Smart cards would do little to curtail Medicare fraud: GAO
By
John Hall
Apr 28, 2015
Medicare beneficiary smart cards would have a limited impact on reducing fraud and could even introduce “new, more sophisticated fraud schemes,” a new report by the Government Accountability...
What will it cost you to stay in the post-acute care game?
By
Steven Littlehale
Apr 22, 2015
More than just collecting data, providers need to use standardized, nationally recognized measures. Especially in this era of ACOs and alternative payment models. In the past, many individual providers...
Budget cut-hungry GOP walks fine line, eyeing 2016 elections
By
John Hall
Apr 21, 2015
House and Senate Republican lawmakers began working on a budget this week that could propose slashing Medicare and Medicaid in an effort to work toward a balanced budget without fiddling with tax rates,...
Avoiding fraud claims
By
Bruce Baron
Apr 17, 2015
With Medicare and Medicaid costs soaring, federal and state agencies are looking at various avenues to rein in costs. Fraudulent billings from healthcare providers costs taxpayers millions of dollars each...
Nursing home operators hail ‘historic’ Senate passage of permanent ‘doc fix’...
By
James M. Berklan
Apr 15, 2015
The Senate overwhelmingly voted to pass H.R. 2 Tuesday night, paving the way for repeal of the Medicare Sustainable Growth Rate and drawing the praise of the largest nursing home association in the country.
CMS actuary throws cold water on ‘doc fix’ bill projections
By
John Hall
Apr 12, 2015
Long-term care leaders who have widely endorsed a House proposal to permanently “fix” the Sustainable Growth Rate formula, might be suffering buyer’s remorse after learning Friday that...
CA man gets 30 months in prison, hefty fine in clinic ‘fraud’ case
By
John Hall
Apr 09, 2015
A San Diego man will serve 2½ years in custody after being ordered to repay the government nearly $1 million for what prosecutors say were phony Medicare claims for medically unnecessary and unsupervised...
Medicare providers could face up to 100% late tax penalties
By
John Hall
Mar 25, 2015
Praise for Congress for proposing a bill that would reset Medicare physician pay rates could be a little less hearty, after details emerged Tuesday that the measure would also include penalties as high...
Bill would credit observation stays toward ‘three-night rule’
By
John Hall
Mar 24, 2015
A bill introduced in Congress on Monday would count all time that Medicare beneficiaries spend under hospital “observation” status toward the three-day inpatient requirement necessary to receive...
Nursing home groups support ‘doc fix’ bill
By
Elizabeth Newman
Mar 24, 2015
Leaders of the nation’s two largest long-term care associations spoke favorably Monday about a bill that would improve Medicare physician pay rates while moderately restricting LTC pay. In fact,...