Providers got their wish in mid-August when the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced it was rescinding a controversial proposal that would have cut up to $50 billion annually nationwide from...
MFP funding pressure builds
By
James M. Berklan
Feb 08, 2018
The National Council on Aging sounded alarm bells in early January, warning that the 12-year-old Money Follows the Person Medicaid program could soon run out of funding. The program promotes greater access...
Back pay total: $261,000
By
James M. Berklan
Oct 17, 2019
Shoddy bookkeeping and pay practices have cost a New York City-based nursing home operator more than $261,000. An investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division found that three Centers...
Budget offers pay concerns
By
James M. Berklan
Mar 08, 2018
Even though a new, unified payment system has been discussed for several years, the mere mention of it in President Trump’s budget proposal jolted observers in February. The budget specifically said...
GAO: Medicaid flaws found
By
James M. Berklan
Oct 01, 2012
People seeking Medicaid coverage for long-term care are subjected to differing asset-verification checks among the states, a new report finds.
CMS eases doc delegation
By
James M. Berklan
May 01, 2013
Skilled nursing operators now have greater flexibility in allowing non-physicians to do certain tasks. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services clarified what may be delegated in an April 3 brief.
Medicare Advantage pay to jump as enrollment grows
By
James M. Berklan
May 08, 2018
Medicare Advantage plans will receive a 3.4% uptick in federal payments in 2019. That’s nearly 90% more than the 1.84% increase proposed in February. Notice of the bigger raise came in the Centers...
Proposal would bring unity to LTC state ombudsmen
By
James M. Berklan
Jul 01, 2013
States have run their respective long-term care ombudsman programs in differing ways for nearly 20 years, but that would change if a new proposal advances.
New testing mandates could cost up to $15K each week
By
James M. Berklan
Oct 01, 2020
Larger nursing homes could be on the hook for as much as another $15,000 per week to comply with newly announced COVID-19 testing requirements for staff members, LeadingAge warned in a mid-September report.
New ACO designed to better serve dual eligibles strategy
By
James M. Berklan
Jan 06, 2017
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced Dec. 15 it was starting an ACO pilot program aimed at beneficiaries enrolled in both Medicare and Medicaid.