The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will give hospices a 3.8% bump in their per diem payments for 2023, according to a final rule published today. The reimbursement hike is larger than the 2.7% the agency initially proposed for next year, which many providers and industry groups contended was too small in […]
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has signed a bill designed to expand awareness of advance care planning, hospice, and palliative care. The new law requires the New York State Department of Health to develop a public awareness campaign to promote advance care planning. The campaign must include education about hospice and palliative care, according to […]
The home-based care workforce shortage has social and economic ripple effects, according to Bill Dombi, president of the National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC). Demand is outstripping supply for home-based care, said Dombi at the NAHC Financial Management Conference in Las Vegas. Home-based care providers are rejecting upwards of roughly 30% of referrals […]
A federal court has sentenced Liana Karapetyan, former co-owner of California-based ANG Health Care, Excel Hospice, and Excel Home Healthcare, to 18 months in prison for hospice fraud and anti-kickback violations. The US. Department of Justice filed charges against Karapetyan and her husband Akop Atoyan last year. Atoyan was co-owner of the hospice and home […]
The recently extended COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE) will not last forever. When it does expire, hospices need to be aware of potential legal risks. The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) once again extended the COVID-19 PHE until Oct. 6. While the agency has the option to keep extending the emergency, hospices […]
With certificate of need laws in a constant state of flux, hospices wrestle with the pros and cons of these regulations. On one side of the coin, CON laws can limit access to hospice and their growth potential. On the other side, CONs can spell the difference between surviving and thriving hospice sustainability, along with […]
Key leaders from the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) doubled down on the agency’s six strategic pillars Tuesday, while also sharing insights on how they’re handling the gradual end of the public health emergency (PHE). They did so during a national conference call with hospice operators and other CMS stakeholders. “We really […]
The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) has extended the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE) for another 90 days. A continued federally declared emergency allows flexibilities instituted by the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to remain intact, such as 1135 waivers of certain hospice rules. These flexibilities permitted the use […]
The return of sequestration is adding to the financial storms brewing in hospice, as providers contend with rising costs of delivering patient care, inflation and lackluster reimbursement. Providers are increasingly concerned about their ability to sustain their businesses through choppy waters, calling on regulators to step up support. After a moratorium during the pandemic, Medicare […]
Anti-kickback and fraud cases have proliferated as regulators zero in on the hospice industry. How a hospice works with referral sources can be a red flag that brings providers face-to-face with criminal charges in False Claims Act (FCA) cases. FCA suits can include significant legal repercussions for hospice providers such as imprisonment for committing health […]
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