Tag: CMS

US Senate passes Electronic Health Fairness Act

Editor's Note The US Senate on August 5 passed the Electronic Health Fairness Act of 2015 (S 1347), which was heavily promoted by the Ambulatory Surgery Center Association. The legislation protects physicians practicing in ASCs from Medicare meaningful use penalties until a certified electronic health record technology is available for…

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By: OR Manager
August 7, 2015
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CMS extends ASC quality measure deadline until September 30

Editor's Note The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has extended the deadline for submitting data for the Ambulatory Surgical Center Quality Reporting Program until September 30, the Ambulatory Surgery Center Association reports.   This applies to the claims-based measures submitted via QualityNet and the Centers for Disease Control and…

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By: OR Manager
August 4, 2015
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Medicare penalizes more than half of hospitals for readmissions

Editor's Note Nearly 2,600 hospitals will be penalized for missing readmission targets under Medicare, with a loss of $420 million, Kaiser Health News reports. The average Medicare payment reduction is 0.61% per patient stay; 38 hospitals will receive the maximum cut of 3%. The reductions are based on readmissions of…

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By: OR Manager
August 4, 2015
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Which procedures should be added to ASC Medicare list?

Editor's Note The Ambulatory Surgery Center Association (ASCA) is conducting a survey of its members to determine which procedures should be added to the list of ASC Medicare payable procedures for 2016. The information will help ASCA advocate for the expansion of the list of procedures the Centers for Medicare…

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By: OR Manager
July 30, 2015
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Medicare patient mortality, hospitalizations, and expenditures down

Editor's Note Deaths, hospital stays, and spending all decreased for Medicare patients from 1999 to 2013, this study finds. In 1999, the all-cause mortality rate was 5.3%, and by 2013 that rate had fallen to 4.5%. Hospitalizations decreased from around 35,000 per 100,000 annually to 27,000 per 100,000. Inpatient inflation-adjusted…

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By: OR Manager
July 30, 2015
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Penalties based on number of VTEs unfairly imposed

Editor's Note After a review of 128 case histories, Johns Hopkins researchers find that financial penalties imposed by federal and state agencies on Maryland hospitals based solely on the total number of patients who suffer venous thromboemboli (VTEs) fail to account for those that occur despite the consistent and proper…

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By: OR Manager
July 29, 2015
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Healthcare spending to grow 5.8% annually

Editor's Note The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Office of the Actuary estimates that healthcare spending will grow an average of 5.8% each year from 2014 to 2024. The estimate is higher than the projection of 5.7% made a year ago. Prior to the Affordable Care Act in 2014,…

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By: OR Manager
July 29, 2015
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Characteristics of hospitals penalized in HAC reduction program

Editor's Note Among hospitals participating in the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Hospital-Acquired Condition Reduction Program, those penalized the most had more quality accreditations, offered more advanced services, were major teaching institutions, and had better performance on other process and outcome measures. The findings suggest that the approach CMS…

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By: OR Manager
July 29, 2015
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Senate bill would let Medicare patients self-pay for medical devices

Editor's Note Four US Senators (two democrats, two republicans) are sponsoring legislation—The Accelerating Innovation in Medicine (AIM) Act—that would increase Medicare patients’ access to new medical devices. Currently, Medicare patients who are interested in self-paying for a device not covered by Medicare face significant administrative obstacles.  Under AIM, once a…

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By: OR Manager
July 24, 2015
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Senate panel asking for delay of Stage 3 MU

Editor's Note The Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee is asking for a delay of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' Stage 3 meaningful-use rules, which providers say are costly and time-consuming. Stage 3 requires providers to send electronic summaries for 50% of patients they refer to other…

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By: OR Manager
July 24, 2015
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