Home Health & Hospice Week

Home care providers may not have gotten everything they wanted on their legislative Christmas lists, but they are definitely seeing some benefits from year-end bills.

For example: President Obama is expected to sign legislation passed by the House and Senate exempting health care providers from the Red Flags Rule. The rule currently requires providers to take burdensome identify theft protection steps for patients.

And the president also is expected to sign legislation from the House and Senate for a one-year "doc fix" bill, averting the 25 percent cut to Medicare physician payment rates that was set to take effect Jan. 1. Lawmakers drew funds for the fix from other parts of the health care reform law's provisions instead of other Medicare providers' reimbursement rates.

That legislation also will extend the therapy cap exceptions process, which affects patients receiving outpatient therapy from HHAs under Part B. (Patients receiving therapy under a home health plan of care are not affected by the $1,860 cap.)

Ungranted wishes for HHAs and hospices include a six-month delay to the face to face encounter requirement, although the industry continues to push for it. For durable medical equipment suppliers, a delay to competitive bidding in nine areas didn't materialize.