CMS urges: Start reviewing, planning and tracking staff COVID vaccinations now
By
Danielle Brown
Nov 08, 2021
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is calling on providers to immediately start reviewing the newly proposed healthcare worker COVID-19 vaccination regulation. They also should actually begin...
Panel on non-invasive ventilation seeks to simplify ‘maze’ of regulation for device coverage
By
Alicia Lasek
Aug 20, 2021
Recommendations aimed at expediting CMS coverage determinations for non-invasive ventilation devices could help ensure that LTCF residents and others get quick access to lifesaving treatments.
CMS giving $165M more in Medicaid funding for home- and community-based care
By
Danielle Brown
Sep 24, 2020
The federal government is providing $165 million in supplemental funding to states for a longstanding Medicaid program designed to transition seniors from nursing homes and other institutions and into...
CMS updates SNF Medicare manual to implement sequestration cuts
By
McKnight's Staff
May 16, 2013
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has updated the online Medicare Provider Reimbursement Manual, modifying instructions related to the 2% reimbursement reductions resulting from sequestration.
Antibiotics in LTC: Changing from ‘Just in case’ to ‘Only when needed’
By
Philip D. Sloane, M.D., MPH and Sheryl Zimmerman, Ph.D.
Mar 01, 2017
Prior to the discovery of antibiotics, the most common cause of death was infection. There was no good treatment for pneumonia, complications of urine or ear infections were common, and many people died...
Is it the docs’ turn to get stoned?
By
James M. Berklan
Apr 25, 2018
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services brought out its equivalent of a brass band and confetti machine Tuesday to tout a new provider payment strategy. One could almost hear strains of “Happy...
The ABCs of documenting CPT
By
Renee Kinder
May 06, 2021
It’s that time of year again when the Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) Editorial Panel meets with the task of ensuring its codes remain up to date.
The benefits of a successful discharge plan
By
Susan LaGrange
Jun 20, 2014
It is critical to have a solid system for discharge planning that begins even before the resident is admitted to the facility. Individualized, resident-centered discharge planning will provide a solid...
Provider group: Cut Medicare pay rate by 3.0%, save 100,000 jobs
Jun 29, 2011
The leader of the nation’s largest nursing home association has suggested the federal government cut Medicare reimbursement rates by 3.0% in fiscal 2012, not a threatened 11.3%. Such a move, along...
RCS-1 CMS Case-Mix Rule
By
Renee Kinder
May 04, 2017
There is a new horse in town and it goes by the name of RCS-1.