Medicare inpatient payments

MedPAC Offers FY 2024 Rate Recommendations

Medicare rates would rise for some providers and fall for others based on recommendations made to Congress last week by the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission, the independent congressional agency that advises Congress on Medicare reimbursement matters. MedPAC’s rate recommendations to Congress and the administration, which it approved at its January 2023 meeting, are: Outpatient and inpatient prospective payment systems – under current law, the estimated increase would be about 2.9 percent; MedPAC proposes 2.9 percent plus one percent. Physician services – increase fees 50 percent of the projected increase in the medical economic index (MEI). Skilled nursing facilities – reduce [...]

admin2023-03-22T06:00:32+00:00March 22, 2023|Congress, hospitals, Medicare, Medicare disproportionate share, Medicare DSH, Medicare post-acute care, Medicare reimbursement policy, MedPAC|

MedPAC Makes 2023 Medicare Payment Recommendations

The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission has released its March 2022 Report to the Congress: Medicare Payment Policy. The report includes MedPAC’s recommendations for Medicare payments in 2023. For the coming year, MedPAC recommends the following changes in Medicare fee-for-service payments: hospital inpatient payments – increase 2.5% hospital outpatient payments – increase 2.0% long-term care hospital payments – increase approximately 2.0% outpatient dialysis payments – increase 1.2% physician, ambulatory surgical center, and hospice payments – no change skilled nursing facility, home health, and inpatient rehabilitation facility payments – reduce 5.0% The report also reviews the status of Medicare Advantage and the [...]

admin2022-03-21T06:00:52+00:00March 21, 2022|Medicare reimbursement policy, MedPAC|

MedPAC Meets

The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission met in Washington, D.C. recently to discuss various Medicare payment issues. Among the issues discussed at MedPAC’s January meeting were: hospital inpatient and outpatient payments physician and health professionals payments the possible expansion of the post-acute transfer policy to hospice ambulatory surgical center, outpatient dialysis, and hospice payments Medicare payments for skilled nursing facilities, long-term hospitals, inpatient rehabilitation facilities, and home health services the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation’s development and implementation of alternative payment models the future of telehealth after the COVID-19 public health emergency ends a status report on the Medicare Part [...]

admin2021-01-25T06:00:58+00:00January 25, 2021|Alternative payment models, Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, CMMI, Medicare post-acute care, Medicare reimbursement policy, MedPAC|

MedPAC Meets

Last week the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission met in Washington, D.C. to discuss a number of Medicare payment issues. MedPAC’s proposed Medicare 2021 payment recommendations dominated the December agenda, including: hospital inpatient and outpatient payments ambulatory surgical center payments physician and health professional payments hospice payments home health care payments inpatient rehabilitation facility payments long-term care hospital payments In addition, MedPAC discussed Medicare’s policy for transfers between post-acute-care facilities and hospice and received a staff update on the Medicare Advantage program. MedPAC is an independent congressional agency that advises Congress on issues involving Medicare. While its recommendations are not binding [...]

admin2020-12-10T06:00:36+00:00December 10, 2020|Medicare, Medicare post-acute care, Medicare regulations, Medicare reimbursement policy, MedPAC|

CMS Finalizes FY 2021 Payments to Hospitals

Medicare has announced how it will pay hospitals for inpatient care in FY 2021 with publication of its annual inpatient prospective payment system regulation last week. Among the changes announced by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services: A 2.9 percent increase in fee-for-service inpatient rates. A compromise on its proposal to require hospitals to report their payer-specific negotiated rates with Medicare Advantage plans. Changes in how Medicare will calculate Medicare disproportionate share (Medicare DSH) uncompensated care payments. A much smaller cut than originally proposed in the pool of funds for Medicare DSH uncompensated care payments. Minor adjustments in the [...]

admin2020-09-09T06:00:15+00:00September 9, 2020|hospitals, Medicaid regulations, Medicare disproportionate share, Medicare DSH, Medicare reimbursement policy|

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 January agenda were: The Medicare prescription drug program (Part D): status report and options for restructuring Redesigning the Medicare Advantage quality program: initial modeling of a value incentive program Hospital inpatient and outpatient payments Physician payments Outpatient dialysis payments Skilled nursing facility, home health, inpatient rehabilitation facility, and long-term-care hospital payments Hospice and ambulatory surgery center payments The 340B program ACO beneficiary assignment MedPAC is an independent congressional agency that advises Congress on issues involving the Medicare program. [...]

admin2020-01-22T06:00:06+00:00January 22, 2020|Accountable Care Organization, ACO, Medicare, Medicare post-acute care, Medicare regulations, Medicare reimbursement policy, MedPAC|

MedPAC Meeting Transcript Now Available

Last week the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission met in Washington, D.C. The Medicare payment issues on its agenda were: Assessing payment adequacy and updating payments: Physician and other health professional services Assessing payment adequacy and updating payments: Ambulatory surgical center services Assessing payment adequacy and updating payments: Hospital inpatient and outpatient services; Mandated report: Expanding the post-acute care transfer policy to hospice Assessing payment adequacy and updating payments: Skilled nursing facility services Assessing payment adequacy and updating payments: Home health care services Assessing payment adequacy and updating payments: Inpatient rehabilitation facility services Assessing payment adequacy and updating payments: Long-term care [...]

admin2019-12-13T06:00:56+00:00December 13, 2019|hospitals, Medicare, Medicare post-acute care, Medicare regulations, Medicare reimbursement policy, MedPAC|

MedPAC to Meet Tomorrow

The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission meets this Thursday and Friday in Washington, D.C. MedPAC’s December agenda is dominated by Medicare payment issues: how much Medicare should pay for different types of services in calendar year 2021 and FY 2021. The services to be addressed during the December 5-6 meetings are physician and other health professional services, ambulatory surgical center services, hospital inpatient and outpatient services, skilling nursing facility services, home health services, inpatient rehabilitation facility services, long-term care hospital services, outpatient dialysis services, and hospice services. In addition, MedPAC commissioners will discuss their mandated report on expanding Medicare’s post-acute care [...]

admin2019-12-04T06:00:06+00:00December 4, 2019|Medicare, Medicare post-acute care, Medicare reimbursement policy, MedPAC|

MedPAC Weighs in on Proposed Medicare Payment Changes

The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission has submitted formal comments to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services in response to the latter’s publication of a proposed regulation that would govern how Medicare will pay for acute-care hospital inpatient services and long-term hospital care in the coming 2020 fiscal year. The 14-page MedPAC report addresses four aspects of the proposed Medicare payment regulation: inpatient- and outpatient drug- and device related payment proposals proposed changes in the hospital area wage index the reporting of hospitals’ uncompensated care on the Medicare cost report’s S-10 worksheet the long-term hospital prospective payment system MedPAC is [...]

admin2019-06-26T06:00:55+00:00June 26, 2019|Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, hospitals, Medicare, Medicare regulations, MedPAC, post-acute care|

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 December agenda were: Medicare payments for physician and other health professionals services payments for ambulatory surgical centers payments for hospital inpatient and outpatient care Medicare’s hospital quality incentive program payments for skilled nursing facilities payments for long-term care hospitals payments for inpatient rehabilitation facilities payments for outpatient dialysis services payments for hospice care payments for home health services the Medicare Advantage program MedPAC is an independent congressional agency that advises Congress on issues involving the Medicare program. [...]

admin2018-12-11T06:00:45+00:00December 11, 2018|hospitals, Medicare, Medicare reimbursement policy, MedPAC|