What We’re Reading: June 29, 2015

We’re taking stock of last week’s SCOTUS news and all of the headlines since, including: new CMS sub-regulatory guidance on housing supports and home and community-based settings; telehealth adoption by Medicare; state laws supporting family caregivers; gaps for students with invisible disabilities; and, transportation needs among older adults.

• We were right to be on SCOTUS watch last week. The Supreme Court handed down several landmark decisions last week, including fair housing and same-sex marriage. But for most health care wonks, Thursday’s decision in King v. Burwell caught the headlines. The Hill has more. Plus, now that the Supreme Court has affirmed subsidies are available in all states no matter what Marketplace (or “exchange”) used, Forbes says the focus increasingly will return to Medicaid expansion.

• The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services released two pieces of sub-regulatory guidance Friday: FAQs on the Home and Community-based Setting Requirements, and an Informational Bulletin on Medicaid coverage of housing-related services for individuals with disabilities. The former details (across nine pages) the expected process for conducting heightened scrutiny of a setting, while the latter describes housing-related activities and services eligible for Medicaid federal financial participation and emerging state models to promote community integration.

• Governing magazine is reporting on California’s plan to curb overmedication of children, youth and young adults in child welfare programs. More: Governing’s March 2015 article detailing the problem.

• Joining the dialogue on the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s recent proposed rule, Kaiser Health News is asking “when does workplace wellness become coercive?”

• Kaiser Health News also is reporting on slow telehealth adoption within Medicare. The option’s popularity outside of Medicare might be changing this dynamic.

• The Pew Charitable Trusts’ Stateline blog is sharing an emerging body of state law requiring hospitals to training designated family caregivers. To date, 13 states have such laws on the books, with legislation in Illinois and New York awaiting signature.

• Schools treat students with psychiatric (or invisible) disabilities differently than those with physical (or visible) disabilities, creating a significant gap in outcomes for these young persons, writes Michigan Public Radio’s “State of Opportunity” program (audio included in link).

• The National Association of Area Agencies on Aging released a first-time report on the national Eldercare Locator program, showing that 19 percent of all calls were about transportation issues and the majority of callers were women. USA Today has more.