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Leaders of the Black Maternal Health Caucus virtually convened the second annual Stakeholder Summit, where members of Congress and supporting organizations urged passage of the Black Maternal Health Momnibus Act (H.R. 6142/S. 3424) to end preventable maternal mortality and severe maternal morbidity, and eliminate disparities in maternal health outcomes.

President Trump signed three executive orders aimed at lowering the price of prescription drugs, with actions targeting federally qualified health center insulin and EpiPen discounts; the importation and re-importation of prescription drugs from foreign countries; and drug manufacturer rebates and discounts traditionally negotiated by and given to pharmacy benefit managers.

Saint Anthony Hospital, a safety-net hospital in Chicago, through its Community Wellness Programs has continued to provide free mental health services targeting minority and immigrant populations despite challenges due to COVID-19.

Atrium Health President and CEO Eugene Woods spoke on CBS’s Face the Nation about the lack of reagents for COVID-19 testing, racial disparities during the pandemic and treating thousands of COVID-19 patients in their homes.

Hologic Inc. received $7.6 million from the Department of Health and Human Services and Department of Defense to increase production of supplies needed for COVID-19 testing, including custom sample collection and processing consumables.

The National Institutes of Health announced that a COVID-19 vaccine candidate co-developed by Moderna, Inc. and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases has begun a phase 3 clinical trial.

The Food and Drug Administration reissued its emergency use authorization for the LabCorp COVID-19 RT-PCR Test to include authorized use for asymptomatic individuals and for pooled sample testing with up to five individual specimens.

COVID-19 has disproportionately affected communities of color throughout the nation, with minorities more likely to be infected and severely impacted by the virus. But its effect is more than physical.

The Food and Drug Administration updated its resource for labs performing authorized COVID-19 tests.

The Food and Drug Administration required updated labeling for opioid pain medicine and medicine to treat opioid use disorder to recommend that prescribers discuss naloxone with patients and caregivers.

Thirteen organizations representing health care providers, including the AHA, voiced support for the Value in Health Care Act, legislation to strengthen Medicare’s value-based payment models and accountable care organizations.

Almost 10.7 million people had health coverage through the federally facilitated or state-based exchanges in February, according to a report released by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

The AHA and the Association of American Medical Colleges announced they will seek a rehearing in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in their lawsuit against the Department of Health and Human Services challenging the department’s authority to reduce payments for hospital outpatient services furnished in off-campus provider-based departments grandfathered under the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015.

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The Department of Veterans Affairs announced a series of free COVID-19 training sessions for both VA and non-VA clinicians.

The Department of Health and Human Services July 27 at 3 p.m. ET will host a webinar on the Provider Relief Fund application process for eligible Medicaid, Children’s Health Insurance Program and dental providers.

Even though Congress has passed several bills that provide some relief for hospitals during the COVID-19 health emergency, more must be done, said AHA President and CEO Rick Pollack in an interview with Washington, D.C.-based WONK-FM.

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s Societal Experts Action Network, which responds to policy questions arising from the COVID-19 pandemic, released guidance on strategies to encourage protective behaviors such as wearing a mask, social distancing and hand washing.

The Department of Health and Human Services formally renewed the COVID-19 public health emergency declaration.

With COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths on the rise in much of the country, negotiations on the next COVID-19 relief package are picking up in the Senate.