Physician Compare Preview Period is Now Open
From CMS: The Physician Compare 60-day Preview Period is officially open as of June 22, 2020 at 10 a.m. ET (7 a.m. PT). You can now preview your 2018 Quality …
Insights and News
Medicare Coverage of COVID-19 Testing for Nursing Home Residents and Patients
CMS has instructed MACs and notified Medicare Advantage plans to cover COVID-19 lab tests for nursing home residents and patients. This instruction follows the CDC’s recent update of COVID-19 testing guidelines …
CHAP Compliance Guides for Home Health Agencies
CHAP (Community Health Education Partner) has released two simple compliance guides for home health agencies. CHAP accredits home and community-based health care organizations. These new guides cover CMS blanket waivers, …
House Launches Investigation into COVID-19 Nursing Home Deaths
The U.S. House of Representatives launched an investigation into the coronavirus crisis in nursing homes, sending letters to CMS and the nation’s five largest for-profit nursing home companies. “The Subcommittee …
Nursing Homes: Updated COVID-19 Testing Guidelines from the CDC
The CDC recently updated its COVID-19 testing guidelines for nursing home residents and personnel. The updates include: Reorganized recommendations to address: Viral testing of healthcare personnel (HCP) Viral testing of …
CMS: Recommendations for Reopening Facilities to Provide Non-Emergent, Non-COVID-19 Healthcare
From CMS: “As states and localities begin to stabilize and COVID-19-related healthcare demand decreases, it is important to safely resume care in order to treat ongoing health needs that are …
HHS Announces Relief Fund Payments for Safety Net Hospitals, Medicaid & CHIP Providers
Today, HHS is announcing additional distributions from the Provider Relief Fund to eligible Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) providers that participate in state Medicaid and CHIP programs. HHS …
Hospice: Updates from CMS on the Development of the HOPE Tool and the Future of HQRP
The Hospice Outcomes & Patient Evaluation (HOPE) is a standardized patient assessment that CMS is developing for the HQRP. In theory, HOPE will provide hospices with “real-time patient assessments to …
Nursing Home COVID-19 Data and Inspections Results Available on Nursing Home Compare
Today, CMS is posting the first set of underlying COVID-19 nursing home data. On April 19, 2020, CMS announced the requirement that nursing homes to inform residents, their families, and …
Hospice Provider Preview Reports for the August 2020 Refresh Now Available
From CMS: Hospice HIS provider preview reports and CAHPS Survey provider preview reports have been updated and are now available. These two separate reports are available in your CASPER non-validation …