Fighting Staff Shortages With Scholarships, California Bill Aims To Boost Mental Health Courts

A seemingly innocuous proposal to offer scholarships for mental health workers in California’s new court-ordered treatment program has sparked debate over whether the state should prioritize that program or tackle a wider labor shortage in behavioral health services. Nine counties have begun rolling out the Community Assistance, Recovery, and Empowerment Act, which Gov. Gavin Newsom…

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HHS’ Proposed HIPAA Changes Are a Step in the Right Direction, But Some Providers May Struggle to Comply

HHS is proposing major changes to HIPAA for the first time in more than a decade, aiming to strengthen cybersecurity protocols for electronic health data. Healthcare cybersecurity leaders are mainly in favor of the proposal — though there are some concerns that smaller providers will struggle with the financial and operational burdens of compliance. The…

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Efforts To Curb ACA Enrollment Fraud Face Real-World Test

The current Affordable Care Act open enrollment season is the first big test of new federal guardrails against fraud. The rules aim to head off unauthorized ACA plan enrollments or switches by rogue agents and entities looking to make money via enrollment commissions. Such sign-ups triggered more than 274,000 consumer complaints through August this year….

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