The leaders of the Senate Finance Committee have called for healthcare providers to weigh in on possible changes to the Medicare physician payment system.
Zimmet Healthcare Services Group has acquired New-Jersey based Comprehensive Reimbursement Services (CRS).
May 06, 2013
Submissions are now being accepted for the second annual McKnight's Excellence in Technology Awards. The awards are open to skilled nursing and assisted living facilities, and continuing care retirement communities. Any technology-related initiative will be considered by the contest's independent judges.
Applications are now being accepted for the second annual McKnight's Excellence in Technology Awards program.
Berkadia Commercial Mortgage LLC announced it has originated $59.8 million through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) 232/223(a)(7) program to refinance a portfolio of 12 skilled nursing facilities in Arkansas.
National Health Investors, Inc. announced last week that it had acquired skilled nursing facilities with a total of 254 beds for $26.3 million.
April 12, 2013
Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) and Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) met Wednesday to discuss budget negotiations. The architects of the House and Senate budgets had a "constructive discussion" and are "working to find common ground," according to a joint statement. Medicare funding is one major roadblock to an agreement.
Elderly white women still make up the majority of the oldest nursing home residents, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, although other researchers have found the number of white residents is on the decline.
April 04, 2013
Nursing home operators can now download a brief clarifying which tasks physicians may delegate to other practitioners caring for Medicare beneficiaries in skilled nursing facilities, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced in a document released Wednesday.
April 02, 2013
The 2% reduction in Medicare payments known as sequestration began Monday. Providers should begin to see the impact by mid-April. The reductions will affect claims with dates of service or discharge on or after April 1, 2013.
The Colorado Health Care Association has signed a preferred partner agreement with COMS Interactive, the firm recently announced.
Skilled nursing facilities are making progress in reducing the off-label use of antipsychotics but are expected to fall far short of an overall 15% reduction goal.
March 20, 2013
Representatives Sam Graves (R-MO) and Adam Schiff (D-CA) recently reintroduced a bill to ease audit burdens on long-term care providers. Initially put forward in Oct. 2012, the Medicare Audit Improvement Act would change the way Medicare recovery audit contractors (RACs) operate.
Skilled nursing facilities that have fewer rehospitalizations are likely to retain their licensed nurses at a higher rate than other SNFs, according to a study in the April issue of Gerontology.
March 07, 2013
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will undertake targeted audits focused on upcoding in electronic health records, Acting CMS Administrator Marilyn Tavenner said Tuesday.
March 05, 2013
McKnight's Senior Editor Elizabeth Newman recently raised some thought-provoking questions about how "women manage women" in long-term care facilities with largely female staffs. Her blog got me thinking along some other lines as well: Male-female and male-male conflicts may become increasingly common as skilled nursing facilities become more gender diverse.
February 28, 2013
Skilled nursing facilities in highly populated states on the East Coast and in the Midwest would be hit hardest by Medicare cuts if sequestration takes effect, according to figures released by the Alliance for Quality Nursing Home Care on Wednesday.
February 15, 2013
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is encouraging provider input as it seeks to change the payment system for therapy provided by skilled nursing facilities.
February 12, 2013
Hospital readmission rates for Medicare patients remained steady between 2008 and 2010, with variations between regions, according to a report released Monday.
Skilled nursing facilities accounted for only about $200,000 of $797 million in collected Medicare overpayments in 2011 identified by Recovery Audit Contractors, according to an annual audit report released Tuesday.
As part of an effort to improve coordination among different care settings and reduce rehospitalizations, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is now accepting two new codes related to transitional care.
January 17, 2013
Skilled nursing facilities, already bracing for scheduled Medicare payment cuts of $65 million, face further losses that could total hundreds of millions of dollars, according to an Avalere Health analysis.
November 13, 2012
Nursing home advocates are expected to kick into high-gear defense mode after a new federal report asserted Tuesday that providers are overcharging Medicare to the tune of $1.5 billion annually.
A $15 million grant from the Centers from Medicare & Medicaid Services will allow more advance practice nurses to be in skilled nursing facilities in Missouri.
A Medicare rule may have an opposite effect and lead to more aggressive end-of-life treatment according to a new analysis of patient outcomes.
Federal health officials have agreed to changes in Medicare coverage rules that would make it easier for beneficiaries with chronic conditions to qualify for nursing home stays, outpatient therapy and home healthcare services, according to reports.
The healthcare sector contributed 43,500 jobs to the U.S. economy in September, according to jobs numbers released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
A bipartisan group of lawmakers has introduced legislation that would reimburse providers for coordination of care services.
One of the first care coordination demonstration projects for Medicare beneficiaries achieved significant provider savings for dually eligible Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries, a new analysis found.
Between 2001 and 2010, spending on Medicare beneficiaries needing post-acute services has jumped from $26.6 billion to $58 billion.
