Price increases, not a larger senior population, are responsible for exploding healthcare costs: analysts
By
Tim Mullaney
Nov 13, 2013
Escalating healthcare costs in the United States cannot be pinned on an aging population demanding more services for chronic conditions. Instead, higher costs are primarily the result of price increases,...
MedPAC shows enthusiasm for equalizing SNF, inpatient rehab facility payments
By
Tim Mullaney
Nov 12, 2013
More uniform reimbursements for skilled nursing facilities and inpatient rehabilitation facilities could be implemented soon, policy analysts recently told the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission. The...
More than 6,000 skilled nursing facilities achieved notable gains in the first year of the American Health Care Association’s Quality Initiative, the provider association announced yesterday.
An Alzheimer’s reality check
By
Tim Mullaney
Nov 12, 2013
Alzheimer’s researchers — or the public relations machines breathlessly trumpeting their work — should chill out. I see so much of this type of Alzheimer’s news that it’s hard to...
Survey practices around antipsychotic medications need to be updated, report says
By
Tim Mullaney
Nov 11, 2013
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services should provide better surveyor training in understanding use of antipsychotic medications and reestablish a separate F-Tag for related deficiencies, according...
Routine assessment predicts when Alzheimer’s patients will need nursing home care, researchers...
By
Tim Mullaney
Nov 08, 2013
Clinicians can use a new assessment to determine when an Alzheimer’s patient is likely to need nursing home care, according to researchers based at Columbia University Medical Center.
Stroke survivors unaware of therapy options for spastic muscles, survey finds
By
Tim Mullaney
Nov 08, 2013
Many stroke survivors don’t know about the therapy options that can address spastic muscles, which is a common and often disabling condition, according to a recent survey.
CMS corrects therapy coding examples in RAI Manual
By
Tim Mullaney
Nov 07, 2013
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has corrected some therapy coding information in the recently released Minimum Data Set 3.0 Resident Assessment Instrument manual.
Young people becoming more realistic about future long-term care needs, survey finds
By
Tim Mullaney
Nov 06, 2013
Younger people are more informed about long-term care financing and are more likely to be saving for their future needs than older Americans, according to a recent national survey.
Financing reform rift in LTC commission
By
Tim Mullaney
Nov 01, 2013
The Commission on Long-Term Care has released its full report to Congress, but some commissioners broke ranks, saying the bipartisan panel did not fulfill its mandate to offer recommendations for comprehensive...