Medicare Updates: MedPAC Recommendations, PPS Fact Sheet, Next Home Health Open Door Forum
The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) yesterday recommended that Congress provide no payment update in fiscal year 2011 for inpatient rehabilitation facilities, long-term care hospitals, skilled nursing facilities or home health providers. For home health, the commission said Congress also should direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to rebase rates to reflect the average cost of providing care; expeditiously modify the home health prospective payment system to protect beneficiaries from stinted or low-quality care; identify groups of beneficiaries most likely to benefit from home health and develop outcomes measures for quality of care; and review home health agencies with unusual patterns of claims and implement safeguards in areas that appear to be high risk. For hospice providers, the commission recommended that Congress provide a 2011 payment update of market basket minus productivity. As to hospitals, MedPAC recommended that CMS reduce the inpatient update by up to 2% in 2011, 2012 and 2013 to reflect changes in documentation and coding, which would result in an inpatient update of just 0.4% in FY 2011. (AHA NewsNow, 1/14/10)
The revised Home Health Prospective Payment System Fact Sheet (January 2010), which provides information about coverage of home health services and elements of the Home Health Prospective Payment System, is now available in downloadable format from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Medicare Learning Network.
The next Home Health, Hospice & DME Open Door Forum is scheduled for Wednesday, January 20, 2010 from 2:00 p.m.-3:00 pm. Timely announcements and clarifications regarding important rulemaking, agency program initiatives, and other related areas are included in the forums. To participate by phone: 800-837-1935; Conference ID: 45247192. No RSVP is required.