The last few months have seen significant movement across a broad array of issues.
APA-Led Activities
Webinar on Medicare Policy Update for 2025
As part of the policy and practice insight series, APA staff held a 30-minute webinar on updates to Medicare policies on payment and quality including telehealth. APPA staff highlighted key proposals from the 2025 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule and Quality Payment Program relevant to the practice of psychiatry and the extension of key policies related to the teleprescribing of controlled medications prior to an in-person evaluation.
Partnership Activities
Group of 6 Leadership Takes on the Hill
In late October, APA President Ramaswamy Viswanathan, M.D., participated in the 2024 Group of Six Leadership Fly-in. The Group of Six represents the nation’s frontline physicians who provide the overwhelming majority of care to our nation’s children, pregnant women, adults, and elderly for a full-range of physical, mental, and behavioral health conditions. Collectively, the participating organizations (APA, AAFP, AAP, ACOG, ACP & AOA) represent nearly 600,000 member physicians dedicated to the health and wellbeing of American families. During the event, Group of Six leaders met with key House and Senate staff to discuss the importance of legislation to promote uptake of integrated care in the primary care setting, including the Collaborative Care Model. They also emphasized the need to address looming cuts to Medicare reimbursement, reauthorize maternal health programs, and extend current telehealth flexibilities beyond their expiration at the end of the year, among other topics.
Executive Branch Activities
HHS and DEA extend Teleprescribing of Controlled Medications
On Friday November 15 the DEA finalized a 1-year extension of the teleprescribing of controlled substances that have been in place since 2020. This extension continues the flexibilities through December 31st of 2025. APA has been advocating for an extension, meeting with the Biden administration throughout the summer and sending letters, along with a few of the District Branches, to prevent patients from losing access to mental health and substance use disorder treatment.
APA Successfully Advocates for Changes to the Clozapine REMS program
APA sent a letter to the FDA’s Drug Safety and Risk Management Advisory Committee and the Psychopharmacologic Drugs Advisory Committee for consideration of the re-evaluation of the Clozapine Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS). APA advocated to reduce the scope of the current REMS program to focus on education only, removing the barriers to accessing the highly effective medication. The Advisory Committees met on November 19th and voted 14-1 on both (1) the requirements for the prescriber to document ANC monitoring for clozapine through a REMS were not necessary, and (2) that educating providers about neutropenia through the REMS was not necessary. The FDA is not obligated to follow the committee’s recommendations, but historically has aligned with them the majority of the time.
APA Joins Sign On Letter Supporting the Use of Templates for Medicaid Parity Compliance
APA joined 67 organizations in a sign on letter to CMS supporting the use of templates to improve compliance with Medicaid parity and made recommendations for improving access to care in Medicaid and to the templates.
Congressional Activities
APA Joins AMA in Pushing for Physician Payment Update
APA joined the AMA and other medical associations urging Congressional leadership to prevent scheduled cuts to Medicare physician pay and to provide an inflationary update to the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS). The scheduled 2.83% cut would mark the fifth consecutive year of reductions in Medicare physician payments. Without Congressional intervention, the gap between rising practice costs and Medicare reimbursement will deepen, straining the ability of practices to remain viable and serve their Medicare patients. Click here to read the full letter in support of H.R. 10073, the Medicare Patient Access and Practice Stabilization Act of 2024, which would replace the 2.83% cut with a 1.8% payment update.
APA Takes Action on Collaborative Care
To promote uptake of population and evidence-based integrated care models, such as the collaborative care model, APA wrote to Congress urging the inclusion of H.R.5819/S.1378, the COMPLETE Care Act, in any forthcoming year-end package. This bipartisan bill seeks to temporarily increase the Medicare payment for integrated care billing codes for 3 years and provides technical assistance to practices. View the full letter, co-signed by 63 organizations, here. APA members also took action, writing to their legislators to support the bill. Click here for more information and to write to your representatives.
Group of 6 Sends Year-End Priorities to Congressional Leadership
APA joined the American Academy of Pediatrics, American Academy of Family Physicians, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, American College of Physicians, and the American Osteopathic Association in a letter to Congressional leadership urging them to focus on high-priority issues of the organizations through year-end. These included updates to the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule to stop cuts and provide an inflationary update, to extend existing telehealth flexibilities beyond their expiration at the end of the year, and to adopt multi-year reauthorization of the Teaching Health Graduate Medical Education (THCGME) Program. View the full letter to Congressional leadership here.
APA Joins Letter in Support of the STOP Suicide Act
APA joined a Mental Health Liaison Group (MHLG) letter supporting H.R. 9577, the Stabilization to Prevent (STOP) Suicide Act. This legislation would create a grant program to expand the use of evidence-based models for stabilizing individuals with serious thoughts of suicide, allowing more providers to deliver outpatient or virtual stabilization services while relieving pressure on emergency departments and law enforcement. View the full letter here.
APA Supports Keep Kids Covered Act
APA endorsed H.R. 9688, the Keep Kids Covered Act, introduced by Representative Kathy Castor (D-FL-14). Continuous eligibility (CE) requires states to cover children in CHIP and Medicaid for a defined period without interruption, regardless of changes in circumstances. Current protections provide 12 months of CE for Medicaid and CHIP enrollees under the age of 19. H.R. 9688 seeks to expand these important protections for eligible children in Medicaid and CHIP until age 6, with 24-month CE for eligible children until age 19.
APA Pushes for Maternal Mental Health Program in FY 2025 NDAA
APA joined 119 organizations urging Congress to include a pilot program to prevent perinatal mental health conditions in pregnant and postpartum members of the Armed Forces and covered beneficiaries in the FY2025 NDAA. These programs are proven to prevent maternal mental health (MMH) conditions and lessen the severity of symptoms and are essential to improve the health of pregnant members of the Armed Forces who are disproportionately impacted by MMH conditions. View the full letter of support here.
APA Endorses BUPE for Recovery Act
APA endorsed H.R. 9886/S.5271, the Broadening Utilization of Proven and Effective (BUOPE) Treatment for Recovery Act, introduced by Representative Paul Tonko (D-NY-20) and Senator Martin Heinrich (D-NM). The bill would require the DEA to temporarily exempt buprenorphine from the Suspicious Orders Report System (SORS) for the remainder of the opioid public health emergency. This bill is a result of concerns over patients not being able to fill buprenorphine prescriptions for treatment of OUD by pharmacies, in part due to the SORS and related reporting requirements. A temporary exemption would allow the government to collect data and assess whether a permanent exemption should be established.
APA Pushes for Increased Neurology Drug Program Funding
APA joined brain health community leaders in pushing Congress to support increased funding for the FDA’s Neurology Drug Program in FY 2025. The program allows the FDA to create policies and guidance in line with emerging research in brain health and helps develop safe and effective treatments for brain diseases and conditions including neurodevelopmental, neurodegenerative, psychiatric, brain injuries, and more. Click here to view the full letter.