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All 50 states have submitted applications for their share of a $50 billion pot of money to transform rural health, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Mehmet Oz said Thursday. Wednesday was the deadline for states to submit a detailed application for the first tranche of the five-year fund created to help rural providers offset the cuts to Medicaid and other health programs contained in the tax cut law. (Weixel, 11/6)

�鶹Ů�� Health News: Concerns Over Fairness, Access Rise As States Compete For Slice Of $50B Rural Health Fund
Echo Kopplin wants South Dakota’s leaders to know that money from a new $50 billion federal rural health fund should help residents with limited transportation options. Kopplin, a physician assistant who works with seniors, low-income people, and mental health patients in the rural Black Hills, shared her thoughts at a meeting hosted by state officials. (Tribble and Zionts, 11/7)

On AI and prior authorization —

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has selected the six technology companies that will administer artificial intelligence-powered prior authorization programs for Medicare, STAT has learned. The pilot, called the Wasteful and Inappropriate Services Reduction (WISeR) model, is a CMS effort to reduce waste and abuse within the taxpayer funded health insurance program that spent more than a trillion dollars in 2024. (Trang, 11/6)

On visa fees —

A staffing agency that works with international specialty nurses is suing President Trump and his administration over an executive order that slaps a $100,000 price tag on H-1B visa applications. Attorneys for Global Nurse Force argued in an Oct. 3 complaint that if the fee requirement remains in place the company would be forced to close its U.S. operations, costing it millions of dollars in revenue. Patients would also be hurt by the fees, the lawsuit argued. (Firth, 11/6)

�鶹Ů�� Health News: Immigrants With Health Conditions May Be Denied Visas Under New Trump Administration Guidance
Foreigners seeking visas to live in the U.S. might be rejected if they have certain medical conditions, including diabetes or obesity, under a Thursday directive from the Trump administration. The guidance, issued in a cable the State Department sent to embassy and consular officials and examined by �鶹Ů�� Health News, directs visa officers to deem applicants ineligible to enter the U.S. for several new reasons, including age or the likelihood they might rely on public benefits. The guidance says that such people could become a “public charge” — a potential drain on U.S. resources — because of their health issues or age. (Seitz, 11/6)

In other health industry news —

In what could become one of the largest labor actions in the University of California’s history, more than 86,000 nurses, health care professionals and campus workers — including those at UC San Francisco and UC Berkeley — plan to walk off the job this month, accusing the university of neglecting its lowest-paid employees while rewarding those at the top. UC officials have sharply disputed those claims, arguing that the unions’ wage and benefit demands go beyond what the university can responsibly afford. (Vaziri, 11/6)

Allina Health is closing its Faribault birth center and putting its resources into building up the birth center 15 miles away at its hospital in Owatonna, following Mayo Clinic Health System’s decision to discontinue its labor and delivery services there. (Work, 11/6)

Patients at Whiting Forensic Hospital in Middletown have a long list of complaints about their living quarters: unhygienic conditions and mice, the closure of the woodworking shop and vegetable garden, frustrations about staff behavior and a lack of privacy. State leaders are working to address some of those shortcomings. But it’s been a deliberate process. (Otte and Tillman, 11/6)

Cambia Health Solutions plans to bring another Blue Cross Blue Shield insurer under its umbrella as it seeks to scale its technology and care management services. The nonprofit, which operates Regence Blue Cross plans in Idaho, Oregon, Utah and Washington, announced Thursday that it plans to join forces with Arkansas Blue Cross and Blue Shield. The proposed strategic affiliation is Cambia’s second this year; in August, the company proposed a similar partnership with Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Dakota. (Tepper, 11/6)

Cigna is joining forces with basketball legend Earvin "Magic" Johnson to support mental health using the power of music. The insurer and Johnson will release a collaborative album later this month titled "Magic Sounds," which includes multiple tracks that lean on techniques like binaural beats and autonomous sensory meridian response to support relaxation, focus and stress management. (Minemyer, 11/7)