‘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 […]

With Medicaid Access Rule Finalized, Home Care Providers Enter ‘Wait-And-See’ Mode

On Tuesday, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) officials vehemently backed the thought process behind the “80-20” wage mandate in home- and community-based services (HCBS). Providers and advocates, on the other hand, continued to argue that the policy could be disastrous. During a press call Tuesday, CMS stuck with the theme that, in general, […]

What The ‘Fundamentally Contradicting’ Medicaid Access Rule Includes

The White House teased the finalized Medicaid Access Rule early Monday, and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) later revealed more intricate details attached to the rule. Firstly, the timeline of the rule is now clear. Specifically: – In three years, states must “report on their readiness to collect data regarding the percentage […]

Home Care Industry Slams Finalized 80-20 Rule, Warns Agency Closures Are Coming

The “Ensuring Access to Medicaid Services” rule has been finalized. Most importantly, the bemoaned “80-20” provision has gone through as proposed, meaning providers will eventually be forced to direct 80% of reimbursement for home- and community-based services (HCBS) to caregiver wages.  First proposed by the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) in April […]

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, […]

Where The Erosion Of Non-Solicitation Agreements Keeps Providers Up At Night

The erosion of non-solicitation agreements poses a significant challenge for home care providers, potentially undercutting their business models and profitability. Non-solicitation agreements keep home care clients from poaching caregivers trained and supplied by agencies. In certain states with stricter rules against non-competes — like California and Connecticut — the lines between non-solicitation and non-compete agreements […]

President Biden’s State Of The Union Address: ‘Imagine The Future Of Home Care’

In a State of the Union address that evoked Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Abraham Lincoln and Vladimir Putin within the first minute, President Joe Biden also made room for home-based care. After urging for higher taxes on the uber-wealthy, Biden challenged Americans to imagine a future with better access to home care. “Imagine the future of […]

What The UnitedHealth Group Antitrust Investigation Means For Amedisys, Home Health Industry

Since the news surfaced Tuesday that the Department of Justice had opened an antitrust investigation into UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH), additional questions have bubbled up. Namely, those questions surround the home health provider Amedisys Inc. (Nasdaq: AMED), which agreed to be acquired by UnitedHealth Group’s Optum in June of last year. Will that deal be […]

With Amedisys Deal Pending, Justice Department Opens Antitrust Investigation Into UnitedHealth Group

The Department of Justice is targeting UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) in an antitrust investigation, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday.  Specifically, the Justice Department is interviewing subjects around interactions between UnitedHealth Group and its health care provider services arm, Optum. UnitedHealthcare is one of the largest insurers in the country. Meanwhile, Optum is one of […]