iqtsupport, Author at DeBrunner & Associates

Feds Penalizing Wrong Hospitals for Readmissions, Study Finds

Medicare’s hospital readmissions reduction program often penalizes the wrong hospitals for excessive readmissions. Or so concludes a new study published in the journal JAMA Cardiology. According to the study, …the percentage of hospitals that were incorrectly penalized was 10.1% for acute myocardial infarction, 10.9% for heart failure, and 12.3 percent for pneumonia. The study also found that the readmissions reduction program is failing to penalize some hospitals that do deserve penalties based on the program’s standards, writing that …in fiscal year 2019, the percentage of hospitals that should have been penalized by the program, but were not, was 20.9% for [...]

iqtsupport2020-10-20T06:00:30-04:00October 20, 2020|Medicare, Medicare reimbursement policy|

Number of Uninsured Children Rising

The number of uninsured children in the U.S. is rising. Since 2016, the number of uninsured children has risen by approximately 726,000 as the uninsured rate among children rose from 4.7 percent to 5.7 percent in 2019. An increase of 320,000 children between 2018 and 2019 was the largest such increase in more than a decade. Texas accounts for one-third of the four-year increase, or about 243,000 newly uninsured children, with Florida second with 55,000 newly uninsured children. Learn more about the increase in the number of uninsured children in recent years and why it occurred in the report “Children’s [...]

iqtsupport2020-10-19T06:00:16-04:00October 19, 2020|Uncategorized|

Coronavirus Update for Thursday, October 15

The following is the latest COVID-19 information from the federal government as of 3:00 p.m. on Thursday, October 15. Provider Relief Fund Yesterday HHS held a webinar to provide more detailed information to health care providers about its planned $20 billion CARES Act Provider Relief Fund Phase 3 general distribution. It used this toolkit during the webinar. The deadline for applying for a Phase 3 general distribution is November 6. During the webinar, providers that have received Provider Relief Fund general distributions in the past were advised that they need to submit an entirely new application to participate in Phase [...]

iqtsupport2020-10-16T06:00:45-04:00October 16, 2020|Coronavirus, COVID-19|

Coronavirus Update for Wednesday, October 14

The following is the latest COVID-19 information from the federal government as of 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday, October 14. Reminder: HHS Webinar on Phase 3 General Distributions HHS will hold a webcast on Thursday, October 15 at 3:00 (eastern) to give providers more information about the Phase 3 general distribution. Go here to register and submit questions. The application deadline for Phase 3 distributions is November 6. Provider Relief Fund The Provider Relief Fund FAQ has been updated with one new question on page 6 that is marked “Added 10/9/2020.” The new question is “Can providers use Provider Relief [...]

iqtsupport2020-10-15T06:00:14-04:00October 15, 2020|Coronavirus, COVID-19|

Coronavirus Update for Friday, October 9

The following is the latest COVID-19 information from the federal government as of 2:15 p.m. on Friday, October 9. Provider Relief Fund Five questions in the Provider Relief Fund FAQ have been modified with updated answers; they can be found on pages 14, 40, 41, 42, and 43. Most address the upcoming Phase 3 general distribution. Providers considering applying for a Phase 3 general distribution should review this new information carefully. The Provider Relief Fund has a new one-page fact sheet on the Phase 3 general distribution. The Provider Relief Fund web page also has introduced the new document “Phase [...]

iqtsupport2020-10-12T06:00:54-04:00October 12, 2020|Coronavirus, COVID-19|

MedPAC Meets

Last week the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission met in Washington, D.C. to discuss a number of Medicare payment issues. The issues on MedPAC’s October agenda were: the skilled nursing facility value-based payment system future research directions in hospice payments Medicare Advantage benchmark policy indirect medical education: current Medicare policy, concerns, and principles for revising the evolution of Medicare’s advanced alternative payment models vertical integration and Medicare payment policy MedPAC is an independent congressional agency that advises Congress on issues involving the Medicare program. While its recommendations are not binding on either Congress or the administration, MedPAC is highly influential in [...]

iqtsupport2020-10-09T06:00:26-04:00October 9, 2020|Alternative payment models, Medicare, Medicare regulations, Medicare reimbursement policy, MedPAC|

Congress Gives Hospitals Medicaid DSH Relief

Medicaid DSH allocations to states will not be reduced right away thanks to a new continuing resolution to fund the federal government through December 11. The Medicare disproportionate share allocation cuts to the states, mandated by the Affordable Care Act but delayed by Congress several times, were delayed again earlier this year but scheduled to take effect on November 11. With the latest continuing resolution, the cuts will be delayed yet another month. Learn more about the delay of Medicaid DSH cuts and other aspects of the continuing resolution that affect hospitals in the Healthcare Dive article “Providers win Medicare [...]

iqtsupport2020-10-08T13:00:57-04:00October 8, 2020|Medicaid disproportionate share, Medicaid DSH|

Coronavirus Update for Wednesday, October 7

The following is the latest COVID-19 information from the federal government as of 2:45 p.m. on Wednesday, October 7. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services: Updated Hospital Data Reporting Requirements CMS has issued guidance in support of an interim final regulation presenting its COVID-19 data reporting requirements for hospitals as a condition for continued participation in Medicare and Medicaid. The daily reporting requirements apply to all types of hospitals except for the following, for which reporting is required weekly: psychiatric hospitals distinct part psych hospitals Medicaid only psychiatric hospitals Medicaid only children’s hospitals rehabilitation hospitals Medicaid only rehabilitation hospitals The [...]

iqtsupport2020-10-08T06:00:50-04:00October 8, 2020|Coronavirus, COVID-19|

Coronavirus Update for Tuesday, October 6

The Department of Health and Human Services is now providing extensive information about its planned Phase 3 distribution of Provider Relief Funds. Background Last Thursday HHS announced the planned distribution of $20 billion in new funding for providers on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic. Under this Phase 3 General Distribution allocation, providers that have already received Provider Relief Fund payments are invited to apply for additional funding that considers financial losses and increased expenses experienced due to COVID-19. Previously ineligible providers, such as those that began practicing in 2020, will also be invited to apply, and an expanded [...]

iqtsupport2020-10-07T06:00:54-04:00October 7, 2020|Uncategorized|

Coronavirus Update for Monday, October 5

The following is the latest COVID-19 information from the federal government as 2:45 p.m. on Monday, October 5. Provider Relief Fund HHS has updated its Provider Relief Fund information about the Phase 3 general distribution that was announced last week. Go here for information on how to apply for Phase 3 funding and here for the terms and conditions for Phase 3 payments. Today is the first day for providers to apply for Phase 3 funding; the application deadline is November 6. HHS has updated its Provider Relief Fund FAQ with seven changes marked “Modified 10/1/2020.” The changes, found on [...]

iqtsupport2020-10-06T06:02:50-04:00October 6, 2020|Coronavirus, COVID-19|

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