When the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released its final payment rule last week, the agency all but guaranteed a wave of home health industry consolidation in 2020. That guarantee comes despite CMS’s move to nearly halve the 8.01% behavioral adjustment included in the Patient-Driven Groupings Model (PDGM). But in addition to reducing […]
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
The Home Health Value-Based Purchasing Model (HHVBPM) is likely headed for the scrap yard in the not-too-distant future. Implemented in 2016, HHVBPM was generally designed to pay home health providers in nine states based on outcomes and the value of services delivered. While many thought HHVBPM was fated for expansion, the initiative appears to be […]
When it comes to technology, there’s no shortage of gadgets and gizmos promising to innovate home-based care. In fact, during trade shows, all of the different technology being highlighted can sometimes feel a little like a scene from a science-fiction show. “I think we have seen the future of technology — we just haven’t started […]
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released a final rule Thursday that makes changes to discharge planning requirements for home health providers. Broadly, the changes are part of CMS’s efforts to make patients a more active part of their care transitions out of the hospital and into other settings. “This delivers on President […]
Keeping older adults out of the hospital and moving care into the home has been effective in cutting costs and improving overall health outcomes. One home health company has been able to lower its hospital readmission rates by utilizing remote patient monitoring software. The company is Paramus, New Jersey-based Valley Home Care, a home health […]
In an effort to shift more treatment of chronic kidney disease into the home and ensure patients have greater access to coordinated care, federal policymakers have proposed a series of new payment models for certain kidney-related conditions. Officials from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid […]
Despite previously reported findings, traditional Medicare may have a better track record of lowering hospital-readmission risk compared to the Medicare Advantage (MA) program. While the re-hospitalization difference appears to be small, it’s an important observation for home health providers, especially those that work closely with MA plans. New insights into re-hospitalization rates in Medicare and […]
When Landmark Health and Blue Shield of California teamed up a year ago on a joint home-based care program, the goal was to improve access to services for the insurer’s most vulnerable members. Since then, the collaboration has yielded more than 15,000 home visits for medical, behavioral and social support services, as well as urgent […]
The home health industry won a major victory in its battle to scrap widely opposed provisions of the Patient-Driven Groupings Model (PDGM) Wednesday, as a group of bipartisan House lawmakers introduced a new bill targeting the payment overhaul’s behavioral assumptions. Introduced by Reps. Terri Sewell (D-Ala.), Vern Buchanan (R-Fla.) and Ralph Abraham (R-La.) — along […]
Cornerstone Healthcare — the large in-home care provider organization under The Ensign Group Inc. (NYSE: ENSG) umbrella — is actively seeking opportunities to acquire both well-performing and struggling home health, hospice and home care operations across the United States. That’s according to Cornerstone President and CEO Daniel Walker, who hinted at future M&A moves following […]
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