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Post-Acute Advisor

NAHC comments on the new healthcare bill

 

The National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC) has released a press release making their stance clear that they are against the Republican healthcare plan, the American Health Care Act (AHCA), which narrowly pass the House of Representatives yesterday. Although the bill still has to be passed by the Senate, and many experts believe the bill will ultimately change significantly before being passed by Congress, NAHC’s statement expresses significant concerns over the bill.

 

 

Takeaways from CMS emergency preparedness training call

 

On Thursday, April 27, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) answered several frequently asked questions from providers regarding new emergency preparedness requirements published in the Final Rule effective November 15, 2016, to be implemented November 15 of this year. Provider questions included:

 

 

CMS proposes 1% Medicare pay boost for SNFs in FY18 and new quality program provisions

 

On Thursday, April 27, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released a proposed rule that increases Medicare payments to skilled nursing facilities (SNF) by $390 million in fiscal year 2018, a 1% pay raise. This number is lower than the previous year, which showed a 2.1% increase, or $800 million increase, last April.

 

 

Tell us how we’re doing!

 

We're looking for feedback--email editor Brianna Shipley: bshipley@hcpro.com or start a conversation in the comments section on our site and let us know what changes you'd like to see made to Post-Acute Advisor for Long-Term Care. Do you want more regulatory guidance on a certain topic? Need more tools? Want to hear from industry experts more often? Let us know!

 

 

Ten strategies for building successful family partnerships in assisted living

 

Editorial Note: This post has been excerpted from HCPro’s book, Customer Service in Assisted Living: Strategies for Building Successful Partnerships, written by industry experts Kelly Papa, MSN, RN and Carol Marshall, MA.

 

Families enter the long-term care environment with expectations and misconceptions they rarely communicate to the admissions coordinator or community care team. For example, some families believe that the resident’s progressive disease won’t get worse once the family member moves into the community and many believe that if the resident was falling at home, he or she will no longer fall after moving into the community.

 

 

Fun facts about star agencies: Those that earned 5 stars did it before too

 

Most agencies that earned 5-star ratings in quality of care when Home Health Compare was updated April 12 have been standout agencies for a long time.

 

 

Other Post-Acute News

 

*New in the May issue of PPS Alert for Long-Term Care* Behavior management in long-term care: Reducing prevalence of antipsychotics and increasing quality of care

 

As the reduction of antipsychotics prescribed to residents continues to prove successful, many long-term care facilities are seeing increases in negative behaviors, particularly in dementia residents.

 

SNF consolidated billing rule will seek public comment in July: Brush up on the five major categories here

 

A thorough understanding of how consolidated billing works will help billing and administrative staff determine which residents are subject to consolidated billing when there is a leave of absence, pay the correct vendor invoices, communicate efficiently with other vendors and physicians, and determine the Medicare allowable amount for services provided by outside vendors.

 

Put Your QAPI Plan Into Action, Prepare for CoPs, Achieve 5-Star Rating

 

CMS has granted home health agencies six additional months to prepare the Conditions of Participation—so don’t waste any more time. Implementing the CoPs is a huge time and cost burden so the sooner agencies begin to put policies and procedures into place, the better off they’ll be on Jan. 13, 2018.

 

Successful PPS scheduling: Receive optimal reimbursement while reducing default and provider-liable days

 

To receive optimal reimbursement for services, it’s essential to remove the confusion surrounding PPS scheduled and unscheduled assessments. Understand how to manage the process, including meetings to conduct, tools to implement, and ways to keep everything on track.

 

Long-Term Care Billing A to Z

 

Long-term care billing departments are known by various names, but they all face the challenge of understanding and complying with Medicare’s many billing requirements for accurate reimbursement.

 

Product Spotlight

Medicare Boot Camp®—Long-Term Care Version

 

HCPro's Medicare Boot Camp®—Long-Term Care Version covers the latest Medicare rules and regulations so that you can help your facility provide quality resident care, document successfully, bill appropriately for services, and prevent payment denials. Medicare Boot Camp—Long-Term Care Version follows a Medicare patient from preadmission through discharge, addressing the function of each department, and uncovering the pitfalls along the way.
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Upcoming CMS Events

 

 

Tuesday, May 2, 2:00pm-3:30pm ET - IRF, LTCH, SNF QRP: Registration Open for Review and Correct Reports Provider Training – Live Webcast

 

Wednesday, May 3, 2:00pm – 3:00pm ET - Home Health, Hospice & DME/Quality Open Door Forum

 

Wednesday, May 10, 9:30am - 4:30pm ET - Medicare Advantage & Prescription Drug Plan Spring Conference & Webcast

 

Thursday, May 11, 9:30 am - 4:30pm ET - Medicare Advantage and Prescription Drug Plan Audit & Enforcement Conference & Webcast

 

Wednesday and Thursday, May 3-4, Baltimore, MD - 2-day, in person Home Health Quality Reporting Program Provider Training

 

Thursday, June 15, 1:30pm – 3:00pm ET - National Partnership to Improve Dementia Care and QAPI Call

 
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