CEO: Almost Family Will Be ‘Consolidator’ in Health Care

With acquisitions at the forefront of their growth strategy, the nation’s fourth largest provider of home health care services is hoping to be a leader in consolidating services amid the changing payer landscape. Louisville, Kentucky-based Almost Family Inc. (NASDAQ: AFAM) has been bulking up its home health operations with recent acquisitions, but is also placing […]

Experts Recommend Changes to Home Health Star Ratings

There’s plenty of room for improvement when it comes to the methodology, clarity and accessibility of Home Health Quality of Patient Care star ratings. That was the consensus among the Home Health Quality of Patient Care Star Ratings Technical Expert Panel (TEP), convened by Abt Associates in early May. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid […]

CMS Launches Home Health Prior Authorization Requirement

Despite pushback from the home health industry and lawmakers, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced Wednesday it intends to move forward with a preauthorization requirement. CMS’ plans for prior authorization, now dubbed the Pre-Claim Review Demonstration for Home Health Services, will roll out in five states as announced in February. The proposal aims […]

Amedisys CEO: ‘Volume Cures All Ills’ in the Home Health Business

Amedisys Inc. (NASDAQ: AMED) wants to be on top: the biggest, the best, and the first choice for employees. To accomplish this, the Baton Rouge, Louisiana-based home health and hospice giant is focusing primarily on strong volume growth—a plan of action the company’s CEO, Paul Kusserow, believes has enormous potential. “We believe volume cures all […]

Tips for a More Engaged Home Health Workforce

Recruitment and retention are top of mind for the home health industry, with staffing needs emerging as an increasingly dire concern. Given the constant stream of studies and statistics released about today’s labor market, it’s no wonder why. Disengagement among employees is a pressing issue across all industries, and a majority-millennial workforce is changing the […]

Home Health Stocks Climb Higher than Ever

For the second consecutive month, the market value of three of the most prominent publicly traded home health companies hit a record high and outpaced the S&P 500 Index overall. The Stoneridge Partners Home Health Index, which tracks the monthly average market performance of LHC Group (Nasdaq: LHCG), Almost Family (Nasdaq: AFAM) and Amedisys (Nasdaq: AMED), grew 0.63% in […]

LHC Group Acquires Operations With $44 Million in Revenue

A home health giant is continuing its acquisition charge this year with another round of transactions that have pushed the heath care services provider into new territory and on track for a record year of transactions. Lafayette, Louisiana-based LHC Group, Inc. (NSADAQ: LHCG) has signed definitive purchase agreements to acquire a number of home health, […]

New Overtime Rule May Pose Little Threat to Home Care

A new wage rule that increases overtime benefits for millions of American workers is expected to put some wage pressures on employers across many industries, but how much it will impact home health care is still up for debate. The Department of Labor (DOL) recently issued its new overtime salary exemption limits that will become effective December […]

Editor’s Picks: Philips’ Latest Aging-in-Place Tech

This week, Home Health Care News readers had their interest piqued by Philips’ latest foray into aging-in-place technology, a health system’s successful approach to improving its palliative care services, and federal lawmakers’ collective stand against home health prior authorization. Readers also were curious to learn the best ways to reduce turnover amongst home health aides. […]