Docs, therapists to see pay cut but caregivers score in ’25 physician pay rule
By
Kimberly Marselas
Jul 10, 2024
Doctors, therapists and others billing under the physician fee schedule would see an average 2.93% reduction in Medicare pay next year, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services proposed Wednesday.
Advocates work behind scenes to stop, reshape staffing rule as finalization nears
By
Kimberly Marselas
Apr 16, 2024
Several nursing home advocacy organizations have met with the White House Office of Management and Budget in recent days, angling to change the proposed minimum staffing rule that could be issued in final...
A Medicare Advantage fix: What took so long?
By
James M. Berklan
Apr 12, 2024
Providers hoping that policy makers might some day show some backbone when dealing with Medicare Advantage plans can take heart. Well, at least a little.
CMS official to providers: Help us capture data to drive Medicare Advantage reforms
By
James M. Berklan
Mar 07, 2024
The increased use of health data and providers’ own voices should be considered among the best tools available for achieving change in a system that increasingly relies on Medicaid Advantage and other...
The top long-term care stories of 2023
By
James M. Berklan
Dec 18, 2023
Long-term care providers were intent on dismissing undesirable memories of the COVID-19 pandemic as much as possible in 2023, but the year’s top stories revealed there were still remnants of it to...
CMS: May take 3 years to finalize nursing home staffing rule
By
Kimberly Marselas
Dec 12, 2023
Federal regulators concede it may take up to three years to finalize a proposed nursing home staffing rule, according to an extensive document that lays out administration rule-making plans for 2024 and...
Need a fresh survey strategy? CMS lays out 3
By
Kimberly Marselas
Dec 05, 2023
CMS officials have delivered an early gift to help providers like you map out where they should focus their compliance efforts — not just for 2024, but for 2025 as well.
LTCH closures send more patients to nursing homes, but are they ready?
By
Kimberly Marselas
Nov 22, 2023
Shifting payment policies have decreased Medicare spending on patients requiring mechanical ventilation, but they also have led to the closure of many long-term care hospitals and have driven more patients...
CMS proposal offers long-awaited fix for Medicare Advantage appeals
By
Kimberly Marselas
Nov 08, 2023
Skilled nursing providers would get a new, improved appeals process for Medicare Advantage denials under a proposal issued late Monday by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
Staffing rule could bring system ‘collapse,’ providers say, but CMS stands firm
By
James M. Berklan
Sep 27, 2023
Nursing homes’ leading lobbying organization unloaded a full, research-backed attack on the viability of the White House’s proposed staffing mandate Tuesday. But the administration was unmoved, and...