Minnesota Hospital Association

Newsroom

October 01, 2018

MHA Newsline: Oct. 1, 2018

In this issue 

Abbott Northwestern Hospital among CHAIN award winners

Abbott Northwestern Hospital in Minneapolis, Bethany On The Lake in Alexandria and TRIA Orthopaedic Center headquartered in Bloomington on Sept. 26 received CHAIN Awards for Excellence, which commend the infection prevention and antibiotic stewardship efforts of health care teams working to build safer health care environments. The awards are presented annually by the Collaborative Healthcare-Associated Infection Network (CHAIN).   

CHAIN represents a partnership formed in 2011 between the Minnesota Chapter of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC-Minnesota), the Minnesota Department of Health, the Minnesota Hospital Association and Stratis Health.   

MHA member Abbott Northwestern Hospital received the CHAIN Award for its Central Line Associated Bloodstream Infection (CLABSI) Prevention Team.   

The hospital has a multidisciplinary CLABSI team comprised of key stakeholders including nursing leaders, anesthesiologists, hospitalists, intensivists, cardiologists, nurses and an infection preventionist. With strong support from hospital leaders, the team meets monthly to review data, update policies and implement central line practice changes.   

Using data, the team implemented five new approaches to improve central line maintenance practices: rounding on patients with a central line on the ICU, medical oncology and telemetry units; creating an all-inclusive central line dressing change kit along with a 21-step dressing change procedure; modifying central line patient education; forming Clinical Action Teams with CLABSI nurse champions; and conducting mandatory central line dressing return demonstrations for all nurses.   

Through the first two quarters of 2018, over 2,200 central lines have been rounded on. CLABSI rates in 2018 have decreased 20 percent compared to 2017. In total, the interventions implemented resulted in a 36 percent reduction in CLABSI at Abbott Northwestern Hospital.  

To learn more about Abbott Northwestern Hospital and the other CHAIN award winners, visit the CHAIN website. return to top   

House approves opioid legislation

On Sept. 28, the U.S. House of Representatives voted 393-8 to approve final opioid legislation. A House-Senate agreement would allow states to receive federal Medicaid matching funds for up to 30 days per year for services provided to adults for substance use disorders in Institutions for Mental Diseases (IMD). An earlier version of the bill would have eliminated the IMD exclusion for only opioid and cocaine abuse.

The final opioid legislation included Senate language providing graduate medical education funding and grants to hospitals to improve access to medication-assisted treatment (MAT). It would expand the type of providers who can prescribe MAT and allow physicians to provide MAT to 275 patients, up from the current 100 patient limit.   

The bill included a demonstration program to promote alternatives to opioids in emergency departments; revisions to the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems questions relating to pain management; care coordination for drug overdose patients; and improvements to coordination of prescription drug monitoring programs.   

The final bill did not include language to align 42 CFR Part 2 with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) for substance abuse.   

The Senate is expected to vote on the agreement before the midterm election. President Trump has signaled he will sign the opioid legislative package.   

With questions, contact Briana Nord Parish, policy analyst, MHA, 651-603-3498. return to top   

Annual community benefit survey due Oct. 12

MHA has initiated community benefit data collection for fiscal year 2017. The regional and statewide data is presented in MHA’s Community Benefit Report.   

Participation by all member hospitals is requested. This data helps hospitals demonstrate the activities provided to improve access to care and the health of their communities. For systems with multiple facilities in different geographic regions of the state, MHA asks for site-specific details so data can be reported at the regional level.   

Finance contacts at hospitals and health systems were emailed instructions and a link to the survey system used to collect the data. The deadline for submitting data is Oct. 12   

If your hospital did not receive emails regarding the survey, please contact Bonnie Terveer, data operations assistant, MHA, 651-603-3520. return to top   

Register for Nov. 2 CMS CAH Conditions of Participation program

Speaker Sue Dill Calloway will present a program on Nov. 2 on the entire the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ (CMS’) Conditions of Participation (CoPs) for Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) manual.   

Approximately one-third of the CoPs for CAHs have been rewritten over the past three years. At this session, attendees will learn details about the CoPs and what to do when a surveyor arrives at your facility. Both the new and proposed changes will be covered.   

This seminar will help CAHs comply with specific CoP problem areas, including nursing care plans, legibility requirements, necessary policies and procedures, nursing medication carts, drug storage, informed consent, history and physicals, verbal orders, medication administration, security of medications, protocols, standing orders and emergency preparedness. Many pharmacy standards and medication-related sections will be covered in detail.   

The program will be held at the Crowne Plaza Minneapolis West in Plymouth.   

For more information or to register, view the brochure or visit MHA’s website. return to top   

Register for Nov. 15 340B Drug Pricing Program workshop

MHA on Nov. 15 will offer a workshop on the 340B Drug Pricing Program. Subject matter experts will present insights for safety net hospitals to tap into benefits of the 340B program, including increasing financial support that enables hospitals to provide better care, improve patient outcomes and help the vulnerable and uninsured gain access to the discounted medications they need.   

The program will be held at the Crowne Plaza Minneapolis West in Plymouth.   

An early-bird rate of $159 is available to members whose registration is received in our office by Oct. 12. Regular pricing is $199 for members and $299 for nonmembers.   

For more information or to register, view the brochure or visit MHA’s website. return to top   

MHA comments on CMS’ hospital OPPS proposed rule

MHA on Sept. 24 submitted comments to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on the hospital outpatient prospective payment system (OPPS) proposed rule for calendar year (CY) 2019.   

In its comments, MHA opposed site-neutral payment proposals, which would reduce Medicare payments to excepted off-campus provider-based departments (PBDs), which are PBDs billing under the OPPS before Nov. 2, 2015, or those that met the “mid-build” exception. CMS proposed reducing Medicare payments to 40 percent of the OPPS rate for clinic visit services furnished in excepted off-campus PBDs. The agency also proposed paying for services from expanded clinical families furnished in excepted off-campus PBDs after the baseline year at 40 percent of the OPPS rate.  

MHA urged CMS to withdraw its proposals from consideration, saying CMS lacks the statutory authority to reduce payments to excepted PBDs to the level of nonexcepted PBDs, particularly in a nonbudget-neutral manner. MHA believes the site-neutral payment proposals are unlawful, arbitrary and capricious.   MHA is working with members of the Minnesota congressional delegation to secure their signatures on letters to CMS Administrator Seema Verma to oppose the finalization of the site-neutral payment policies.  

MHA’s comments also addressed proposed payment increases for rural sole community hospitals and essential access community hospitals, payment for drugs purchased under the 340B drug discount program, collection of data on services furnished in off-campus provider-based emergency departments and price transparency proposals.  

The final OPPS rule will be released about Nov. 1 and effective Jan. 1, 2019.   

With questions, contact Joe Schindler, vice president of finance, MHA, 651-659-1415. return to top    

North Carolina Hospital Foundation creates fund for health care workforce affected by Hurricane Florence

The North Carolina Hospital Foundation has established a disaster relief fund to support North Carolina’s health care workers and their communities as they begin the process of rebuilding after Hurricane Florence. Throughout the storm and its aftermath, North Carolina’s dedicated health care workers continued to care for their neighbors, despite the uncertainties awaiting them at home.   

To learn more about this effort and provide a donation, visit the disaster relief fund website. return to top