Keynote speakers at the 2025 Arizona Hospital Leadership Conference.
CMS releasing final Medicare payment rates.
HHS announces 340B Rebate Model Pilot Program
On Friday, Aug. 1, 2025, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released a notice announcing a new 340B Rebate Model Pilot Program that will launch on Jan. 1, 2026.
Drug manufacturers must submit an application by Monday, Sept. 15, 2025, to the Health Resources and Services Administration to participate in the pilot program.
The program’s scope is limited to the NDC-11s included on the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Selected Drug List, regardless of payer.
The requirements for rebate models under the pilot program include the following:
All rebates must be paid to the covered entity (or denied, with documentation in support) within 10 calendar days of data submission.
Covered entities must be allowed to submit and report data for up to 45 calendar days from date of dispense, with allowances for extenuating circumstances and other exceptions.
Drug companies may not deny 340B rebates based on compliance concerns with diversion or Medicaid duplicate discounts and should provide a rationale and specific documentation when a claim is denied.
All administrative costs of running the rebate model should be borne by the drug manufacturer and not passed on to the covered entities.
Drug manufacturers should provide 60 calendar days' notice to covered entities and other impacted stakeholders before implementation of a rebate model.
Covered entities should be permitted to order drugs through existing distribution mechanisms.
Drug manufacturers should ensure that data is secure and have mechanisms in place to protect patient identifying information.
What’s next: HHS is also soliciting comments on the structure and application process of the 340B Rebate Model Pilot Program, which are due Sunday, Aug. 31, 2025.
📢Check out our keynote speakers for the 2025 Arizona Hospital Leadership Conference
We have secured our speakers for the 2025 Arizona Hospital Leadership Conference taking place Oct. 29-31, 2025, at the Loews Ventana Canyon Resort in Tucson, Ariz.
Why it matters: This year’s conference theme is centered around advocacy in action as we bring healthcare leaders together to reflect on the current state of the industry and ‘lead forward’ to support Arizona’s healthcare ecosystem. Our keynote speakers are:
Richard Coffey, leadership expert, who will present on “Lead from within: building stronger teams through personal growth.”
Mercedes Ramirez Johnson, speaker and advocate, who will present on “Get it right today, not tomorrow.”
The big picture: View the 2-and-a-half-day conference agenda here, including breakout session tracks with best practices in innovation, leadership, and policy and advocacy.
What’s next:Register now to receive an early bird discount. This discount ends Tuesday, Sept. 9, 2025.
Last week, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released a number of final Medicare payment rules for 2026.
The inpatient prospective payment system (PPS) rates will:
Increase payments by 2.6% for fiscal year 2026 compared to 2025. This includes a market basket increase of 3.3%, offset by a productivity cut of 0.7 percentage points. This is slightly higher than the 2.4% increase proposed in April.
Make minor changes to the Transforming Episode Accountability Model (TEAM) payments, a mandatory bundled payment model in certain areas of the country including Pima County. Changes include expanding certain waivers for skilled nursing facilities and using patient reported outcomes in outpatient settings.
Increase disproportionate share hospital payments by $2 billion above the current year, as opposed to $1.5 billion under the proposed rule.
Discontinue the low-wage index policy while creating a transitional exception policy in 2026 for hospitals significantly impacted by the discontinuation.
The long-term care hospital (LTCH) PPSrates will increase by 3%. This includes:
An annual update of 2.7% to the payment rate, which includes a market basket increase of 3.4% offset by a productivity cut of 0.7 percentage points.
An increase of the outlier threshold from $77,048 to $78,936, resulting in a payment increase of 0.3%.
Four social determinants of health data elements are being removed.
The inpatient psychiatric facility (IPF) PPS rates are expected to increase by 2.4%. This includes:
An annual market basket increase of 3.2% offset by a productivity cut of 0.7 percentage points.
An additional reduction of 0.1% due to a change in the outlier threshold.
Four quality measures are being removed, including two social drivers of health measures.
The inpatient rehabilitation facility (IRF) PPSrates will increase by 2.6%. This includes:
An annual market basket increase of 3.3% offset by a productivity cut of 0.7 percentage points.
A decrease in the outlier threshold from $12,043 to $10,062.
Four social determinants of health data elements are being removed.
⚠️Deadline approaching: Arizona Transition to Practice Program applications for the sixth cohort
Why it matters: With this program, we aspire to create an environment where our nurses can transition seamlessly from academia to practice, gaining the confidence and competence they need to provide the best possible quality care to our communities.
The big picture:
Any Arizona healthcare facility licensed by the Arizona Department of Health Services that hires new graduate registered nurses may apply.
Priority will be given to critical access hospitals or hospitals located in counties with a population of less than 500,000 people.
Hospitals with existing 12-month Transition to Practice programs are not eligible.
Behavioral health facility evacuation during extreme heat webinar
The Western Regional Alliance for Pediatric Emergency Management (WRAP-EM) recently hosted a webinar with Robin Oothoudt, executive director of the Arizona Coalition for Healthcare Emergency Response (AzCHER), and Ben Fagerlie, director of operations for AMR Central Arizona.
The session examined the coordinated response to a catastrophic HVAC failure at a behavioral health hospital in Phoenix during extreme heat in August 2024.
Why it matters: Robin and Ben presented a dual-perspective analysis on planning and executing both emergent and non-emergent healthcare facility evacuations.
The case study emphasized the unique challenges of relocating pediatric and behavioral health patients, coordinating interfacility transfers and establishing communications during multi-day operations.
With nearly four million babies born each year in the U.S., hospitals and healthcare systems play a key role in improving maternal and infant outcomes.
Through the Better Health for Mothers and Babies Initiative, the American Hospital Association (AHA) is working alongside hospitals and healthcare systems to help mothers and their babies thrive. Access the toolkit.
Here are some other learning opportunities in the maternal health space:
Webinar: Join this session on Thursday, Aug. 21, 2025, to learn how hospitals and health systems can use data insights to implement quality improvement initiatives that create safer birthing and postpartum experiences. Register now.
Podcast: Preparing Fathers for Parenthood: A Prenatal Program Supports Dads, Moms and Babies. Listen now.
Additionally, the AHA and Epic recently announced that they are collaborating to improve maternal health outcomes.
The goal of this collaboration is to help more hospitals consider adopting a set of tools to aid in the detection and treatment of postpartum hemorrhage - a serious and potentially life-threatening complication of childbirth.
What’s next: If your hospital system uses Epic, reach out to the AHA or your Epic customer contact for more information.
For those who use a different electronic health record (EHR), the AHA and Epic have released a toolkit that includes EHR considerations. With the proper permissions from applicable content providers, users of any EHR should be able to implement a similar set of tools.
Rare Diseases Advisory Council applications now open
The Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) has been tasked with establishing the Rare Disease Advisory Council (RDAC), as outlined in House Bill 2380, signed into law in May 2025.
To ensure a fair and transparent process, ADHS is inviting individuals from across Arizona to apply for appointment to the Council.
Member spotlight: Sage Memorial Hospital celebrates 95 years of healing
On Friday, Aug. 1, 2025, Sage Memorial Hospital celebrated its 95th anniversary with a community event.
The hospital began as a four-room adobe mud building and has now grown to a $177 million, 140,200 square-foot facility that serves more than 11,000 people.
Dr. Clarence Salsbury (who was also the founder of the AzHHA) was responsible for the design and construction of the Sage Memorial Hospital (now Poncel Hall).
He also founded the first nursing school for Native Americans at the mission in Ganado.
Congratulations on celebrating this tremendous milestone!
UPCOMING EVENTS
Thursday, Aug. 21 - Better Health for Mothers and Babies Webinar Series: Webinar One In collaboration with AzHHA, Regional One Health and Tuba City Regional Health Care Corporation, the American Hospital Association (AHA) is launching the Better Health for Mothers and Babies series. Join us for the first session to learn about strategies to improve maternal health. Register today.
Sept. 7-12 - National Tribal Health Conference This is a week-long event that serves American Indian and Alaska Native Tribes in the space of health - behavioral and public health. The conference will showcase the interconnectedness of policy, advocacy and Indian health best practices. Register now.
Friday, Sept. 26 - Arizona Bioethics Network 13th Annual Conference This hybrid event will bring together scholars from various disciplines to explore the ethical questions that shape health in a global context. This year’s conference theme is “The Interconnected World: The Ethics of Global Health Policy.” Learn more and register.
Wednesday, Oct. 1 - Introduction to POLST Join physician orders for life-sustaining treatment (POLST) paradigm for their one-hour virtual workshops equipping healthcare professionals with knowledge and resources to begin using POLST in Arizona. Register here.
Oct. 29-31 – 2025 Arizona Hospital Leadership Conference The 2025 Arizona Hospital Leadership Conference will be held at the exquisite Loews Ventana Canyon Resort in Tucson on Oct. 29-31. This will be an inspirational gathering of more than 200 hospital and healthcare executives seeking opportunities for continuing education, meaningful discussion and relationship building. Registerby Tuesday, Sept. 9, 2025, to receive an early bird discount.
