Rural Health Policy Update

Update provided by Andrew Coats, NOSORH Legislative Liaison 

Below is an update on the rural health programs NOSORH has been meeting with Congress on during June.   

Flex: During June, NOSORH was on the Hill to meet with Senate offices about reauthorizing the Medicare Rural Hospital Flexibility (FLEX) Program.  NOSORH identified and confirmed a Senate sponsor for legislation to reauthorize the FLEX program.  Work continues with members in the House and Senate to introduce a bipartisan-bicameral bill.     

RCORP: NOSORH continues to lead a House-Senate bipartisan working group on legislation to authorize the Rural Communities Opioids Response Program (RCORP).  NOSORH has identified a Republican and Democrat sponsor in the House. And has two Democrat offices lined up in the Senate.  Once a Senate Republican office confirms, the RCORP legislation is ready to be introduced. NOSORH was in DC in June, meeting with Senate Republican offices on RCORP.   

SORH: NOSORH is monitoring the progress of the annual appropriations cycle. During June Congress scheduled hearings and markups on almost all of the federal agencies besides HHS. Most members of Congress still believe Congress will pass the usual end-of-year omnibus to fund the various rural health programs, including SORH. However, some members believe there is a chance funding will be extended to early 2025.    

News and notes of interest to the rural health community:   

 White House Announces Rural Cybersecurity Partnership: On June 10,  the White House announced a private-sector partnership seeking to improve rural hospital cybersecurity. Microsoft and Google will partner with the Administration to provide resources that aim to improve security in rural hospitals. For CAHs and rural emergency hospitals, Microsoft will extend its nonprofit program to provide grants and a discount of up to 75 percent on security products. Google will provide free endpoint security advice to rural hospitals and nonprofit organizations, as well as discounted communication tools and security support.     

Senate Finance Committee Releases Draft Proposal to Reform GME:  A bipartisan group of members on the Senate Finance Committee are working on legislation to reform the Graduate Medical Education (GME) payments. Earlier in June, the group released a draft outline to stakeholders for feedback on GME policy reforms. The eight-page proposal aims to alleviate physician shortages and bolster training in rural areas. Realistically, the working group may introduce legislation before the end of this Congress. However, broad legislation to reform the GME program, which includes spending offsets, will be unable to pass Congress this year.