Online resource packed with regulatory news and expert guidance, tips & tools pertinent to professionals across the post-acute care continuum.
With Election Day just two weeks away, employers need to make sure they’re providing time off to vote, if it is required under state or local laws. Agencies left unprepared Nov. 3 could see staffing levels impacted, along with employee morale. Employers will want to check legal requirements for the number of hours that must […]
A home health care company and its owners must “pay back $3.1 M to resolve allegations that they falsely billed the state’s Medicaid Program (MassHealth),” according to an October 16, 2020, press release from attorney general Maura Healey. Altranais Home Care, LLC (Altranais) of Lowell, Mass. is expected to repay the money to resolve […]
CMS is waiving requirements for large-scale emergency preparedness testing for agencies that have activated their emergency plans during the public health emergency (PHE). But some agencies may still have to complete another important emergency training task before the end of the year. Agencies that were due for an “exercise of choice” (see below) in 2020 […]
CMS released the new home health cost report forms in a transmittal released on October 2. The new cost report forms are effective for cost reporting periods beginning on or after January 1, 2020, and ending on or after December 31, 2020. The federal Medicare agency did make some changes to the forms that will require […]
On September 30, 2020, the U.S. Senate approved a continuing resolution (CR) that would delay the recoupment of Medicare Accelerated and Advanced Payments, according to CMS. Details of the plan include the delay of recoupment for one full year. The actual recoupment schedule would be stretched over 29 months. Recoupment for each claim would be […]
CMS revised change request (CR) 11855 clarifying rules around the 5-day RAP submission requirement need to prevent payment delays starting in January. The article details how to document situations in which a date could not be entered on line 0023 because the first visit did not occur within the first five days of the period. […]
The Office of Civil Rights (OCR) of the Department of Health and Human Services alerted health care providers about the Taidoor Malmare that is being used by the Chinese government, according to a Malware Analysis Report (MAR). “The FBI has high confidence that Chinese government actors are using malware variants in conjunction with proxy servers […]
The Home Health COVID-19 PR Tip Sheet assists providers so that they can understand CMS’ public reporting strategy for the PAC QRP during the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE). Included in the tip sheet is the strategy CMS uses to account for its quality data, which has been exempted from public reporting due to the […]
CMS announced 20 Medicare-certified hospice providers who have been selected to participate in the alpha testing phase of development for the Hospice Outcomes & Patient Evaluation (HOPE) assessment have been selected, according to CMS. The HOPE will provide standardized data as all Medicare-certified hospices will be collecting the same assessment items for all patients. This […]
CMS has issued guidance to state Medicaid directors designed to advance the adoption of value-based care strategies across their health care systems and align provider incentives across payers, according to a press release sent Sept 15. Under value-based care, providers are reimbursed based on their ability to improve quality of care in a cost-effective manner […]