ASHI News Archive

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• Washington Update - October 2002 (MS Word, 109KB)

• Washington Update - August 2002 (MS Word, 168.5KB)

• Washington Update - July 2002 (MS Word, 170KB)

• Washington Update - June 2002 (MS Word, 152KB)

• Washington Update - May 2002 (MS Word, 110KB)

• Washington Update - April 2002 (MS Word, 117KB)

• Washington Update - March 2002 (MS Word, 86.5KB)

• Washington Update - February 2002 (MS Word, 78.5KB)

• Washington Update - December 2001 (MS Word, 122KB)

• Public Policy Newsletter - March 9, 2001

• Public Policy Newsletter - February 16, 2001
  

• Notice of Procedure to Request Delay of HIPAA Requirements Published - In the April 15, 2002 issue of the Federal Register, The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) published the details about how entities may request a delay in being required to comply with the administrative simplification provisions of HIPAA. These provisions established requirements for the electronic exchange of patient-identifiable, health related information.  This would include the required use of certain national code sets (CPT, ICD-9) in the formatting of claims submitted to health insurance companies, remittance advice received from health plans, and referral information such as obtaining authorization for services. These requirements also known as transaction standards will affect the administrative activities of the laboratory.  This notice was published to implement a law passed late last year allowing up to a one-year delay of these HIPAA requirements. Application for a delay may be made on-line or via the mail. Details about the forms that must be completed and the application process are available at www.cms.hhs.gov/hipaa. Applications must be submitted to CMS by October 15, 2002 .
  

• By unanimous consent, the Senate and House agreed to delay the HIPAA transactions and code sets (HR 3323) on December 12, 2001. The law sets the extended compliance date for the HIPAA transaction standard to Oct. 16, 2003.

• OPTN/UNOS Policy Proposals for Public Comment Due by 10/7/2002
  
  Nine policy proposals are being issued for public comment. These proposals address issues considered during recent meetings of the Patient Affairs Committee, Kidney and Pancreas Transplantation Committee, Liver and Intestinal Organ Transplantation Committee, Thoracic Organ Transplantation Committee, and the Histocompatibility Committee.
  
  Following public comment and reconsideration by the appropriate committee(s), all proposals in this document may be offered for consideration by the OPTN/UNOS Board of Directors at its November 14-15, 2002 meeting in Alexandria, Virginia.
  
  These policy proposals are available for review on the OPTN and UNOS Internet web sites at:
  http://www.optn.org/policy/comment.asp?tabid=1&menuid=2
  http://www.unos.org/frame_Default.asp?Category=About.
  
  Comments on these proposals may be submitted electronically at these sites.  Please submit your comments on these proposals to UNOS by October 7, 2002. UNOS appreciates receiving your response to these important issues.

• NIH establishes a new policy related to the level of compensation for graduate students supported by funds from National Institutes of Health (NIH) research grants and cooperative agreements.  (http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-02-017.html)

• The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) Small Grant (R03) mechanism is redefined and extends its use to unsolicited applications in addition to its use in individual Requests for Applications (RFA) and Program Announcements (PA). The R03 award supports small research projects that can be carried out in a short period of time, with limited resources.  (http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-02-038.html)

• National Cancer Institute puts CME course on human subjects protection online. The National Cancer Institute has developed for NIH a new Web-based course on the protection of human participants in research. Titled "Human Participant Protections Education for Research Teams," the course incorporates interactive modules, case studies, and exercises. The course can be accessed at http://cme.nci.nih.gov.

• FDA publishes final rule on registration and listing for establishments providing human cellular products for transplantation.  The rule, published in the January 19, 2001 edition of the Federal Register, can be accessed at http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/fedreg/a010119c.html.
  

• the Advisory Committee on Human Research Protections has been named and its first meeting will be on Dec 20, 2000.  Click here for the full press release.
  

• CLIA-related information published in the Federal Register (compiled by Andrea Zachary, Ph.D.):

• 65(48):13082-13166, 3/10/00 deals with coverage and administrative  policies for clinical diagnostic laboratory services - mainly testing indications and reimbursement issues.

• 65(85):25492-25493, 5/2/00 removes Oregon's exemption from CLIA.

• 65(87):25928-25943, 5/4/00 is the notice of intent for proposed rule making for genetic testing.

• 65(250):82462-82500, 12/28/00 is the set of standards for individually identifiable health information - final rule.

• 65(251):82941-82944, 12/29/00 deals with extensions of deadlines for implementation of federal regulations 493.1202 and 493.1203, which are QC requirements involving commercial kits and for requiring that lab directors be certified by a HCFA-approved organization.

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Email your questions or comments to Public_Policy@ashi-hla.org