NIC Leadership Huddles Kick Off 2021 with Timely Policy Outlook

NIC Leadership Huddles are back. The popular live webinar series, which NIC initially launched as part of its response to the COVID-19 pandemic last year, launched anew on January 27, with a very timely focus on policy, just a week after the swearing in of President Biden. The new series, which offers a complimentary new Leadership Huddle twice each month into July, seeks to retain the same level of relevance, and quality of discussion, which drew thousands of industry decision-makers to the Leadership Huddles in 2020.

The new series comes with a few tweaks. Upon registration, attendees can sign up not only for the webinar, held via GoToWebinar, but can opt to attend a facilitated peer-to-peer group discussion within Zoom, immediately afterwards. Attendees are also encouraged to pose a question or two during registration for prospective discussion during the webinar sessions. Access to the peer-to-peer group discussions is offered on a first-come, first-served basis, to ensure an appropriate number of participants for the collective discussions.

While COVID-19 will likely feature prominently in many Leadership Huddle Webinars and associated discussions, the series will cast a broader net, to include all of the major issues impacting the sector today. Titled, “Policy Outlook: A New Administration & A New Congress,” this series-first Leadership Huddle focused, appropriately, on the key policy issues impacting the seniors housing and skilled nursing sectors; what actions the new Administration and new Congress are likely to take; and the funding decisions that are critical for advancing integrated care and services for America's seniors.

The fast-paced webinar covered a great deal of ground concerning policy impacts on the industry, leaving attendees hungry to delve into more detail in the peer-to-peer discussion session, which was moderated by Juniper Communities Founder and CEO, Lynne Katzmann. But first, NIC Co-Founder and Strategic Advisor, and President, Nexus Insights, Bob Kramer, moderated the webinar. He kicked it off by observing that the new administration and new Congress have hit the ground running, saying, “It seems like every few hours there’s a release, a report, an announcement, dealing with the topics we want to talk about today.”

Expert panelists Dan Mendelson, Founder and former CEO of Avalere Health, and Anne Tumlinson, Founder, ATI Advisory, offered insights on a broad range of policy-related topics, many of which can be expected to have a significant impact on the seniors housing and care industry, both in the long- and short-term.

The discussion kicked off with assessments on the vaccination goals of the Biden administration. Mendelson said investors and operators in the space should “should strap on their seatbelts because there’s going to be a lot of activity coming out.” Pressed by Kramer on whether we’ll meet the administration’s 100-day goal on vaccinations, Mendelson said, “I think we’ll exceed it, if the people on this call get into gear and really facilitate the change. This is not something that’s just going to happen because someone else does it.”

Another major policy movement is Biden’s proposed $1.9 Trillion stimulus package, designed to revive the economy, protect businesses, and combat the pandemic. Both panelists agreed that, unlike previous packages, this one is designed to put money directly into the hands of individuals. Nevertheless, the package, which is quickly going through Congress, is likely to flow resources into the sector as a means to combat the pandemic.

Panelists also tackled the expansion of Medicaid and Medicare coverage, minimum wage increases, and a variety of “lightning round” questions on the public health emergency, the three-day hospital stay rule, telehealth, and scrutiny on assisted living. An in-depth recap of the full discussion is available in this month’s NIC Insider.

You can register to attend upcoming NIC Leadership Huddles, including both the live webinars as well as the optional, first come, first served participation in peer-to-peer discussions, within the Events tab on www.nic.org. Registrants are provided with a recording of the event, compliments of NIC, and our generous sponsors and partners.