States fail to report troubled Medicaid providers to OIG, report finds
Aug 14, 2008
States are not reporting those Medicaid providers that have been suspended or excluded from their state programs, according to a new report from the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector...
Nursing-home study: Inspection system ‘broken and can’t be fixed’
Aug 13, 2008
A leading nursing-home association is calling for an independent panel to come up with new methods for overseeing nursing facilities. The association’s task force issued 31 recommendations Tuesday,...
Fearful of losing even more funding, providers to pressure lawmakers on healthcare reform
Aug 14, 2009
Although it wasn’t unexpected, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ official announcement that it will be cutting $1 billion from nursing home Medicare payments starting Oct. 1 was...
New law eliminates fines for nursing homes that fix problems
May 29, 2009
Iowa Gov. Chet Culver (D) this week enacted a law that eliminates fines against nursing homes that identify and correct health and safety issues on their own accord. The law sets out new rules and guidelines...
Sequester cuts are bringing changes to survey process
By
McKnight's Staff
May 01, 2013
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will change some nursing home survey procedures in response to budget cuts from sequestration, according to memos released April 9. The CMS Survey & Certification...
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...
Regulators have tightened up screening efforts for Medicare providers
By
McKnight's Staff
Apr 24, 2012
Regulators have strengthened Medicare provider enrollment and toughened fraud prevention efforts, but it’s too early to know how effective the initiatives will be, a new report reveals.
Hospice workers who provide care for residents of skilled nursing facilities will have to provide more detailed claim data starting next year, according to recently released requirements from the Centers...
Heart failure readmission rates tied to regional socioeconomic factors, research shows
By
McKnight's Staff
May 18, 2012
Socioeconomic differences and factors such as the availability of physicians have a bigger impact on readmission rates for heart failure than a provider’s performance, a new study asserts.
Medicare fund will be depleted by 2024, report finds
May 16, 2011
The annual Medicare Trustees report found that under current conditions, the Medicare hospital insurance trust fund will be exhausted by 2024, largely due to the bad economy. The same report, which was...