Repeating similar calls in prior years, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) has recommended to Congress that Medicare hospice payment rates remain at current levels next year. The commission also called on the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to apply the wage index to the hospice aggregate cap, followed by a 20% […]
A $30 million hospice fraud scheme has unfolded in California with the arrest of a physician and a marketer. Both were associated with two Pasadena-based providers — Saint Mariam Hospice, Inc., and Arcadia Hospice Provider, Inc. — the owner of which remains at large for their involvement. Named in a 14-count indictment were physician Victor […]
Congressional lawmakers have reached consensus on a $1.5 trillion omnibus bill to fund the federal government. In addition to big ticket items such as additional COVID response funds and aid to Ukraine, the legislation extends temporary flexibilities for virtual care instituted during the federally declared public health emergency (PHE). When enacted, the bill will extend […]
Integration of telehealth has become an important component in serious illness and end-of-life care. Providers leveraged telehealth to build efficiency and increase touch points with patients and families, while also reducing travel and leg work for staff. But as pandemic restrictions start to wind down, regulatory uncertainties and questions abound about the long-term impact of […]
Law enforcement agencies in California have arrested 14 people for their involvement in a $4.2 million hospice fraud scheme. The individuals had been associated with two San Bernardino County-based providers — New Hope Hospice, Inc. and Sterling Hospice Care, Inc. California Attorney General Rob Bonta alleges that these defendants had enrolled patients who were not […]
The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is retooling the embattled direct contracting payment demonstrations into an Accountable Care Organization (ACO) model. Direct contracting, initiated by the Trump Administration, has come under fire from lawmakers in recent weeks. CMS is replacing the Global and Professional Direct Contracting (GPDC) model with a program called ACO […]
Medicare between 2010 and 2019 paid a total $6.6 billion to non-hospice providers for services provided to hospice beneficiaries, according to a new report from the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Office of the Inspector General (OIG). While hospices themselves do not bill Medicare for the non-hospice services, OIG recommended that CMS study […]
Although 2% sounds like a small number, it can mean financial life or death for some hospices, particularly small community-based providers. These organizations are once again waiting to see if the federal government will extend the current moratorium on Medicare sequestration, uncertain about their programs’ sustainability without such relief. Established in 2014 by the Budget […]
Hospice advocates have called on the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to establish a Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) code for chaplain services, as well as a code for telehealth visits. Four organizations sent a letter to CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, including the National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC), the […]
When the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) unveiled the hospice component of the value-based insurance design (VBID) demonstration in 2019, one of its main goals was to bring length-of-stay consistency. That’s according to former CMS Administrator Seema Verma, who discussed the VBID demo – also known as the hospice Medicare Advantage (MA) […]
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