Blogs / Reports
FEATURED ARTICLE
Statement from NASHP’s Executive Director Trish Riley
/in COVID-19 State Action Center Blogs, Featured News Home COVID-19, Health Equity, Population Health, Social Determinants of Health /by Trish RileyThe brutal deaths of Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd, and countless people of color before them, and the shocking disparities in death rates from the coronavirus, are tragic examples of the still pervasive racism in America. For organizations like NASHP, it is not enough to speak out – we need to redouble our efforts, along […]
How States Are Ramping Up their COVID-19 Contact Tracing Capacity
/in COVID-19 State Action Center Blogs, Featured News Home Contact Tracing, COVID-19, Health Coverage and Access, Population Health, Workforce Capacity /by Megan Lent, Elinor Higgins and Jill RosenthalContact tracing, a strategy long-used to contain the spread of infectious diseases by identifying and isolating people exposed to an infection, has become a crucial state tool to curb COVID-19. But the pandemic requires significant ramping up of contact tracing capacity and funding. Experts estimate 30 contact tracers are needed for every 100,000 Americans – […]
States Factor in COVID-19’s Impact on Immunizations and VBP Incentives
/in COVID-19 State Action Center Blogs, Featured News Home Chronic Disease Prevention and Management, COVID-19, Immunization, Maternal, Child, and Adolescent Health, Population Health /by Rebecca CooperBecause of the great public health value of childhood vaccines, state Medicaid programs have promoted value-based purchasing (VBP) programs as a lever through managed care and fee-for-service programs to reward providers that immunize a high rate of children, who make up about 55 percent of Medicaid’s managed care enrollees nationwide. However, COVID-19 has greatly reduced […]
Support Grows for Congressional Action to Boost Medicaid Matching Funds to Help States
/in Policy Blogs, Featured News Home Chronic Disease Prevention and Management, COVID-19, Eligibility and Enrollment, Essential Health Benefits, Health Coverage and Access, Medicaid Expansion, Population Health /by Trish RileyToday, a coalition of 20 national organizations representing consumers, health care providers, and health plans sent a letter to Congressional leaders supporting a recent National Governors Association’s request that they increase federal matching funds for Medicaid by 12 percent.
Early Evidence Suggests Increased Medicaid Enrollment Due to COVID-19
/in Policy Blogs, Featured News Home CHIP, COVID-19, Eligibility and Enrollment, Essential Health Benefits, Health Coverage and Access, Medicaid Expansion, Population Health, State Insurance Marketplaces /by Gia GouldAs the COVID-19 public health emergency continues to destabilize the economy, more individuals are turning to their state Medicaid agencies for health coverage. To date, more than 40 million Americans have filed for unemployment benefits in the past 10 weeks, and with job losses many individuals will inevitably lose employer-based health coverage. Current projections show […]
National Standards for CYSHCN One-Pagers Showcase Most Utilized Domains
/in Policy Featured News Home Children/Youth with Special Health Care Needs, Children/Youth with Special Health Care Needs, Chronic and Complex Populations, Integrated Care for Children, Maternal, Child, and Adolescent Health /by NASHP StaffTo Curb COVID-19 Nursing Home Deaths, States Design their Own Testing Strategies
/in COVID-19 State Action Center Blogs, Featured News Home Chronic Disease Prevention and Management, COVID-19, Population Health, Quality and Measurement /by Chris KukkaAs the death toll in nursing homes rises and COVID-19 testing capacity slowly expands, states are each crafting new testing policies to prevent and contain outbreaks in long-term care facilities, where more than half of coronavirus deaths have occurred in many states. While the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued general […]
Delayed Rule Sets 2021 Playbook for Health Insurers and Insurance Marketplaces
/in Policy Blogs, Featured News Home Eligibility and Enrollment, Health Coverage and Access, State Insurance Marketplaces /by Christina CousartThe Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has issued the final Notice of Benefit and Payment Parameters (NBPP) for 2021 — the annual rule governing health insurance plans and health insurance marketplaces. While the final rule contains several changes, it does not significantly alter automatic re-enrollment for individuals who purchase through the health insurance […]
50-State Scan Shows Diversity of State Certificate-of-Need Laws
/in Policy Blogs, Featured News Home Health System Costs, Hospital/Health System Oversight /by Johanna Butler, Adney Rakotoniaina and Deborah FournierAs states respond to the need for increased hospital bed capacity due to COVID-19, governors and legislatures in 22 states have waived certificate-of-need (CON) requirements – streamlining the process for hospitals to add bed capacity. These waivers have focused attention on decades-old CON laws and their utility in a changing health care landscape. The National […]
Q&A: A Deep Dive into New York’s Drug User Health Hubs with New York’s Allan Clear
/in COVID-19 State Action Center New York Blogs, Featured News Home Behavioral/Mental Health and SUD, Chronic and Complex Populations, Chronic Disease Prevention and Management, Health Equity, HIV/AIDS, Population Health, Social Determinants of Health /by Eliza MetteThe COVID-19 pandemic poses unique risks to people with opioid use disorder (OUD). Overdose risk increases when using individuals are in isolation and injection drug users are at higher risk of COVID-19 mortality due to increased rates of other infectious diseases and negative health effects from substance use.
For individuals living with complex, often chronic conditions, and their families, palliative care can provide relief from symptoms, improve satisfaction and outcomes, and help address critical mental and spiritual needs during difficult times. Now more than ever, there is growing recognition of the importance of palliative care services for individuals with serious illness, such as advance care planning, pain and symptom management, care coordination, and team-based, multi-disciplinary support. These services can help patients and families cope with the symptoms and stressors of disease, better anticipate and avoid crises, and reduce unnecessary and/or unwanted care. While this model is grounded in evidence that demonstrates improved quality of life, better outcomes, and reduced cost for patients, only a fraction of individuals who could benefit from palliative care receive it. 
States’ COVID-19 Public Health Emergency Declarations and Mask Requirements
/in COVID-19 State Action Center Charts, Featured News Home, Maps COVID-19, Featured Policy Home, Health Equity, Population Health, Social Determinants of Health /by NASHP Staff and Ella Roth