Online resource packed with regulatory news and expert guidance, tips & tools pertinent to professionals across the post-acute care continuum.
The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) recommends giving CMS the authority to “enforce remedies” for hospices that fail to meet federal health and safety requirements, according to a November report. The study found that in 2017, 472 hospice providers discharged at least 50% of beneficiaries before death. And 83 providers didn’t have hospice staff visit beneficiaries within the […]
Hospices will now be permitted to accept medication orders from some physician assistants, according to the CY2020 Physician Fee Schedule final rule filed on Nov. 1. Prior to this, hospices were only allowed to accept prescription orders from physicians and nurse practitioners According to the rule, in order for the hospice to be able to […]
CMS will hold its next home health, hospice and durable medical equipment open door forum at 2 p.m. EST on Nov. 6. Topics will include the home health payment rule and the review choice demonstration as well as a home health billing update related to the Patient-Driven Groupings Model (PDGM). View the agenda at https://go.cms.gov/1TlLRb4.
The U.S. House of Representatives passed the Palliative Care and Hospice Education and Training Act (PCHETA) on Oct. 28. The bill has since been received by the Senate and referred to the committee on health, education, labor and pensions. Designed to promote education and research in palliative care and hospice, the bill would create fellowships […]
Some hospice period dates have not been calculating correctly through the Common Working File (CWF), according to Medicare Administrative Contractor (MAC) Palmetto GBA. Period three and later should be no more than 60 days from the start through termination dates. Palmetto found that third or later periods have more than 60 days calculated in the […]
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released four new fact sheets that encourage patients and doctors to discuss pain management options and the potential risks of opioid medication. Information includes: What patients can expect if they are taking opioids Guidance on safer use Prompts for a doctor-patient discussion of treatment goals and plans […]
Nominations are due September 30 for a Technical Expert Panel (TEP) to provide input on a hospice assessment instrument and corresponding set of quality measures in support of the Hospice Quality Reporting Program. For more information, visit the TEP webpage.
In the August refresh of Hospice Compare, providers nationwide scored 86.4% on the “Hospice and palliative care composite process measure.” By comparison, hospices scored 85.3% in May 2019. They scored 83.6% on the composite measure when it initially appeared on Hospice Compare as part of the website’s quarterly refresh in November 2018. The measure shows […]
Payment rates for hospice care, the hospice cap amount, and the hospice wage index updates finalized in the 2020 hospice payment rule will take effect Oct. 1, and CMS has released a transmittal and MLN matters article on the changes. CMS finalized rate increases for continuous home care, general inpatient care and inpatient respite care. […]
CMS has set out to provide further information regarding the Primary Care First (PCF) Seriously Ill Population (SIP) model option with a two-part webinar series, hosted by the PCF Model Options Team. The model “encourages advanced primary care practices, including providers whose clinicians are enrolled in Medicare who typically provide hospice or palliative care services,” […]