HHS recommended against using several platforms for telehealth services and five other federal government and policy updates for dentists to know:
1. A $10 billion COVID-19 relief package has been further stalled after a tense Senate health committee hearing June 16. During the meeting, Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, accused the Biden administration of giving him "patently false" information when it said it was out of money to buy more coronavirus vaccines and treatments before announcing last week it would repurpose $10 billion in federal funds meant for COVID-19 relief on vaccines and treatments.
2. The Biden administration intends to unveil a plan for the next pandemic as soon as this month. The plan, which will apply lessons learned from COVID-19, will prepare the U.S. to defend against pandemics and other biological threats. President Joe Biden is seeking $88.2 billion in funding for the plan, which builds on his previously released American Preparedness Plan.
3. HHS recommended against using public-facing video services such as TikTok, Facebook Live and Twitch for telehealth services because they are not compliant with federal privacy regulations. The agency said healthcare providers can instead use apps such as Apple's FaceTime, Facebook Messenger video chat, Google Hangouts video, Zoom and Skype without risking HIPAA violations.
4. The HHS Cybersecurity Program issued a warning June 2 about dangerous malware Emotet, which is responsible for a majority of malware infections at healthcare organizations.
5. U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., introduced legislation in May requiring healthcare and social service employers to implement a workplace violence prevention plan to reduce workplace violence against employees.
6. The Justice Department on May 31 asked a federal appeals court to reverse a ruling from a federal judge that voided the nation's mask mandate on public transportation.