Purpose of CMS readmission program questioned
Editor's Note The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program has only seen a drop in readmissions by 0.1% from 2013 to mid-2016, which has industry experts and hospital leaders questioning its purpose, the August 12 Modern Healthcare reports. The Affordable Care Act mandated program, which…
Medicare ‘meaningful use’ data to be submitted via QualityNet
Editor's Note The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced August 7 that hospitals and critical access hospitals participating in Medicare’s Electronic Health Record (EHR) Incentive Program will submit their “meaningful use” data via QualityNet rather than the EHR Incentive Program Registration and Attestation System beginning January 2, 2018,…
CMS push to value-based care leading to more burnout
Editor's Note The push by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to transform healthcare delivery at community health centers to value-based care is increasing staff dissatisfaction and burnout, this study finds. From 2013 to 2014, clinicians and staff at 296 centers reported statistically significant declines in multiple measures…
Reduction in readmissions not linked to increased mortality
Editor's Note Reductions in readmissions associated with the Affordable Care Act have not had the unintended consequence of increasing mortality after hospital discharge, finds this study. Analysis of more than 5 million Medicare patients hospitalized for heart failure, heart attack, or pneumonia, found that reductions in hospital 30-day readmission rates…
Editorial
The inaugural Bundled Payment Bootcamp on June 20 in Nashville, Tennessee, was a timely opportunity for healthcare providers to learn how reimbursement is changing the way they do business. Though the uncertain direction of US healthcare legislation continues to cause consternation, this workshop—which will be presented again in fall 2017—clarifies…
FDA updates Class II medical devices exempt from premarket notification
Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on July 11 announced a list of 1,003 Class II devices that the Agency says no longer require premarket notification to provide reasonable assurance of safety and effectiveness. The exemptions were made in an effort to decrease regulatory burdens on the medical…
Editorial
Efforts to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA) are ongoing, with continued uncertainty about what may happen and when. To keep things in perspective, here’s a snapshot of recent developments. On May 4, the US House of Representatives approved the American Health Care Act (AHCA) by a vote…
Half million providers to get 2% cut in Medicare payments
Editor's Note More than 500,000 physicians and other providers will get a 2% cut in their Medicare payments because of poor performance in the Physician Quality Reporting System (PQRS), the June 13 Modern Healthcare reports. The penalties are based on 2015 claims data. Though Medicare is phasing out PQRS and…
FDA extends UDI compliance dates for Class I, unclassified devices
Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has notified medical device labelers that the compliance dates for unique device identifier (UDI) requirements for Class I and unclassified medical devices has been extended from September 24, 2018, to September 24, 2020, and for direct mark requirements from September 24, 2020,…
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,…
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- FDA approves new non-opioid analgesic
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- Cigna ties executive pay to patient experience
- Proposed tax credit aims to bolster nurse preceptor ranks
- Study links financial conflicts of interest to favorable robotic bariatric surgery research
- Hospitals double down on ambulatory care expansion with major investments
- Study: Post-laparotomy incisional negative pressure wound therapy fails to reduce infection risk
- FDA announces multiple Class 1 recalls