Dave Opp

Refreshing this Essential pod from December, since Congress still hasn’t closed the books on FY2025 appropriations, and extensions for Medicare Telehealth - plus Hospital at Home, Community Health Center funding, Medicare physician rates, Medicaid supplemental hospital (aka DSH) payments, and more.

Also since when did winning an election give you a mandate to ignore the law and defy the Constitution?

(Answer: Never, and it doesn’t)

Last I checked, GOP has unified control of Congress - so shouldn’t they just pass laws to make these changes if they felt they had a popular mandate to do so?

Do the ultra rich not realize that Elon Musk and DOGE are putting their tax cuts at risk??

Thank you all for your kind words these last few days. It is so powerful to see our community come together in defense of our values and the people of Boston.

We're making our city a home for everyone and we will never back down.

DOGE is in the [pick a federal dept/agency]… is such a weird way of talking about what’s happening within the federal government right now. It reminds me of reporting on the LA wildfires. Except DOGE is not a force of nature. So we should probably find a different way to talk about it

Health Policy Essentials - Beyond the Pandemic: The Future of Telehealth at Essential Hospitals | RSS.com In communities that otherwise lack access to care, essential hospitals reach outside their walls to meet patients’ needs. Telehealth services have proved to be an important tool for providers to incre...

Thank you America’s Essential Hospitals for having me on the pod to talk telehealth! Enjoyed the conversation. We packed a lot into 17 mins, including examples of ways BMC providers are using telehealth to enhance access to care. Please give it a listen and let me know what you think. bit.ly/3B44IbN

Federal health agency ARPA-H has brought nearly $300 million to Mass. in its first year - The Boston Globe The awards range from $4 million to develop a “smart” stent that can monitor and transmit data from inside a patient, to $3.5 million to create a disposable “microneedle” drug-delivery device.

The Massachusetts 7th has always been a global hub for cutting edge research & that is playing out daily.

Proud of this investment in our public health & our collective wellness—tackling cancer, supporting pregnant women, & developing life-saving medications.
www.bostonglobe.com/2024/12/03/b...

Johnson’s shrinking majority: Which races are still in play? With the California 13th District race still undecided, Republicans control 220 seats and Democrats have won 214.

H/t @punchbowlnews.bsky.social - In the first few months of the 119th Congress, House Republican’s slim majority will get a temporary haircut and could dip as low as 217-215 due to House GOP members departing for positions in the incoming Trump Admin (and Matt Gaetz). punchbowl.news/article/elec...

Also here for sports chatter, particularly about the defending NBA Champ Boston Celtics ☘️🏀 - shout outs to @noadalzell.bsky.social @celticsclns.bsky.social. Who else is out there on Bluesky? 🦋 (👀 looking for the official Celtics media content 🔥 🔥 )

Here to connect with other advocates working to improve the US healthcare and public health systems - whether on the federal, state, municipal, or community levels.

Particular interests in Medicaid, mental health and SUD treatment/ prevention, and social determinants of health (food, housing, etc)

Was just wondering the same thing! Thanks Max for tracking this down 👍 - helpful to see the policy community building back up on Bluesky 🦋