Online resource packed with regulatory news and expert guidance, tips & tools pertinent to professionals across the post-acute care continuum.
A new study by PHI National and the University of California San Francisco found that “an immeasurably small number” of displaced workers during the second quarter of 2020 were re-employed into direct care. The study authors suggested low wages for director care workers likely contributed to the lack of movement into these jobs. They also […]
The Home Health Research Grant is now accepting submissions for research proposals seeking 2022 funding, which will help advance home health care and may seek to improve care delivery at home through quality and innovation, according to a release from the Alliance for Home Health Quality and Innovation. For the 2022 funding period, funding will be awarded up to $75,000 […]
CMS recently issued a final rule extending and changing the Comprehensive Care for Joint Replacement (CJR) Model, which was implemented to support better and more efficient care for beneficiaries who are undergoing inpatient surgeries for hip and knee replacements. The CJR program is an opportunity for home health agencies to form and deepen strategic partnerships […]
CMS will expand the Home Health Value-Based Purchasing (HHVBP) Model, officials announced January 8, 2021. Currently implemented in nine states, the model has saved Medicare an average of $141 million annually, with an average improvement in quality scores of 4/6%, according to a news release. The HHVBP Model adjusts payments to agencies based on quality […]
CMS’ Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation has an opportunity for Medicaid Managed Care Organizations (MCOs) to participate in the Global and Professional Options of the Direct Contracting Model. The model seeks to encourage “Medicaid MCOs to partner with providers and suppliers and implement care coordination programs that can improve quality and reduce Medicare fee-for-service […]
A plethora of laboratories across the United States are rapidly producing COVID-19 tests, but a recent record check by CMS resulted in 171 cease and desist letters to labs, halting production of tests at labs without the proper qualifications. The record check found that those labs did not have up-to-date Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments of […]
CMS released a final rule [CMS-1737-F] on July 31 for FY 2021 that updates the Medicare payment rates and the value-based purchasing program for SNFs. The rule includes routine technical rate-setting updates to the SNF PPS payment rates, finalizes adoption of the most recent OMB statistical area delineations, and applies a 5 percent cap on […]
Concerns regarding compliance with quality and safety standards under the Hospice Conditions of Participation were addressed through legislation recently introduced by two members of the House Ways & Means Committee, Rep. Jimmy Panetta and Rep. Tom Reed. The legislation entitled, “Helping Our Senior Population in Comfort Environments Act (HOSPICE Act),” was scheduled to be marked […]
Having an ombudsman on site during state surveys may lead to lower building quality scores for SNFs, according to a study published in the October issue of the Journal of the American Medical Directors Association (JAMDA). While JAMDA researchers note the importance of ombudsmen in a SNF as resident advocates, the study, entitled , “The […]
During the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission’s (MedPAC) public meeting on Thursday, March 1, analyst Evan Christman reviewed options for modifying Medicare’s hospital discharge rules to encourage beneficiaries to use higher-quality PAC providers. Christman pointed out that Medicare assigns responsibility for discharge planning to the hospital, and while part of this responsibility includes providing the beneficiary […]