A coalition of hospice industry groups have called on the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to prioritize hospice when distributing personal protective equipment to health care organizations during the COVID-19 pandemic. Signatories on the letter included the American Network of Community Options and Resources (ANCOR), the Council of State Home Care & Hospice Associations, the […]
Ohio-based Valley Hospice has developed a new palliative care program called Caring Connections that will enable the nonprofit provider to engage with patients further upstream in the course of their serious or chronic illnesses. Hospices nationwide have been diversifying their services to include palliative care and a host of other types of programs, such as […]
After days of tense negotiations between Republicans and Democrats, the U.S. Senate has passed a $2 trillion bill designed to boost the national economy during the COVID-19 crisis. The legislation contains language that would allow hospice providers to perform face-to-face encounters via telehealth as well as a suspension of payment sequestration. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, […]
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is distributing N95 and surgical masks and other supplies to health care organizations in states hit the hardest by the COVID-19 pandemic, including New York and Washington. However, it remains unclear whether hospices will have access to these supplies or if they are being sent primarily to hospitals. Hospices […]
Health care technology firm Acclivity Health Solutions has designed a program to help hospice and palliative care providers prepare themselves for participation in the Primary Care First Serious Illness Population (SIP) payment model. The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) unveiled the Primary Care First program in April 2019 and plans to implement […]
The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is forestalling quality reporting requirements for providers participating in Medicare, including the Hospice Item Data Set (HIS) and the Consumer Assessment and Perception of Health Care Provider and Services (CAPHS) surveys. Hospices are not required to submit CAHPS survey data from Jan. 1 through Sept. 30, […]
Hospice supply lines have been strained to the limit due to the COVID-19 pandemic, as has the U.S. health care system at large. Providers of all types are reporting serious shortages of necessary materials, including essential personal protective equipment (PPE) to prevent infections, such as masks, face shields and sterile gloves. “This is really unprecedented […]
The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MEDPAC) has recommended to Congress that 2021 per diem payments for hospices remain unchanged from fiscal year 2020 levels and that the aggregate payment cap be reduced by 20%. The commission members voted unanimously on these recommendations at their January meeting. Congress would have to accept these recommendations before they […]
Provisions of a massive stimulus package currently being debated in the U.S. Senate would allow hospices to use telehealth in lieu of face-to-face encounters as well as temporarily ending the practice of sequestering 2% of hospice payments from the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, […]
The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued the first two state-specific 1135 waivers in Washington state and Florida. This follows a series of blanket waivers applicable to most health providers nationwide in an attempt to reduce administrative burden to allow providers to focus on their response to the coronavirus pandemic. To […]