‘This Final Rule Is A Double Whammy’: What Home-Based Care Providers Should Know About FTC’s Non-Compete Ban

On April 23, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) voted 3-2 to finalize a new rule largely prohibiting employers from enforcing non-competes against workers. While the regulatory timeline on the non-compete ban is fairly immediate, the rule will face intense legal pressure from a variety of groups, mainly of which will come from health care. Regardless […]

BrightStar Care Dives Further Into Hospital-At-Home Care, Expands Partnership With Medically Home

BrightStar Care has built a reputation as one of the home care industry’s innovators. Past examples of the home care franchise company’s pioneering spirit include its investment in small-home senior living residences and its educational partnership with Chamberlain University. On Tuesday, the Gurnee, Illinois-based BrightStar announced its latest innovation effort, which will include an expansion […]

Minimum-Staffing Rule For Nursing Homes Finalized, Likely Complicating Post-Acute Care Labor Dynamics

The White House on Monday announced that the nursing home minimum-staffing rule has been finalized. Effectively, the rule requires all nursing homes that receive Medicare and Medicaid funding to maintain a certain staffing threshold at all times. The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) first proposed the minimum-staffing requirement last fall. “Medicare and […]

‘We’re Seeing Tons Of Opportunity’: Home-Based Care Buyers Deploy DIY M&A, Earnout Structures In 2024 Dealmaking Strategies

Transaction volume for home health, home care and other in-home care businesses dipped in 2023, with inflation, higher interest rates and global unrest contributing to the downturn. Many home-based care stakeholders anticipated M&A to rebound in 2024, however, thanks to increased loan activity in January, greater buyer-seller consensus and private equity’s record-high levels of “mature” […]

OIG Targets Home Health Improper Payments, EVV, Consumer-Directed Programs in Ongoing Watchdog Initiatives 

In past years, Medicare-certified home health agencies and Medicaid personal care services providers have been big focus areas for government watchdogs. While there’s still plenty of oversight, the spotlight on home health and personal care providers appears to have dimmed somewhat. Instead of focusing on home health and personal care, watchdogs are increasingly targeting hospices, […]

Exploring What An Amedisys Divestment Strategy Could Look Like

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) and Amedisys Inc. (Nasdaq: AMED) announced combination plans last June, under which home health giant Amedisys would become part of Optum. Amedisys had previously entered into an agreement to merge with infusion therapy company Option Care Health (Nasdaq: OPCH), but UnitedHealth Group’s offer, scale and complementary clinical capabilities were effectively too […]

MedStar Health, DispatchHealth Announce New Partnership To Provide Acute Care At Home

MedStar Health – a Washington, D.C.-based health system known to value home-based care – is teaming up with DispatchHealth. DispatchHealth originally made a name for itself as a provider of higher-acuity care services in the home. Over the last few years, however, it has dramatically expanded its offerings, and now the company delivers in-home care […]

Boston Medical Center Launches Hospital-at-Home Model with Medically Home, as CMS Waiver Program Swells to 133 Health Systems

The hospital-at-home movement continues to gain steam. Boston Medical Center (BMC) on Wednesday announced the launch of its new hospital-at-home program. The initiative is aimed at providing high-quality medical care to patients in the comfort of their own homes. “BMC Hospital at Home is anchored in BMC’s commitment to deliver transformative models of care that […]

MedPAC Again Pushes for Home Health Payment Cuts, Highlights Higher Employment Levels

Staffing shortages remain a challenge in home health care. While that’s true, the overall employment pool in home health care is actually larger now than it was before the COVID-19 pandemic. That’s according to the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC), which issued its March 2024 report to Congress on Friday. In addition to including information […]

New Bill Seeks To Reduce Challenges For Dual-Eligible Beneficiaries, Expand PACE Model Across US

Individuals who are dually eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid make up a sizable portion of the overall home-based care population. Too often, though, this dual status comes with frustrating challenges around care plans and coordination. Legislation introduced in the U.S. Senate on Thursday hopes to reduce some of those frustrations while also creating new […]