Nurses may be interested to know about recent final rules which may directly impact the practice of nursing, patient care and access, and health care policy at the federal level. Executive agencies and departments are required to publish notices of all rules and decisions in the Federal Register, and accept public comments on proposed rules. Final rules are not open for comment, and become part of U.S. law in the Code of Federal Regulations.

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In recent weeks, most of the conversation in and around the nation’s capital has been the debt ceiling and the fiscal year 2012 budget. Will Congress raise the debt ceiling? Will President Obama and the House Republican Speaker John Boehner be able to work out an agreement they can sell to their parties? Will Congress approve a 2012 budget or end up doing continuing resolutions like the 2011 budget? How big will cuts be to Medicare/Medicaid? Will there be tax increases? Even as the different parties involved draw their lines in the sand, these questions need to be answered.

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Here is a wrap-up of recent actions affecting Medicare & Medicaid patients and providers by CMS, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. CMS has many excellent resources – including facts sheets, rules and regulations, and schedules for upcoming calls and public meetings — available on their website, www.cms.gov. CMS is taking a leading role in developing policies to implement the Affordable Care Act, in addition to its continuing responsibilities for administering Medicare programs for seniors and the disabled, as well as the federal portion of state Medicaid programs.

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We recently celebrated the one-year anniversary of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which became law on March 23, 2010. Although the Act is very long and complex, like many federal laws, the details are left up to federal agencies and departments – as well as the States – which must issue rules and other decisions to actually carry out its policies and create its programs. In addition, many ACA provisions build upon, change, or add to federal programs that are already in existence — especially Medicare, Medicaid, and CHIP (the Children’s Health Insurance Program). Here is an update on what has been happening in federal agencies and departments, in recent actions to carry out the goals and provisions of ACA. To view ANA comments on these and other regulatory issues, please visit our website at http://www.nursingworld.org/comments.

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Happy Spring, everyone! March has been a busy month for me at ANA. I had the opportunity to attend many hearings and events. I attended Nancy Pelosi’s press conference to celebrate the Affordable Care Act’s first birthday. The event was supported by nurses and physicians and was an exciting time to review key areas of health care reform that affect the nursing community and our families.

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A new resource is available for Advanced Practice RNs (APRNs) who care for Medicare patients. “Medicare Information for Advanced Practice Nurses and Physician Assistants” is now available as a booklet from the Medicare Learning Network.® It contains information about required qualifications, coverage criteria, billing, and payment for Medicare services furnished by APRNs, as well as physician assistants and anesthesiologist assistants.

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