On July 31, 2016, CMS announced that the payment levels currently used in the prospective payment system (PPS), resource utilization group (RUG) IV, will be replaced in FY2019 by the resident classification system (RCS-1). On February 1, 2018, CMS proposed new Medicare Advantage and Part D payment and policy updates to provide new benefits, some nonskilled, for enrollees. On Friday, February 9, President Trump signed into law a bill designed to keep the federal government funded through March 23. Last week, President Donald Trump signed a two-year federal budget deal that left long-term care providers sighing with relief at the repeal of therapy caps for Medicare Part B beneficiaries retroactive to January 1, followed by a sigh of disappointment with a $1.96 billion cut to skilled nursing spending. Click the title above and select your answer from the choices available in our polling question, located in the right-hand sidebar. In their budget proposal released earlier this week, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) shared their plans for healthcare reform, including a reversal of what the agency refers to as “the effects of the status quo’s Washington-centered, one-size-fits-all approach to healthcare.” The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) report that patients in healthcare facilities in several countries (including the United States) are experiencing a harmful yeast called Candida auris, which causes serious invasive infections. CMS announced that the freeze date for submitting corrections/modifications to the Hospice Item Set (HIS) for the May 2018 Hospice Compare refresh is February 15, 2018. The annual health inspection survey sets the basis of the star system. New in the February issue of PPS Alert for Long-Term Care... Involuntary discharges are speaking a new regulatory language Providers should be aware of the revisions made to some of the language in the transfer/discharge regulations that are part of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' (CMS) Conditions of Participation. These revisions went into full effect November 2017. Not a subscriber? Sign up here. Monthly Inservice: Survey preparation Click here to subscribe to CNA Training Advisor and receive a new lesson plan every month, including course materials, a 4-page in-service, and a quiz targeted to address the unique needs, interests, and concerns of CNAs. Simplified Compliance: Education and Training Tools Learn how to analyze your quality measures data to increase performance CMS estimates that this area of compliance will cost home health agencies the most in new CoP QAPI: How to craft a robust, compliant performance improvement project An interdepartmental collaboration you must have in your facility Understanding phase 2 requirements for survey readiness | | Product Spotlight The Long-Term Care Administrator’s Boot Camp offers skilled nursing facility administrators a review of Medicare regulations and best practices for ensuring the provision of high-quality services, resident satisfaction, quality survey outcomes, and proper payments. Specifically, The Long-Term Care Administrator’s Boot Camp focuses on how Medicare regulations guide clinical and financial operations, and explains the role of the administrator in admissions, documentation, MDS, billing, coding, compliance and ethics, and quality improvement. This includes how to delegate appropriately, build the necessary infrastructure of quality improvement teams, analyze each facility’s resident population needs and risks, and implement effective systems and processes to achieve regulatory compliance. Administrators can expect to learn how to lead and manage facilities to regulatory compliance and to avoid survey issues, claims audits, and improper Medicare payments. |
| SIGN UP | FORWARD | ADVERTISE | | | Upcoming CMS Events Wednesday, February 21 from 11am-12:30pm, ET, or Thursday, February 22, 3:30pm-5pm, ET - What’s New with Physician Compare Webinar Wednesday, February 21, 3:00pm-4:30pm, ET, or Wednesday, March 7, 3:00pm-4:30pm, ET - Comparative Billing Report on Opioid Prescribers Webinar Thursday, February 22, 1:00pm-2:00pm, ET - ESRD QIP: Final Rule for CY 2018 Call Tuesday, March 6, 2:00pm-3:30pm, ET - Home Health Review and Correct Reports Webinar |
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