Lawmakers Back Home Health Providers, Condemn Payment Cuts In Symbolic Subcommittee Hearing

NAHC Testimony to Senate Leads Defense of Home Health Against CMS Proposed Rule

William A. Dombi, President of the National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC) led the defense of the home health industry at a hearing of the U.S. Senate Finance Committee subcommittee on health care yesterday, telling lawmakers that proposed cuts to the home health payment rate by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services […]

Senate hearing to shine light on stakes of final home health rule

House GOPers Express Concern to CMS with Medicaid Access Rule

On Tuesday, August 22, 2023, 21 Republicans in the House of Representatives sent a letter to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) expressing concerns with the 80-20 provision in the Medicaid Access proposed rule. The provision would require that at least 80 percent of all Medicaid payments for homemaker, home health aide, and […]

Help NAHC Support the Preserving Access to Home Health Act

Bipartisan legislation has been introduced in the House of Representatives to remedy past and prevent future cuts to the Medicare Home Health payment model. Representatives Terri Sewell (D-AL) and Adrian Smith (R-NE) introduced the Preserving Access to Home Health Act of 2023 (HR 5159) last week as a companion bill of the same name (S. 2137) introduced in the Senate by […]

House Lawmakers Introduce Preserving Access to Home Health Act to Prevent Harmful Program Cuts

Bipartisan legislation has been introduced in the House of Representatives to remedy past and prevent future cuts to the Medicare Home Health payment model. Representatives Terri Sewell (D-AL) and Adrian Smith (R-NE) introduced the Preserving Access to Home Health Act of 2023 on Tuesday, August 1, 2023. This legislation is a companion bill of the same […]

Congressional Briefing Demonstrates the Value of the Medicare Hospice Benefit

On Thursday, July 27, a panel of healthcare experts presented groundbreaking new research at a Capitol Hill briefing for Congressional offices, showing that patient use of hospice contributed to $3.5 billion in Medicare savings in 2019, while also providing multiple benefits to patients, families, and caregivers. (Watch a video of the briefing here.) The study, […]

MedPAC Submits Wage Index Reform Recommendations to Congress

Over recent months, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC), an advisory body to the Congress, has conducted in-depth study of the wage index system and developed a model approach designed to eliminate inequities and bring greater accuracy to the wage index system. As part of a recent report to Congress (June 2023 Report to the Congress: […]

Palliative & Hospice Workforce Legislation Re-Introduced in the Senate

On Tuesday, July 11, 2023, a large bipartisan group of Senators, led by Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Shelley Moore-Capito (R-WV) reintroduced the Palliative Care and Hospice Education and Training Act (PCHETA) (S.2243) (Bill text HERE; 1-pager summary HERE). Long a priority for NAHC and the broader end-of-life and serious illness care community, PCHETA would authorize funding for major investments to build, […]

MedPAC Submits Wage Index Reform Recommendations to Congress

Over recent months, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC), an advisory body to the Congress, has conducted in-depth study of the wage index system and developed a model approach designed to eliminate inequities and bring greater accuracy to the wage index system. As part of a recent report to Congress (June 2023 Report to the Congress: […]