Healthcare providers, including doctors and therapists who treat nursing home patients, will see a key payment factor cut by 4.4% next year. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced the change to the Medicare Physician Pay Schedule conversion factor in a broader physician payment rule published late Tuesday. The conversion factor is part of a […]
The need to consider offering at-home services may be accelerating for nursing home operators as the Choose Home Care Act of 2021 was introduced in the House of Representatives on Friday. The bill was first introduced in July in the U.S. Senate by Sens. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and Todd Young (R-IN). A bipartisan effort, the […]
The home health industry reached a major legislative milestone on Thursday, with U.S. Sens. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) and Todd Young (R-Ind.) teaming up to introduce a new bill to support in-home care alternatives to skilled nursing facilities (SNFs). Endorsed by the AARP and supported by a long list of home-based care advocates, the Choose Home […]
During the COVID-19 public health emergency, the Medicare 1135 waiver immediately expanded the use of telehealth and bypassed HIPAA requirements, allowing essentially any video chat application to be used for remote patient visits. Within days, free video chat apps of all sorts became widely used by skilled nursing facilities and practically all other healthcare provider […]
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues across the United States, states, payers, and providers are looking for ways to expand access to telehealth services. Telehealth is an essential tool in ensuring patients are able to access the healthcare services they need in as safe a manner as possible. In order to provide our clients with quick and […]
The federal government on Monday introduced a proposed rule that would, if finalized, make permanent at least some of the emergency telehealth flexibilities implemented during the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, while potentially allowing a greater frequency of remote nursing home interventions. President Trump on Monday signed an executive order requiring the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) […]
Tuesday, June 2, 2020 As previously reported, Congress and Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) have removed longstanding regulatory barriers to the broad deployment of telehealth for general care during the COVID-19 pandemic. In parallel, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act has established the Federal Communication Commission (“FCC”) COVID-19 Telehealth Program, (the […]
Long Term Care Facilities (Skilled Nursing Facilities and/or Nursing Facilities): CMS Flexibilities to Fight COVID-19 Since the beginning of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency, the Trump Administration has issued an unprecedented array of temporary regulatory waivers and new rules to equip the American healthcare system with maximum flexibility to respond to the 2019 Novel Coronavirus […]
During the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency, HHS has taken steps to make it easier to provide telehealth services. Telehealth — sometimes referred to as telemedicine — describes the use of 2-way communication technology for certain health care services. We encourage health care providers to adopt and use telehealth as a way to safely provide care to […]
By Alex Spanko | March 31, 2020 As part of a sweeping set of waivers announced late Monday, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) expanded its efforts to cut restrictions on telehealth — essentially removing any last roadblock that providers would face to offering virtual interventions at nursing homes. By allowing providers to perform initial and discharge […]
With concerns around staffing and supply shortages in nursing homes amid the coronavirus, telemedicine has emerged as a key potential weapon, receiving the first-ever major green light for reimbursement on the national level — as part of an $8.3 billion bill allowing the federal government to cover remote care for Medicare recipients passed last Wednesday. But the […]
TitleGuidance for Infection Control and Prevention Concerning Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) by Hospice AgenciesMemo #QSO-20-16-HospicePosting Date2020-03-09Fiscal Year2020SummaryCMS is committed to protecting American patients by ensuring health care facilities have up-to-date information to adequately respond to COVID-19 concerns. • Coordination with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and local public health departments – We […]
The U.S. Centers for Health & Human Services (CMS) has issued guidelines for protecting health care workers who operate in the home and community from COVID-19, including hospice providers. The CMS materials contain guidance for screening for and treatment of the virus in addition to when patients should be transitioned to higher acuity care. The agency recommended […]
A patient’s ‘circle of care’ can include relatives, friends, a spiritual adviser or the pharmacist, not just doctors, nurses, or telehealth clinicians. Technology is helping bring them all together. BRIGITTE PELLERINJanuary 3, 2020 A fresh decade means fresh ideas. Brigitte Pellerin talks to some of the local people who are innovating – some in small […]