Healthcare reform, especially the expansion of Medicaid, will bring into focus the fragility of the safety net. This is a system that is for vulnerable seniors, but which has not been adequately financed.
Strategies to create outcome assessments
By
James Lomastro
Jul 08, 2013
Leadership, governance, talent (people) services and safety programs supports efforts in performance improvement and outcome assessment. The purpose of the outcome assessment system is to increase value...
Congress, we must reform Medicare appeals
By
Kristin Walter
Oct 31, 2016
Ten years – that’s how long the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Medicare Hearings and Appeals estimates the Medicare appeals backlog of 750,000 cases will take to clear.
Have we not been through this before?
By
James Lomastro
Sep 16, 2013
Recently, the former head of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services indicated that the agency should scrap a rule requiring three days as a hospital inpatient to qualify for Medicare coverage of...
Healthcare reform and the safety net: The rising tide
By
James Lomastro
Dec 06, 2013
Home- and community-based care advocates seek a total rebalance of care. They want the care dollars to be shifted to home- and community-based care, which has been historically short-shifted. However,...
‘The Great Perhaps’ in LTC
By
Tara Roberts
Jul 18, 2014
In post-acute care, particularly the SNF future, it can be “Great” but there are so many “Perhaps” that the definition of what “Great” is going to be is unclear.
The Five Star Report, once again, in the SNF spotlight
By
Steven Littlehale
Sep 24, 2014
The Five Star Quality Rating System takes the spotlight on the front page of the New York Times and the top of the news cycle, kicking off other publicity and political pressure. Regardless of any of the...
Is your rehab partner wearing blinders?
By
Renee Kinder
Jan 19, 2017
Never, ever bet on a horse wearing blinders. Why, you ask? Because, of course, a horse wearing blinders must be irresponsible, uncontrollable and, worst of all, completely unaware of its surroundings....
Are you prepared? 5 questions you need to know the answers to
By
Shelly Mesure, MS, OTR/L
Aug 27, 2013
With all the recent regulatory changes that have come down the line, or are about to, we developed a simple five-question survey that each provider had to ask every therapy employee. If you can develop...
To help elderly patients, CMS should prohibit PBM fees – not reform them
By
Alan G. Rosenbloom
Feb 16, 2018
Over just the past few years, the nation’s three largest pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) – CVS Caremark, Express Scripts and Optum Rx – have come to control more than 80% of prescriptions...