Home Health & Hospice Week

But watch out for legislative reimbursement cuts.For the first time in years, home health agencies won't see a cut to their prospective payment system base rate in 2013 if a new proposed rule is finalized. But HHAs shouldn't cheer quite yet.The home health PPS episodic rate would rise a miniscule 0.0016 percent under the new 2013 PPS proposed rule, published in the July 13 Federal Register. The current base rate is $2,138.52, and under the rule released July 6 it would be $2,141.95 in 2013.That increase includes a 2.5 percent inflation update minus a 1 percent reduction required by the Affordable Care Act, and a 1.32 percent reduction for so-called case mix creep, the rule explains. Added together with all the proposed rule's provisions, Medicare payments to HHAs would actually decrease by 0.1 percent or $20 million next year, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services says in a press [...]