CMS Releases FY 2026 Medicare Payment Proposed Rules
On Friday, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released Medicare payment proposed rules for Fiscal Year (FY) 2026. They include proposed rules for the Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS), Hospice, Inpatient Psychiatric Facility (IPF) PPS, Inpatient Rehabilitation Facility (IRF) PPS and Skilled Nursing Facility PPS. Proposed payment rate updates include: 2.4% for IPPS, 2.4% for Hospice, 2.4% for IPF PPS, 2.6% for IRF PPS, and 2.8% for SNF PPS. Comments on these proposed rules will be due 60 days after the official filing date in the Federal Register.

CMS used the proposed rules to promote a recent Request for Information (RFI) based on Executive Order 14192: Unleashing Prosperity Through Deregulation. The RFI seeks public input on approaches and opportunities to streamline regulation and reduce burdens on Medicare program participants. Responses to the RFI are due June 10.

CMS also proposed removing quality measures across the FY 2026 Medicare payment systems related to health equity, social determinants of health and COVID-19 vaccination rates among healthcare personnel. 

Facility-specific estimated financial impact reports are forthcoming and will be available in the IHA C-Suite. CMS fact sheets highlighting major provisions of these proposed rules are available: IPPS, Hospice, IPF PPS, IRF PPS, and SNF PPS. 

Staff contact: Cassie Yarbrough

State Legislative Update
Last week was a fast-paced week at the Capitol, as lawmakers in both chambers raced to meet the critical “crossover” deadline on Friday, April 11—the point by which House bills had to move to the Senate and Senate bills to the House. Legislators worked long hours to advance their proposals, ensuring there’s still time for the opposite chamber to consider and act on them prior to the May 31 scheduled adjournment. By the deadline date, the House had advanced 379 bills to the Senate, while the Senate sent 205 bills to the House.

Bills that did not pass their chamber of origin by the deadline are generally considered unlikely to advance during the session. However, they can receive an extension or be revived in another form, such as an amendment to a different bill. 

Both chambers have now adjourned to allow lawmakers a brief break before returning to Springfield for the final weeks of session. This legislative “spring break” provides an ideal opportunity to connect with your state legislators. IHA has provided an advocacy toolkit to assist you in conducting meetings with your local officials. 

The House will return to the Statehouse on April 22, and the Senate will reconvene on April 29. When lawmakers return, budget negotiations will begin to take center stage—especially after the April revenue reports offer a clearer picture of the state’s fiscal outlook. While appropriations hearings are already in progress, final budget decisions typically come together in the closing weeks of the session.

IDPH Updates School Vaccination Coverage Dashboard
The Illinois Dept. of Public Health (IDPH) has released its updated Illinois School Vaccination Coverage Dashboard. The updated dashboard includes data from the current 2024-2025 school year. The interactive platform provides valuable insight into statewide, county and school district vaccination trends, using publicly available data collected by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE). Key takeaways from the current data include:

• The overall measles vaccination rate for school children remains above 95% in Illinois in the 2024-2025 school year.
• Over 70% of schools in the state have more than 95% of their students vaccinated for measles, forming a protective threshold for immunity and minimizing the risk of large outbreaks in those schools.
• 10% of Illinois schools still have less than 91% of their students vaccinated for measles, making them extremely vulnerable to larger outbreaks and disruptions from any cases introduced into that school.

FDA Warns Consumers Not to Use Counterfeit Ozempic

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said yesterday it was notified by Novo Nordisk on April 3 that several hundred units of counterfeit Ozempic (semaglutide) injection 1mg were in the U.S. drug supply chain. The counterfeit products were distributed outside the Novo Nordisk authorized supply chain in the United States. The agency is advising patients, wholesalers, retail pharmacies and healthcare professionals to check the Ozempic products they have received and is advising that products labeled with lot number PAR0362 and serial number starting with the first eight digits 51746517 not be used, distributed or sold.

Prenatal Care and Reproductive Health Primer for Primary Care Providers
The Illinois Dept. of Public Health (IDPH) continues to host a series of clinician-directed interactive information sessions, FAST PHACT sessions, in an office hours format targeted towards raising timely awareness of emerging and high-impact public health issues that directly involve clinical care or health system considerations. An upcoming session, “Prenatal Care and Reproductive Health Primer for Primary Care Providers,” will be held April 17 from noon-1 p.m. CT. Session leaders will: 

• Review and discuss preconception recommendations for healthy patients, and primary and prenatal care clinicians.
• Present clinical guidelines for the optimal care of chronic medical conditions in the preconception period and during pregnancy.
• Examine and discuss IDPH resources for optimizing health before and during pregnancy.

Click here to register. Click here to view an informational flyer on the session. All healthcare professionals are invited to participate and Continuing Medical Education credit is available. 

Illinois COVID-19 Data