Month: October 2019

A recent article from Skilled Nursing News covered TRP’s Senior Vice President Andrea Maresca’s presentation on Medicaid issues at the American Health Care Association convention earlier this month. During the presentation, Maresca pointed out that the federal government is starting to take a closer look at supplemental programs that offset low reimbursement from Medicaid in skilled nursing facilities (SNF) – a concern that has come from the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and several other governmental agencies. She astutely noted that these concerns are pushing the agency to develop regulations that boost transparency and provide clear rules of the road for the functionality of supplemental payment programs, saying that the agency can’t effectively evaluate SNFs under the current statutes. “All of this is driving work in the agency to come up with a regulation that will put more parameters about how supplemental payment programs would work in the future,” said Maresca. “The agency is also concerned about the lack of a clear link between how payments are made to providers, and whether these are made based on services delivered or somehow tied to quality and outcomes.”

Continue reading “Skilled Nursing News Highlights Medicaid Presentation by TRP Senior Vice President Andrea Maresca”

In a recent article for Inside Health Policy, TRP’s Senior Vice President Shea McCarthy was quoted discussing the ideological split between lawmakers on fixes to the Affordable Care Act (ACA). As the article highlights the tensions over state reinsurance waivers, McCarthy noted that these these statewide debates are reflective of the “philosophical dissonance” between the Trump administration and Congressional Democrats on health care policy. “While Democrats have spent their energy talking about increasing coverage and consumer protections, CMS is hammering home a message about cost,” said McCarthy. “The debate over 1332 waivers may be reflective of this tension, but it’s also indicative of where they stand in the broader health policy discussion on everything from Medicare for All to reforming the Medicaid program.”

Continue reading “In Inside Health Policy, TRP’s McCarthy Weighs In on Current State of ACA Debate”

Thorn Run Partners’ Senior Vice President Shea McCarthy provided an overview of the Congress’s work to balance competing drug pricing priorities in a recent article for Inside Drug Pricing. As Congressional lawmakers walk this policy tightrope, McCarthy acutely pointed out that there’s an overarching desire among stakeholders to help consumers at the pharmacy counter while mitigating potential disruptions to research and development. “It makes sense that there appears to be growing interest in reforms that would remove some burden from patients without posing a threat to innovation,” McCarthy stated.   

Continue reading “TRP’s McCarthy Offers Insight on Congressional Drug Pricing Debate For IHP Article”

In today’s Politico Morning Money newsletter — the leading Financial Services beat in Washington, D.C. — TRP’s Jason Rosenstock was mentioned discussing Senator Elizabeth Warren’s (D-MA) rise in the race for the 2020 Democratic Presidential nomination. First published in TRP’s weekly Financial Services Report, Rosenstock’s quote astutely compares the anti-Wall Street sentiments that form the backbone of Sen. Warren’s campaign to the populist wave that elected President Donald Trump in 2016. “The rise of Warren shouldn’t surprise people as she is simply feeding on the same emotions that Trump tapped into to win four years ago,” said Rosenstock. “Whereas he used fear of immigrants and global supply chains, Warren focuses on corporate executives and lobbyists, who she claims have rigged the system in their favor."

Continue reading “In Politico’s ‘Morning Money Newsletter,’ TRP’s Rosenstock Discusses The Trump/Warren Crossover”