Home Health & Hospice Week

Just because the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services didn’t offer a blanket waiver for Hurricane Ida Hospice Quality Reporting Program problems doesn’t mean you’re on the hook for HQRP issues caused by the storm.

“CMS does not want an extraordinary or extenuating circumstance to unduly increase provider burden, nor does CMS want to negatively impact a hospice provider’s annual payment update (APU) and compliance with HQRP requirements during this time,” the agency says in a new message to providers. “If you are a HQRP provider that has an extraordinary or extenuating circumstance due to Hurricane Ida, please refer to the Hospice QRP page … to find out about filing a timely extension or exemption request.”

Details are online at https://www.cms.gov/Medicare/Quality-Initiatives-Patient-Assessment-Instruments/Hospice-Quality-Reporting/Extensions-and-Exemption-Requests.