The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), this week encouraged hospitals to implement evidence-based patient safety practices for managing obstetric emergencies along with interventions to address other key contributors to maternal health disparities. The announcement by CMS follows last week’s first White House Maternal…
Read More »This week, the Biden-Harris Administration released its Lead Pipe and Paint Action Plan, representing a historic effort to deploy resources from the recently enacted Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to deliver clean drinking water, replace lead pipes, and remediate lead paint. The plan includes over 15 new actions from more than 10 federal agencies with the goal…
Read More »On Wednesday, the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) approved State Plan Amendment 21-0019 for dental components as part of the sweeping California Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal (CalAIM) initiative. The amendment, effective January 1, 2022, authorizes supplemental payments for select preventive dental services and dental examination services for continuity of care. The amendment…
Read More »This week, Governor Gavin Newsom released the 2021 second annual Social Innovation Impact Report, detailing California’s multisector approaches to addressing the state’s most persistent challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the Newsom Administration, California has led 44 public-private partnerships totaling more than $4 billion in corporate and philanthropic contributions and engaging more than 1,600…
Read More »The California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) recently released a new grant opportunity to prevent sexual and domestic violence. The purpose of the grant program is to prevent sexual and domestic violence through primary and secondary prevention efforts, prioritize marginalized and underserved populations within communities, and build the capacity of local organizations. The…
Read More »This week, leaders of the California State Senate and Assembly outlined key priorities for investments in the 2022-23 State Budget. Both houses’ priority documents come ahead of the Governor’s January Budget, which is expected to be released by January 10, 2022. Below, we provide an overview of both the Senate and Assembly budget priorities. Of…
Read More »Amid redistricting activities and numerous announcements from lawmakers seeking other political offices, Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon recently announced a series of changes to committee chairpersons. Last month, Speaker Rendon removed Assembly Member Evan Low as the chair and member of the Committee on Business and Professions. Low, who has served as chair for the past…
Read More »The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) continues to urge Californians to receive the influenza (flu) vaccine to protect your health and the health of others, particularly with the holiday season underway and people visiting family and friends. For Californians who still have not received the COVID-19 vaccine or are due for their booster, the…
Read More »Following a formal request from Pfizer-BioNTech last week, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Thursday amended the emergency use authorization (EUA) for the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine to authorize the use of a single booster dose for administration to individuals 16 and 17 years of age at least six months after completion of primary…
Read More »This week, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued an emergency use authorization (EUA) for AstraZeneca’s Evusheld for the pre-exposure prophylaxis of COVID-19 in certain adults and pediatric individuals ages 12 and older. The monoclonal antibody (MAB) product is authorized for those individuals who are not currently infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus and who…
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