The News
Daily coverage of the developments shaping health and human services. From policy shifts to program innovations, reports on trends-shaping mental health, addiction treatment, child and family services, autism and I/DD, disability support and long-term care, social services, corrections, juvenile justice, chronic disease management, health care systems, and more-helping leaders make timely, informed decisions.
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Patient Rights Advocate Sues AMA To Make CPT Billing Codes Freely Available
September 17, 2026PatientRightsAdvocate.org (PRA), a non-profit health care transparency organization, filed a lawsuit against the American Medical Association (AMA) on August 12, 2026, seeking permission to publish the AMA’s Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) billing codes online for free. CPT is a coding… -
Optum Health Home Care Pilots Improve Timely Care Delivery By More Than 20%, Reduce Readmissions
September 17, 2026Optum Health reported that pilot home health initiatives supporting patients returning home after hospitalization improved timely care delivery by more than 20% and reduced readmissions. The pilots also resulted in lower acute care utilization and shorter skilled nursing facility stays,… -
Kentucky Clarifies County Jail & State Payment Responsibilities For Prisoner Medical Care
September 17, 2026The Kentucky Justice and Public Safety Cabinet issued an emergency regulation clarifying which medical services county jails must pay for when housing state prisoners and which services are the state’s financial responsibility. Effective August 17, 2026, the regulation establishes definitions… -
Sword Health To Acquire Headspace
September 17, 2026Sword Health announced an agreement to acquire digital mental health company Headspace in an all-cash transaction that would combine Sword Health’s artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled care platform with Headspace’s digital mental health, employer, health plan, and consumer services. The companies did… -
New Jersey Restores $16.45 Million In Funding For Five Crisis Receiving & Stabilization Centers
September 17, 2026The New Jersey Department of Human Services (DHS) announced $16.45 million in funding to support the development and operations of five regional Crisis Receiving and Stabilization Centers (CRSCs) in Bergen, Camden, Essex, Monmouth, and Morris counties. The funding was restored… -
Los Angeles County Approves $3 Million For 12-Home Foster Care Village Designed To Keep Siblings Together
September 17, 2026The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors approved a $3 million loan to support the development of a $22 million foster care village in Palmdale designed to keep siblings together while they are in foster care. The 4.7-acre development, led… -
U.S. Population Age 65 & Older Projected To Grow From 18.9% To 23.4% By 2060
September 17, 2026Adults age 65 and older are projected to make up 23.4% of the U.S. population by 2060, up from 18.9% in 2025, according to a U.S. Census Bureau report. The projected increase of 4.5 percentage points comes as the older-adult… -
Health Net To End Two Optional California Medicaid Community Supports Services By January 2027
September 17, 2026California Medicaid managed care organization (MCO) Health Net plans to discontinue two optional Medi-Cal Community Supports services effective January 1, 2027: Assisted Living Facility Transitions (ALFT) and Personal Care and Homemaker Services (PCHS). Short-Term Post-Hospitalization Housing (STPHH) is also scheduled… -
Houston Opens 222-Bed Homeless Resource Center Operated By The Harris Center Under $39 Million Contract
September 17, 2026Houston, Texas opened 419 Emancipation, a city-owned 222-bed homeless resource and stabilization center in the East Downtown area operated by The Harris Center for Mental Health and Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities under a contract worth up to $39 million through… -
Minnesota Medicaid Autism Treatment Authorization Backlog Delays Care & Provider Billing
September 17, 2026The Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) is working with its fee-for-service prior authorization review contractor, Acentra Health, to clear a backlog of autism treatment plans awaiting approval. The backlog included approximately 1,000 plans as of mid-August 2026, according to…