary Kennedy.
AI Gets International: Big Bucks for US-Saudi Tech Tango. Alongside President Trump's visit to Saudi Arabia, a flurry of companies announced massive AI collaborations between the two nations – we're talking hundreds of billions in mutual investments for data centers, factories, and energy. AI is officially a global power play.
Congressional Corner: Bills, Budgets, and Broadband Battles!
Medicaid Markup Mayhem: E&C Passes Cuts, Full House Vote Looms. The House Energy & Commerce Committee pushed through its slice of the reconciliation pie, which includes hundreds of billions in Medicaid cuts, on a 30-24 vote. GOP leaders are now working to rally the troops for a full House vote by next week. Speaker Johnson's timeline is ambitious: Budget Committee assembly Friday, Rules Committee Monday, passage by the 22nd. (Need the nitty-gritty? [Read CTeL’s Analysis Here].)
Sec. Kennedy's Hill Tour: Defending Budgets and... Defluoridation? HHS Secretary Kennedy made the rounds on Capitol Hill, defending the Administration's FY2026 budget, the HHS reorganization, and yes, even controversial policies like water defluoridation. Never a dull committee hearing!
Supply Chain Scrutiny: MedTech Takes the Stand. The Senate Finance Committee dug into "Trade in Critical Supply Chains," with AdvaMed's Scott Whitaker among the witnesses. Keeping those essential medical supplies flowing is, well, essential.
Doctor Shortage? House Panel Eyes Residency 'Monopoly'. The House Judiciary Committee tackled "The MATCH Monopoly," probing whether the medical residency system is making our doctor shortage worse. Intriguing!
Broadband Blame Game? GAO Says Agencies Could Collaborate Better. A new GAO report found that federal agencies are mostly playing nice on broadband deployment, but there's room for improvement in following leading collaboration practices. Better teamwork makes the dream work (and gets more people online).
Bipartisan Cheer! Telehealth Grants Get a Lifeline. Reps. Valadao (R-CA) and Gray (D-CA) introduced a bill to reauthorize the Telehealth Network and Telehealth Resource Centers Grant Programs through FY2030. Investing in rural healthcare via telehealth? We love to see it!
Nurse Staffing Ratios Bill Returns: Déjà Vu on the Hill? Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) are reintroducing legislation for minimum nurse-to-patient staffing ratios in hospitals. A perennial issue, back for another round.
State Snapshot: Shield Laws and Fact Sheets!
Tele-Abortion Shield Laws: RHITES Drops a Knowledge Bomb. RHITES (Reproductive Health Information and Telehealth Equity Solutions) published a new fact sheet on Telehealth for Medication Abortion (TMAB) provision under state shield laws. Essential reading for navigating this complex landscape.
Phew! That's a wrap for this week's policy rollercoaster. Stay tuned, stay informed, and remember CTeL is here to help you make sense of it all (and maybe even laugh a little).
Until next time, Your Friends at CTeL
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