Home Health Line
10/03/2016
Want evidence CMS’ pre-claim review demonstration, in the name of fighting fraud, is penalizing honest home health agencies and panicking seniors? Consider what has happened in Illinois since pre-claim reviews began there Aug. 3, according to the Illinois HomeCare & Hospice Council.
10/03/2016
Medicare savings achieved so far by the Independence at Home demonstration have attracted Congressional support for legislation to use house calls teams to treat chronically ill seniors a permanent Medicare benefit.
10/03/2016
Administrators should use supervisory visits for nurses and therapists — in addition to aides — as a strategy for communicating clear expectations for staff. Such visits will ensure agency standards are met and patients are receiving high quality care.
10/03/2016
by: HHL’s Proposed CoPs Survey
Nearly 39% of the 220 respondents to a question on HHL’s Proposed CoPs Survey said they have hired an interpretive service (or already use one) due to the proposed patient rights Condition of Participation
10/03/2016
In a complete reversal from previous guidance, coders can now assign I11.0 (Hypertensive heart disease with heart failure) for a patient with diagnoses of hypertension and heart failure, regardless of whether the physician has linked the hypertension to the heart failure.
09/30/2016
by: CMS
View an IMPACT Act data analysis fact sheet here.
09/28/2016
Fully train patients’ families about the restlessness and agitation their loved one may experience while receiving hospice care. Doing so will prepare families for stressful situations and could improve your hospice patient satisfaction scores.
09/28/2016
by: Strategic Healthcare Programs in Santa Barbara, Calif.
Families of hospice patients scored hospices the lowest on the measure asking whether they were provided help with feelings of anxiety or sadness, according to the first year of Hospice CAHPS Survey data submitted by Strategic Healthcare Programs in Santa Barbara, Calif. 
09/26/2016
Educate home health aides about skin condition changes. That’s one step your agency could take immediately to prepare for the revised aide services condition included within the proposed Home Health Conditions of Participation (CoPs).
09/26/2016
Under a new federal requirement, your agency must post information in its office and on its website that language assistance will be available and that you won’t discriminate against patients for any reason.

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