Lawmakers Push to Keep Seniors at Home with Newly Introduced Bills

A bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers has introduced two new pieces of legislation aimed at making it easier — and more financially secure — for seniors and individuals with disabilities to receive care at home. The move is yet another recent example of the high-priority position home-based care has developed on Capitol Hill as America’s […]

Paul Ryan: ‘Fee-For-Service Doesn’t work,’ MA the Future of Medicare

As if home care agencies needed any more encouragement to dive into the Medicare Advantage (MA) world, they got some last week — courtesy of a well-known Capitol Hill veteran. Home care providers have been positioning their businesses to appeal to potential MA players since April 2018, when Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) […]

Home-Based Care Industry Reacts As Illinois Raises Minimum Wage

Illinois has joined a number of states set to raise their minimum wage dramatically in the years to come. Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D-Ill.) on Tuesday signed a law raising minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2025. The move has drawn praise from caregiver advocates and criticism from industry leaders — who worry home health […]

LHC Group CEO Urges Congress to Support PDGM-Altering Bill

LHC Group (Nasdaq: LHCG) Chairman and CEO Keith Myers is again calling on Congress to pass legislation refining the assumption-based payment adjustments currently outlined under the Patient-Driven Groupings Model (PDGM). The co-founder of the Lafayette, Louisiana-based company recently penned an article in The Hill emploring legislators to pass S. 433, a new bipartisan bill that […]

Senate Lawmakers Introduce New Legislation Urging Evidence-Based PDGM Changes

Newly introduced bipartisan legislation in the U.S. Senate is targeting the widely opposed behavioral adjustments set to hit home health agencies next year under the Patient-Driven Groupings Model (PDGM). If passed, the legislation would require the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to base Medicare reimbursement rates on observed evidence and data, instead of […]

Immigration Reform, Minimum Wage Increases Top of Mind for Bayada

Despite wage competition from retailers and immigration policies that could potentially dry up the labor pool, Bayada Home Health Care leaders are optimistic about 2019 and feeling good about the Moorestown, New Jersey-based company’s transition to a not-for-profit model. Bayada — one of the largest home health providers in the country, especially when it comes […]

Home Health Care Agencies Threatened as Wages Rise, Reimbursements Lag

As more states push to raise the minimum wage, home-based care companies must work harder than ever to attract and retain workers as competition among employers grows. In home health care, agencies’ success often depends on Medicaid reimbursement, which is not keeping up with wage inflation in some states. And in private-pay home care, increased […]

Court Ruling Goes Against Pro-Home Health Provider Medicare Recoupment Trend

A recent court ruling against a home health care company could mean trouble for providers struggling financially as a result of Medicare recoupment, at least one legal expert believes.   Currently, home health care providers that are overpaid for Medicare services are not required to repay the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) while […]

How Home Health Agencies Can Prepare for, Fight PDGM

When it takes effect next year, the Patient-Driven Groupings Model (PDGM) from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is expected to revolutionize home health agency operations and double billing efforts. As the biggest payment overhaul in years, it’s crucial for providers to spend 2019 preparing for — and fighting certain aspects of — […]

NAHC’s Dombi: Threat of Payment Cuts Can’t Be Ignored

It’s been a hectic time since Bill Dombi officially took over as president of the National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC) about 11 months ago. Perhaps more than anything, though, it’s been a period punctuated by the introduction of the Patient-Driven Groupings Model (PDGM), the biggest payment overhaul the home health industry has […]