U.S. lawmakers heard mixed messages at a hearing Tuesday on how proposed Medicare cost-sharing reforms would impact long-term care. The House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Health focused in particular on three measures in the White House's proposed 2014 budget.
One day after a powerful tornado destroyed a hospital and devastated an Oklahoma town, long-term care stakeholders gathered at a disaster preparedness conference organized by the Center for Preparedness Education, a joint endeavor of the Creighton University School of Medicine and the University of Nebraska Medical Center.
The top professional association of long-term care physicians and medical directors has reiterated its commitment to reducing the use of antipsychotics for dementia care. It did so Tuesday, in response to a recent report that criticized prescribing practices.
The federal government's Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan will reduce its payments to skilled nursing facilities by 50% as of June 15, according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. The PCIP program received a budget of $5 billion in ACA funding, and CMS fears it will run out of money prior to 2014 given the current rate of pay-outs.
“Hospital referrals are now essentially the life blood for all post-acute care environments. Without them, survival will be difficult.
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Diverticular disease is one of the most prevalent medical conditions in the United States. Symptomatic diverticular disease comprises a spectrum ranging from mildly symptomatic, with a profile similar to irritable bowel syndrome, to acute bouts of diverticulitis with complications such as abscess or perforation.