December 4, 2025

The program, meant to help hospitals struggling with capacity challenges and the spread of COVID-19 during the pandemic, waived various facility and nursing requirements allowing the reimbursement of acute hospital at home care. Hospitals argue that the program saves money, frees up space in facilities, and allows patients to recover at home. Unless the Senate acts, the current waivers will expire on January 30, 2026.

Since the start of the second Trump administration, the FDA has faced a wave of high-profile resignation and mass layoffs. Pazdur’s appointment was widely viewed as a stabilizing factor given his decades of experience at the agency. His planned retirement now adds further uncertainty, and, as RBC’s Abraham notes, raises questions about the future direction of CDER.

In 2023, the Biden administration introduced a rule that would have required nursing homes to increase their staffing, including having a registered nurse present around the clock. The administration cited research that increased staffing in nursing homes could prevent falls, illnesses, and other patient health improvements. HHS just repealed this rule as it was found that it could burden rural and tribal communities. HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. stated that “one-size-fits-all mandates fail patients.”

American Medical Association (AMA) data unveils that rural areas lost 1,303 family physicians in just six years, a pace researchers describe as “astonishing” and deeply concerning for already stretched communities. With each departure potentially affecting tens of thousands of residents and burnout and visa uncertainties driving further attrition, rural regions face mounting barriers to basic healthcare access.

The strong bipartisan support for extending hospital at home care signals growing recognition that shifting appropriate acute services into the home can reduce costs and improve patient experience, though sustained oversight will be crucial as the model scales.