The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) introduced this week its first ever national strategy plan to support family caregivers. The comprehensive plan — officially called the 2022 National Strategy to Support Family Caregivers — lays out nearly 350 actions the federal government needs to take in order to make the lives of […]
CMS
Until the final home health payment rule comes down from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), M&A is expected to stay relatively quiet. However, some experts believe that if cuts are avoided through legislation or other means, M&A should see a massive boon. “If we’re successful as an industry and it’s pushed off […]
As predicted by many at the onset of the pandemic, home health providers gained a larger share of post-acute referrals in recent years than they did prior to COVID-19. At the same time, data shows that patients coming to post-acute care are sicker and have more complicated care needs than before, all while staffing shortages […]
Seniors on Medicare Advantage health plans may not always be receiving high quality care, a new study shows. The study from RAND Corporation, a nonprofit research organization, looked at 15 different quality measures from patients on MA plans during 2016 and 2017 and found that the quality of care was only slightly better when compared […]
Medicare-reimbursement cuts to home health agencies in 2023 threaten to destabilize the workforce, namely through handcuffing operators by limiting their ability to offer competitive compensation. The 2023 home health proposed payment rule from the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) seeks to cut agency payments by an aggregate 4.2%, or $810 million, next […]
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has awarded one of its ACO REACH contracts to Upward Health, a multidisciplinary at-home care provider. ACO REACH is a risk-sharing program between companies and the government, standing for Accountable Care Organization (ACO) Realizing Equity, Access, and Community Health. The New York-based Upward was one of 22 […]
The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced Monday that it will distribute an additional $25 million to expand access to home- and community-based services (HCBS) through Medicaid’s Money Follows the Person (MFP) program. The $25 million will be going to new states and territories, increasing the total number of states and territories […]
Home-based care industry insiders are encouraged by the steps the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is taking in releasing its first ever home- and community-based services (HCBS) quality measures. While it’s still early in the process, experts believe now is the time for providers to begin talks with state agencies in order to […]
There is financial inefficiency and waste in home health care, which is highlighted by the variation in spend across the country, according to a new study. The study — published this month in the American Journal of Managed Care — examined U.S. counties where at least one home health agency served 11 or more beneficiaries […]
A draft version of Medicare’s unified post-acute care payment model dropped earlier this month. Already, health care stakeholders are describing the plan as an “unworkable” model with “numerous fundamental flaws.” The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), along with the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE), were charged with developing a universal, […]
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