Articles and Blogs

The Medicare Durable Medical Equipment, Prosthetics, Orthotics, and Supplies (“DMEPOS”) Competitive Bidding Program Round 1 Recompete will begin later this year.  Below is the schedule the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) has announced so far: READ MORE

Since 2005, a group of associations known as the Long Term and Post Acute Care (LTPAC) Health Information Technology Collaborative (the Collaborative) have hosted the annual LTPAC Health IT Summit to discuss and advance health IT issues for long LTPAC providers.  Following the Summit, the Collaborative publishes a Road Map that identifies the progress... READ MORE

The Office of Inspector General (OIG) released a report this morning detailing issues found in the use of antipsychotics in nursing facilities.  Utilizing a sample of records from January through June of 2007, the OIG found over 99% of records reviewed failed to meet one or more Federal requirements.   READ MORE

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) just released the 2012 Nursing Home Action Plan; a guide for CMS’ efforts to continue to improve nursing home safety and quality.  The plan features 5 actionable strategies, including: enhance consumer engagement; strengthen survey processes, standards, and enforcement; promote quality improvement; create strategic approaches through partnerships; and... READ MORE

In an on-going push to regulate the use of antipsychotic medications in nursing facilities, another piece of legislation has failed to pass Congress.  The Senate did not pass a proposed regulation that would have standardized protocols for obtaining informed consent before administering antipsychotics for off-label use.   READ MORE

The Nursing Home Compare website, originally launched in 1998, is set to launch with a redesign July 19th.  The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) claims the redesign adopts industry design and usability best practices while also incorporating a considerable amount of new information to increase transparency and usability for consumers.   READ MORE

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has released a S&C Letter detailing the Nursing Home Quality Improvement Questionnaire (NHQIQ) discussed earlier this week.   The Affordable Care Act (ACA) mandates CMS to establish standards and provided technical assistance to nursing homes on the development and best practices relating to Quality Assurance and Performance Improvement... READ MORE

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is giving nursing home providers the opportunity to participate in the development of a new quality improvement initiative that was mandated by the Affordable Care Act (ACA).  While few people expected any issues with the implementation of the provisions in the ACA that affected long-term care... READ MORE

On the heels of last week’s failure for the antipsychotic measures to pass the Senate, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has just announced an initiative to reduce antipsychotic use in nursing facilities.  Yesterday, CMS officials announced a multi-year initiative to improve dementia care for residents of nursing homes by reducing the inappropriate... READ MORE

Last Thursday, a proposed regulation aimed at curbing the high levels of “off-label” uses for antipsychotic medications failed to pass the Senate.  This proposed legislation relates back to a report last November by Daniel R. Levinson, the U.S. Inspector General, that exposed the high levels of antipsychotic medications administered to nursing facility residents.  That report stated a... READ MORE