For-profit providers are dominating the hospice market. The number of hospice providers in the United States during 2017 rose 2.4 percent, with for-profit providers representing 100 percent of the growth, according to the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MEDPAC) annual report to Congress. That same year, the number of non-profit hospices declined 3.5 percent. Larger numbers […]
The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has significantly changed how the agency’s surveyors identify and analyze Immediate Jeopardy findings, applicable to hospice providers as well as all other health care services covered by Medicare or Medicaid. An Immediate Jeopardy finding represents a situation in which the health care provider’s noncompliance with one […]
Today the White House proposed a 2020 federal budget that would slash Medicare spending by nearly $846 billion and Medicaid by $241 billion over 10 years, sparking concern among hospice organizations. “[The National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization] is concerned the president’s proposed Medicare cuts could interrupt patient and family access to person-centered, interdisciplinary hospice […]
Hospice providers can now get a “sneak preview” as to how their organization can start working with Medicare Advantage plans by applying to participate in demonstration the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is offering for 2020. CMS has announced an array of Medicare advantage (MA) health plan innovations that will be tested […]
The US Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on Feb. 8 proposed rules designed to move the nation’s health care system—including hospices—closer to IT interoperability. The Interoperability and Patient Access Proposed Rule is designed to help health care providers, insurers, and other stakeholders make patient data more useful and transferable through open, secure, standardized, […]
The US Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has released the top deficiencies identified during recertification surveys for hospices during 2018. As in previous years, problems with care planning topped the list. Hospices are required to ensure that the care and services they provide follow an individualized written care plan developed by the interdisciplinary […]