Patient Satisfaction:
Prepare To Tackle CAHPS Challenges In 2010
Published on Wed Nov 18, 2009
Patient selection, survey length top list of hurdles for the new patient satisfaction tool. The new Medicare patient satisfaction survey requirement may have been delayed six months, but you'll likely need that extra time to figure out how to navigate the program's obstacles. In the PPS 2010 update final rule in the Nov. 10 Federal Register, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services pushed back the timetable for the Home Health Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS) measure -- but not by much. Home health agencies will have to conduct a "dry run" of CAHPS data submission in the third quarter of 2010 and start submitting CAHPS data routinely by October of next year. While the program is "voluntary" for now, HHAs that don't participate will see a 2 percent payment update reduction starting in 2011, CMS says in the rule. HHAs that participate in the CAHPS program [...]