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I wanted to bring to your attention a significant regulatory change at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) that may impact your work and the broader healthcare community.

On February 28, HHS rescinded the Richardson Waiver, a longstanding policy that allowed public input on rules related to public property, loans, grants, benefits, and contracts. This waiver, in place since the Nixon era, ensured transparency and stakeholder engagement in federal decision-making.

Moving forward, HHS will only seek public comment when legally required under the Administrative Procedure Act, which does not mandate input on these specific types of rules. The agency argues that the previous process slowed operations, increased costs, and limited its ability to respond quickly to policy needs.

However, this decision has sparked strong opposition from several organizations:

• The Council on Government Relations, representing more than 220 research universities, stated the rollback undermines transparency and called on HHS to reverse course.

• The Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology called the move “an unprecedented and alarming attack on transparency, accountability, and public health.”

Given the potential implications for healthcare funding, regulation, and public engagement, ASAE is closely monitoring this issue and will keep the association community informed on any further developments.

If this change affects your association’s work, or if you’d like to discuss its potential impact further, please don’t hesitate to reach out.

Lastly, ASAE will hold a webinar for healthcare associations navigating significant funding and policy shifts initiated by the Trump administration. The webinar, titled “Medical Associations: Navigating Shifts in Federal Funding and Engagement,” will take place March 20 from 3:00–4:00 p.m. ET. The ASAE webinar will be moderated by Vicki Deal-Wiliams, MA, CCC-SLP, CAE, CEO of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, and include panelist Devin Jopp, EdD, CEO of APIC – Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology. We hope you are able to join us for this important discussion.

Warm regards,
 

Michelle Mason, FASAE, CAE
President and CEO