IHA Daily Briefing: Jan. 25

In Today’s Issue
Medicaid Billing to Dispense Opioid Antagonist Medication
HHS Releases Voluntary Healthcare Cybersecurity Goals
IDPH Offering $2 Million in Grants to Improve Reproductive Health
Robitussin Products Recalled Citing Microbial Contamination
COVID-19 Information
Briefly Noted

Medicaid Billing to Dispense Opioid Antagonist Medication
On Jan. 19, the Illinois Dept. of Healthcare and Family Services released a Provider Notice informing hospitals of the process to submit a claim when dispensing the opioid antagonist medication naloxone hydrochloride, or any other similarly acting drug approved by the Food and Drug Administration, in the hospital emergency department (ED). IHA favorably amended PA 102-598 to mandate Medicaid payment for the dispensing fee ($8.85 per medication dispensed), separate from the bill for the ED visit or the medication itself, and require the Illinois Dept. of Human Services’ Drug Overdose Prevention Program to streamline enrollment for hospitals seeking to acquire free naloxone.

See the previously mentioned Provider Notice for more information on the new Medicaid payment. For more information on related Medicaid hospital billing for patient Screening, Brief intervention and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) in a hospital ED for patients with opioid use disorder, also required by Public Act 102-598, see the Provider Notice from May 13, 2022. IHA is currently working with the Department to streamline hospital requirements for SBIRT payment, although the service as described in the notice may currently be billed.

Contact us with questions.

HHS Releases Voluntary Healthcare Cybersecurity Goals
The U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services yesterday released voluntary Cybersecurity Performance Goals for the Healthcare and Public Health sector, which are intended to assist the critical infrastructure sector prepare for and respond to cyber threats, adapt to the evolving threat landscape, and build resilience. The Cybersecurity Performance Goals include 10 “essential” and 10 “enhanced” goals, which are based on multiple cybersecurity frameworks and directly address common attack vectors against U.S. domestic hospitals as identified in the 2023 Hospital Cyber Resiliency Landscape Analysis.

IDPH Offering $2 Million in Grants to Improve Reproductive Health
Yesterday, the Illinois Dept. of Public Health (IDPH) announced it is accepting applications until Feb. 9 for $2 million in grants from qualified Illinois groups to provide training to improve access to safe, high-quality reproductive healthcare, including abortions. The Abortion Provider Capacity Building Grant Program is open to local health departments and non-profit community agencies that have a track record of providing reproductive health training and services.

IDPH said it is also in the process of creating a Reproductive Health Public Navigation Hotline that will aid patients, regardless of complexity, including those traveling from out of state, in finding and navigating care. The Public Navigation Hotline will route medically complex patients into the CARLA (Complex Abortion Regional Line for Access) system and lower-risk patients into the non-hospital network of care. 

Robitussin Products Recalled Citing Microbial Contamination
The manufacturer of Robitussin products has voluntarily recalled eight lots of cough syrup due to microbial contamination, according to a company announcement. The announcement noted that in immunocompromised individuals, use of the affected product could lead to severe or life-threatening adverse events such as fungemia or disseminated fungal infection. While life-threatening infections are not likely to occur in non-immunocompromised consumers, the company said “the occurrence of an infection that may necessitate medical intervention cannot be completely ruled out.”

COVID-19 Information
The Illinois Dept. of Public Health (IDPH) has launched a weekly Infectious Respiratory Disease Surveillance Dashboard that will be updated weekly on Friday. This report provides the public with the latest data on hospital visits, seasonal trends, lab test positivity and demographic data.

Click here to visit the IDPH COVID-19 resources webpage. IDPH will continue to report the weekly number of people with COVID-19 admitted to hospitals from emergency departments, deaths and vaccinations, with COVID-19, influenza and respiratory syncytial virus information also reported through the dashboard of the Illinois Wastewater Surveillance System.

Briefly Noted
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) this week issued a warning to consumers cautioning against use of Neptune’s Fix, or any tianeptine products, after receiving reports that use of the products have led to seizures, loss of consciousness and death. The FDA said the pain supplements, also known as “gas station heroin,” have been demonstrated to interact in life-threatening ways with other medications. Tianeptine is not approved by FDA for any medical use. Despite that, some companies are illegally marketing and selling products containing tianeptine to consumers, often making dangerous and unproven claims that tianeptine can improve brain function and treat anxiety, depression, pain, opioid use disorder and other conditions.