Survey: Physicians unprepared for MACRA
Editor's Note A survey of 1,000 physicians by the American Medical Association and KPMG finds that fewer than one in four believe they are well prepared to meet the 2017 requirements of the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA), KPMG.com reported on June 28. MACRA reshapes how…
Value-based reforms linked to readmission reduction
Editor's Note Hospital participation in value-based reforms was associated with greater reductions in 30-day readmissions, this study finds. In this analysis of 2,837 hospitals between 2008 and 2015, researchers found that participation in one or more voluntary Medicare value-based reforms, which included the Meaningful Use of Electronic Health Records program,…
CMS issues guide for quality payment programs
Editor's Note The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued a guide summarizing technical assistance resources available to small, underserved, and rural hospitals participating in the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) and the Advanced Alternative Payment Model (AAPM). The guide also provides resources for quality innovation networks and…
Lower readmission rates linked to Medicare's HRRP
Studies have shown an association between reduced hospital readmission rates and programs implemented as part of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) Hospital Readmission Reduction Program (HRRP) to reduce healthcare costs and improve quality of care. Researchers from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor and the RAND…
Effect of Medicare’s Nonpayment Program on HACs
Editor's Note Medicare’s Nonpayment Program of 2008, which withholds hospital reimbursement for costs related to hospital-acquired conditions (HACs), was associated with a declined in the incidence of selected HACs, and the decline was greater in hospitals with a higher Medicare utilization ratio (MUR), this study finds. Of 867,584 Medicare patients…
Study: Most hospitals received penalties for excess readmissions
Editor's Note More than half of hospitals were penalized by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in all five years of the Hospital Readmission Reduction Program (HRRP) initiated by the Affordable Care Act, this study finds. Among the study findings: Penalties doubled since the beginning of the program, from…
CMS releases proposed FY 2018 inpatient payments, policies
Editor's Note The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on April 14 issued a proposed rule that would update FY 2018 Medicare inpatient payments and policies. Among the changes, the rule: would increase payment rates by 1.6%, after accounting for inflation and other adjustments required by law includes an…
CMS interim rule delays bundled payment programs
Editor's Note In an interim final rule, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has delayed expansion of the Comprehensive Care for Joint Replacement (CJR) bundled payment program and implementation of its bundled payment programs for cardiac care from July 1 to October 1, 2017, the March 20 Modern…
Bill to repeal, replace Affordable Care Act released
Editor's Note The 123-page bill, called the “American Health Care Act,” was released March 6, Modern Healthcare reports. The bill replaces the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA’s) income-based premium tax credits with age-based tax credits. It also enhances federal funding for states to expand Medicaid to low-income adults, and it converts…
Executive order pushes back implementation of bundled payment models
Editor's Note An executive order by President Donald Trump that freezes new regulations has pushed back implementation of new and expanded Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) bundled payment models by 60 days, the February 20 Home Health Care News reports. Mixed feelings continue in the healthcare industry as…
Free Daily News
- Study: COVID-19's impact on oncological surgery offers lessons for future crises
- Study links pandemic stress to persistent increases in nursing-sensitive quality indicators
- Save the date for the 2025 OR Business Management Conference
- Study: Education, exercise improve knee OA with or without prior surgery
- Study: Early surgery outperforms endoscopy for long-term pancreatitis
- Study: Blood thinner, NSAID combination raises bleeding risk
- Hospital financial report predicts stability, high cybersecurity costs for 2025
- IV fluid shortage drives innovation in hospital hydration practices
- FDA Class 1 recalls target anesthesia workstations, ambulatory infusion pumps, ventilators
- Five leadership lessons from an ASC CEO