Lois Bowers |
July 16, 2013 More than 280 public health experts put their heads together to come up with 30 ways to promote cognitive functioning and address impairment. A new report contains advice for those working with or caring for those with dementia.
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Pamela Tabar |
July 10, 2013 A new payment proposal from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) could impact the reimbursements for long-term care hospitals, post-acute care and rehab facilities.
Read More » Pamela Tabar |
July 8, 2013 There’s a brand-new imaging test available to diagnose Alzheimer’s disease, but it’s so expensive that CMS is limiting the Medicare coverage of the test to two circumstances.
Read More » Pamela Tabar |
May 21, 2013 New CMS guidelines take a deeper look at discharge planning, clarifying who is responsible for what at the time of discharge and why discharge planning is a key to reducing 30-day readmissions.
Read More » Pamela Tabar |
May 16, 2013 CMS’ Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) announces a significantly smaller and more-focused project list for Round Two of the funding awards.
Read More » Pamela Tabar |
May 1, 2013 CMS has proposed a new rule that would raise hospice payments under Medicare by $180 million next year.
Read More » Pamela Tabar |
April 25, 2013 Know about someone conducting sneaky Medicare billing practices? CMS’ new whistleblower proposal might pay you more than your boss does.
Read More » Pamela Tabar |
April 24, 2013 Marilyn Tavenner has obtained a vote of confidence from a Senate committee in her bid to become the first confirmed administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services in seven years.
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Robert Gatty |
April 23, 2013 This summer will be a busy one as Congress deliberates the 2014 budget and how, without revisions, its proposed cuts to Medicare may affect the physicians, hospitals and long-term care providers.
Read More » Pamela Tabar |
April 22, 2013 Federal agencies and lawmakers keep revising one possible way to curb Medicaid spending growth: Per capita caps.
Read More » Pamela Tabar |
April 11, 2013 President Obama's new budget, released by the White House Wednesday, includes plenty of cuts, but also contains a few surprising increases.
Read More » Pamela Tabar |
April 4, 2013 A new Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services document clarifies what tasks physicians may delegate to nurses within nursing homes serving Medicare and Medicaid residents.
Read More » Pamela Tabar |
April 2, 2013 Senior Editor Pamela Tabar talks with Ruta Kadonoff, vice president of quality and regulatory affairs for the American Health Care Association/National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL), about quality in long-term care—and why being able to measure it will be important for business.
Read More » Pamela Tabar |
April 2, 2013 The waiting is over. No resolution to the budget crisis means that sequestration begins—today. Long-term care facilities will feel the effects upfront, but a quieter casuality might be healthcare's information technology and data-sharing initiatives.
Read More » Pamela Tabar |
March 28, 2013 Sweeping changes may be on the horizon for the way Medicare billing is divided, as President Obama and Republicans put the idea of combining Medicare Parts A and B back on the discussion table, the New York Times reports today.
Read More » Pamela Tabar |
March 25, 2013 The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) got a tongue-lashing from the Senate Finance Committee, while CMMI’s director explains that testing new models takes time before payment reforms can be put into action.
Read More » Pamela Tabar |
March 18, 2013 Skilled nursing facilities and home health agencies face payment reductions, but hospices and long-term care hospitals get a first-round bye in MedPAC's latest Medicare payment recommendations to Congress.
Read More » Pamela Tabar |
March 13, 2013 President Obama adds the last three names to the Long Term Care Commission, completing the group's bipartisan membership.
Read More » Pamela Tabar |
March 11, 2013 Improving healthcare delivery for seniors might take greater investment in an often-ignored component: Social services.
Read More » Pamela Tabar |
March 8, 2013 Nursing home consumers—residents and their families—say the survey process has flaws that need to be addressed, according to a new report from the Coalition for Quality Care.
Read More » Pamela Tabar |
March 1, 2013 New data on hospital readmission shows that healthcare reform is making an impact--changing the rates for the first time in five years, says CMS.
Read More » Pamela Tabar |
March 1, 2013 The California Public Employees’ Retirement System, the country's third-largest health benefits purchaser, dropped a bombshell on its long-term care policyholders—switch LTC policies or deal with a massive rate increase.
Read More » Pamela Tabar |
February 28, 2013 A new report from the Office of Inspector General accuses skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) of misusing their Medicare payments, since more than one-third of SNFs don’t fulfill—or even create—the care plans and discharge goals required for their residents.
Read More » Pamela Tabar |
February 27, 2013 N.J.’s Gov. Chris Christie is the latest republican governor to change his mind about expanding the state Medicaid program.
Read More » Pamela Tabar |
February 26, 2013 Widely recognized by his bushy beard and somber uniform, former U.S. Surgeon General C. Everett Koop became a household name for his anti-smoking campaign.
Read More » Pamela Tabar |
February 25, 2013 A popular provider of power chairs gets a visit from federal agents in a new Medicare fraud investigation.
Read More » Pamela Tabar |
February 22, 2013 How many of your residents are on track to exceed the $1,900 payment cap on physical or occupational therapies? We examine the current therapy cap situation, and why it's such a challenge for long-term and post-acute care.
Read More » Pamela Tabar |
February 21, 2013 Florida’s governor, once one of the loudest voices against “ObamaCare,” has done a policy about-face and now supports limited Medicaid expansion in the state.
Read More » Pamela Tabar |
February 19, 2013 The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has released its proposals for rate and payment changes for 2014. Seniors may be happy about the Part D drug changes, but insurers aren't as pleased with their end of deal.
Read More » Pamela Tabar |
February 12, 2013 The new congressional commission on long-term care is slowly forming, as Republicans add two members to the bipartisan group.
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