Home Health & Hospice Week
FEDS STEP UP FOCUS ON POST-ACUTE CONTINUUM
Home health agencies will play no small role in a quality-focused initiative on the near horizon.
The nation's quality improvement organizations (QIOs) will include an area called "Care Transitions" in their next "statement of work" (SOW), the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has announced.
"The Care Transitions theme is designed to help improve coordination across the continuum of care," the agency says. "In particular, [to] promote seamless transitions from the hospital to home, home health care, or skilled nursing care."
Some QIOs, for example, will work to help reduce unnecessary readmissions to hospitals of Medicare beneficiaries being served by home health agencies.
Areas of focus will include the following:
• Medication management,
• Post-discharge follow-up, and
• Plans of care for patients who move across health care settings.
Reducing acute care hospitalizations has also been a target by QIOs in the current SOW.
Resource: For more information about the "QIO 9th Statement of Work" go to www.cms.hhs.gov/QualityImprovementOrgs.
Home Health & Hospice Week
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PRESIDENT CALLS FOR HHA, HOSPICE PAY FREEZE FOR MULTIPLE YEARS
Bush's '09 budget proposal would strip billions from Medicare home care.
The President's latest budget proposal [...] - Budget:
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Educate policy makers about oxygen.
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In addition to Medicare cuts, [...] - Strategy:
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Oxygen suppliers may be especially vulnerable.
Washington insiders predict plenty of activity on the Medicare front [...] - Prospective Payment System:
CLAIMS SYSTEM FIX CLEARS UP NAGGING PPS PROBLEMS
But more issues are still hanging up some PPS claims.
Claims that span the calendar years [...] - Quality:
FEDS STEP UP FOCUS ON POST-ACUTE CONTINUUM
QIOs step in to promote 'seamless transitions.'
Home health agencies will play no small role in [...] - Industry Notes:
DON'T LET MARCH DEADLINE FOR NPIs BLINDSIDE YOUR CLAIMS
Warning: If you fail to use your NPI by March 1, your Medicare claims won't [...]
