House AI panel has health care expertise

The ideas and innovators shaping health care

Feb 21, 2024 View in browser   By Daniel Payne, Carmen Paun, Ruth Reader and Erin Schumaker WASHINGTON WATCH Obernolte's leading the new House AI task force. | Francis Chung/E&E News The new bipartisan House AI task force includes members well-positioned to consider artificial intelligence’s impact on health care. Among the 24 representatives on the task force are several with health care policy expertise: — Task force Chair Jay Obernolte (R-Calif.) sits on the Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee, which has wide jurisdiction over health care policy. — Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.) is the top Democrat on the subcommittee. — Neal Dunn (R-Fla.), a cancer surgeon, sits on the subcommittee. — Don Beyer (D-Va.) is a member of the Ways and Means Health Subcommittee, which has jurisdiction over health care finance, and he co-chairs the House AI Caucus. — Michelle Steel (R-Calif.) is on the Ways and Means panel. — Ami Bera (D-Calif.) is an internist, served as Sacramento County’s chief medical officer and was a clinical professor of medicine at the University of California, Davis. — Rich McCormick (R-Ga.) is an emergency medicine doctor. Their mission: Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) announced the new task force Tuesday and asked it to recommend actions Congress could take to set new AI regulatory standards and spur investment in the technology, POLITICO’s Mohar Chatterjee reports. The task force’s mandate addresses national competitiveness and safety. “Congress must continue to encourage innovation and maintain our country’s competitive edge, protect our national security and carefully consider what guardrails may be needed to ensure the development of safe and trustworthy technology,” Johnson said in a release. Why it matters: The task force represents the first significant effort to develop a bipartisan House AI strategy. In an October executive order, President Joe Biden tasked federal agencies to develop AI rules. But, at least in health care, they face significant hurdles because existing regulatory structures aren’t designed to monitor evolving technology.   CONGRESS OVERDRIVE: Since day one, POLITICO has been laser-focused on Capitol Hill, serving up the juiciest Congress coverage. Now, we’re upping our game to ensure you’re up to speed and in the know on every tasty morsel and newsy nugget from inside the Capitol Dome, around the clock. Wake up, read Playbook AM, get up to speed at midday with our Playbook PM halftime report, and fuel your nightly conversations with Inside Congress in the evening. Plus, never miss a beat with buzzy, real-time updates throughout the day via our Inside Congress Live feature. Learn more and subscribe here.     WELCOME TO FUTURE PULSE Woodstock, Vt. | Shawn Zeller/POLITICO This is where we explore the ideas and innovators shaping health care. A National Institutes of Health-funded study that analyzed the genetic code of a quarter of a million U.S. volunteers found more than 275 million entirely new genetic variants, Reuters reports. The project focused on previously under-represented groups, aiming to understand why some are more prone to disease than others. Share any thoughts, news, tips and feedback with Carmen Paun at cpaun@politico.com, Daniel Payne at dpayne@politico.com, Ruth Reader at rreader@politico.com or Erin Schumaker at eschumaker@politico.com. Send tips securely through SecureDrop, Signal, Telegram or WhatsApp.  TECH MAZE Fentanyl addiction has prompted more interest in recovery apps. | U.S. Attorney’s Office for Utah via AP Photo Advocates for people who suffer from substance abuse disorder say addiction recovery apps are leaking sensitive data to third parties including Facebook and Google. A new report from the Opioid Policy Institute, which advocates for better addiction care and is lobbying for a government crackdown, names 21 substance use disorder apps that it says have shared information about the people who use them. “By shining a light on these issues, we aim to urge legislators and other policy makers to take necessary measures to protect individuals who need treatment and recovery support,” institute Co-Director Jonathan Stoltman wrote in the nonprofit’s report. Why it matters: Information about a person’s addiction treatment is protected by federal health privacy law. Stoltman’s call to action comes amid broader efforts by both the Department of Health and Human Services and the Federal Trade Commission to crack down on health data privacy violations. What’s next? HHS is currently reviewing its process for ensuring compliance with HIPAA, the federal health privacy law. The agency last conducted a HIPAA audit in 2017. New audits are on the way.    DON’T MISS POLITICO’S GOVERNORS SUMMIT: Join POLITICO on Feb. 22 to dive into how Governors are wielding immense power. While Washington remains gridlocked, governors are at the center of landmark decisions in AI and tech, economic development, infrastructure, housing, reproductive health and energy. How are they setting the stage for the future of American politics, policies and priorities? How are they confronting major challenges? Explore these questions and more at the 2024 Governors Summit. REGISTER HERE.     FOLLOW THE MONEY Rural America's health care access is under threat, a new report says. | Sergio Flores/AFP via Getty Images Rural hospitals face increased financial peril in no small part because of Medicare Advantage plans’ growing popularity. That’s according to a new report from Chartis, a health care consulting firm. What’s the deal? Traditional Medicare offers payment bonuses and special allowances to aid rural hospitals. But Medicare Advantage plans, which are run by private insurers, don't always offer the same perks. The plans don’t cover some services as predictably as traditional Medicare does, and hospitals have complained about late reimbursements and the need to ask the insurers for approval to offer care that’s covered by traditional Medicare. “Things are tough. They’re getting tougher,” said Michael Topchik, national leader of the Chartis Center for Rural Health. “There’s a lot more pain to come.” Why it matters: Rural hospitals’ financial struggles over the past decade-plus are getting worse. Half of rural hospitals are operating in the red, according to the report. That’s 7 percentage points higher than the share working on negative margins a year ago. The number is even higher (55 percent) for facilities that aren’t part of a larger health system. And a new analysis in the report found more than 400 facilities — nearly 1 in 5 — are vulnerable to closure. Americans living in rural areas have lost access to care in many instances. Even when facilities don’t close, they often cut services to save money. Policy puzzle: Hospital leaders have lobbied Congress for a number of policy changes to slow the stream of facility closures. Hospital groups have focused lobbying efforts on new rules for Medicare Advantage plans. Topchik has suggested making the plans more like traditional Medicare in some ways, including transparency and reimbursement practices. Others have suggested changes in the newest Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services payment designation for rural facilities, Rural Emergency Hospitals, to allow them to offer more services while reaping larger payments. And in states that haven’t expanded Medicaid, some health leaders have made expansion a prime target to improve rural hospitals’ finances.   Follow us on Twitter Carmen Paun @carmenpaun Daniel Payne @_daniel_payne Ruth Reader @RuthReader Erin Schumaker @erinlschumaker   Follow us

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