Expanded HHVBP Model Web-Based Training

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is offering a web-based training course that provides an overview of changes to the expanded Home Health Value-Based Purchasing (HHVBP) Model applicable measure set for calendar year (CY) 2025 based on the Home Health (HH) CY 2024 Prospective Payment System (PPS) final rule. The course includes an […]

Help Us Fight Home Health Care Cuts!

As CMS Cuts Payments, Home Health Patients Are Seeing Reduced Access To Care. That’s the headline from a story this week in Home Health Care News. This is a major problem and as a community, we have to address it. The home health community is seeking support for legislation to curb dire cuts to Medicare […]

CMS Updates the Home Health Consolidated Billing Supply List

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued the annual update to the healthcare common procedure coding system (HCPCS) codes used for home health consolidated billing enforcement. There are 71 new codes that will take effect January 1, 2025. Most of the new codes are for compression garments and wraps used for patients […]

CMS Home Health, Hospice & DME Open Door Forum Summary

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) held a Home Health, Hospice & DME Open Door Forum on September 17, 2024.  Below is a summary of the Forum for those unable to attend. HOME HEALTH The first Annual Performance Report (APR) for the Home Health Value Based Purchasing (HHVBP) program was posted in August.  […]

Are you losing business because your hospital referrals are going unfulfilled?

In 2022 more than 2.7 million Medicare patients were discharged from the hospital with a referral to home health.  Of those fewer, than 60%, only about 1.6 million, received home care, representing both substantial access to care barriers for patients and missed business opportunities for home health agencies.  The lowest fulfillment rates are in rural […]

The Alliance Submits Comment on the Home Health Proposed Rule

The NAHC- NHPCO Alliance (Alliance) submitted comments on the Calander Year (CY) 2025 Home Health Prospective Payment System (HH PPS) Rate Update Proposed rule.  The Alliance, again, disagrees with CMS‘s budget neutrality adjustment methodology that has the potential to perpetually rebase payment rates. The Alliance also expressed concern that the existing and newly proposed payment […]

How Home Health Providers Can Prepare For HHVBP In 2025

CMS National Summary Report for the 2023 Post-Acute Care Health Equity Confidential Feedback

In October 2023, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released two Health Equity Confidential Feedback Reports to post-acute care (PAC) providers: the Discharge to Community (DTC) Health Equity Confidential Feedback Report and the Medicare Spending Per Beneficiary (MSPB) Health Equity Confidential Feedback Report. To help expand access to aggregate stratified results, the National […]

NAHC President Dombi: There’s ‘Good And Bad’ To Payers Entering Home Health Care

CMS Open Door Forum Updates for Home Health, Hospice

Home Health CMS announced a transition for the home health grouper software. The current version of Home Health (HH) Grouper uses Java software and is currently based on Java version 8. Support for Java version 8 will end by November 2026. Home health agencies and their software vendors who implement the HH Grouper in a mainframe environment […]

Next CMS Open Door Forum is August 7

The next Home Health, Hospice & DME Open Door Forum is scheduled for Wednesday, August 7, 2024, PM at 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM Eastern Time (ET). Please log on at least 15 minutes prior to the forum start time. **This Agenda is Subject to Change** Chair – Brian Slater, Center for Medicare, CMS Co-Chair- […]

Home Health Value Based Purchasing Update

Expanded HHVBP Model Performance Feedback Reports July 2024 Interim Performance Reports (IPRs) are Available on iQIES  The Preliminary July 2024 Interim Performance Reports (IPRs) for the expanded HHVBP Model have been published on the Internet Quality Improvement Evaluation System (iQIES).  The quarterly IPRs provide HHAs with the cohort assignment, performance year measure data for the […]