Obama proposes $17 billion in budget cuts, programs for the elderly and poor threatened
May 08, 2009
President Obama on Thursday proposed cuts of $17 billion from his new budget for both discretionary spending and entitlement programs, including Medicare and Medicaid. Various interest groups are expected...
Expanded leverage for CMS could bolster healthcare reform, Senate told
Apr 24, 2009
The government could use Medicare to test new cost-saving, quality improving healthcare reform efforts, but it would have to give the program more leverage and flexibility, panelists testified at a recent...
Government proposes cutting Medicare hospice payments 1.1%
Apr 24, 2009
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services on Tuesday proposed a rule that would trim Medicare hospice payments by 1.1% in FY 2010.
Kaiser: Long-term care accounts for nearly one-third of all Medicaid spending in the United States
Apr 17, 2009
Long-term care consumed more than a third of the $320 billion spent on Medicaid services during fiscal year 2007, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation report.
States using Medicaid stimulus funding to fill budget gaps, report finds
Apr 16, 2009
A draft report released from a House committee minority Wednesday finds that eight states likely are diverting Medicaid stimulus funding away from healthcare providers, such as nursing homes. Instead,...
HHS nominee Sebelius emphasizes need for long-term care
Apr 03, 2009
Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius (D), nominee for secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, told the Senate Finance Committee about the importance of long-term care during the opening...
ONE DAY TO GO: Medicare, Medicaid face drastic cuts under new administration, McKnight’s Online...
Mar 24, 2009
Under President Obama’s budget plan, Medicare and Medicaid spending would be slashed by up to $295 billion over the next 10 years, the Congressional Budget Office has estimated.
Study: Case-mix Medicaid reimbursement systems contain disincentives for nursing home quality improvement
Mar 17, 2009
Nursing home Medicaid reimbursement systems can work to improve quality of care and save money–but they have to be used the right way, a new report suggests.
Study debunks long-term care Medicaid ‘myth,’ researchers say
Mar 10, 2009
More individuals are willing to pay privately for long-term care services than previously thought, authors of a new study assert. The result offers both more hope for nursing home providers and a realization...
CMS: No changes imminent to staffing formula for Five-Star rating
Mar 10, 2009
Federal health officials with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services say they are considering tweaking their new Five-Star nursing home ranking system, but altering the way staffing is graded will...