News

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced last week that the proposed Resident Classification System (RCS-I) is not ready for implementation and may not be included in the upcoming FY19 proposed rule. 

The number of cost-burdened senior households is rapidly rising, often forcing seniors with low incomes to choose between housing costs, health care and food. In fact, people age 65 and older are the fastest growing homeless population in Minnesota. 

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has developed a newly-revised Skilled Nursing Facility Advance Beneficiary Notice of Non-coverage (SNFABN) (CMS-10055), along with updated instructions for completion of the form. The revised SNFABN will be mandatory for use on May 7, 2018. 

A new bill in Congress, the EMPOWER Care Act, would extend funding for the Money Follows the Person demonstration project and help improve access to in-home services, adult day services and other services that help older adults remain independent in their communities. 

The proposed 14 percent cut to HUD programs will have a devastating impact on voucher and public housing programs that serve more than 750,000 senior households. Act Now! Tell Congress: More HUD Funding, Not Less. 

The National Quality Forum released a new, comprehensive guide to help frontline providers more safely and effectively manage patient and resident pain. 

Bed rails have often been implemented in a desire to provide a supportive, assistive and safe environment for residents and home care clients, but they do pose a risk for entrapment.  

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is required to remove Social Security Numbers (SSNs) from all Medicare cards by April 2019. This will have an impact on how providers submit claims.  

Congress has until March 23 to finalize the FY18 appropriations bill that includes funding for U.S. Housing & Urban Development (HUD) programs. LeadingAge has been very active on Capitol Hill advocating for our affordable housing priorities, which include: 

President Donald Trump has proposed a 14 percent cut to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for fiscal year 2019. We need your help! Tell Congress to invest more in affordable housing for seniors and reject these proposed cuts. 

After reviewing the proposed budget from President Donald Trump, we have identified several proposals that would have a negative impact on long-term services and supports and one area that LeadingAge Minnesota care center members will embrace. 

Care centers will find it valuable to review the “Frequently Asked Questions Related to Long Term Care Regulations, Survey Process, and Training” posted on the CMS webpage dedicated to the requirements of participation and survey process.  

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will soon use payroll-based journal (PBJ) data to update staffing measures in the Five-Star Quality Rating System. 

Shortly after signing the new budget deal approved by Congress, President Donald Trump released his initial budget request for fiscal year 2019. It features $1.4 trillion in Medicaid cuts over the next decade and brings back the per capita caps and block grant proposal we successfully defeated last year. 

President Donald Trump last week signed a $320 billion budget agreement and stop-gap funding through March 23 that ended a blink-and-you-might-have-missed-it government shutdown. There is some good news and bad news for aging services providers: 

The initial budget request released by President Donald Trump this week includes deep cuts to affordable housing programs. The budget proposal cuts funding to the U.S. Housing & Urban Development Department by 18 percent, which would: 

Every year since 2006, Congress has ultimately renewed the exceptions process for annual caps on outpatient therapy under Medicare Part B. Since that has not yet happened for 2018, the caps are currently in effect. This year the caps are $2,010 for physical and speech combined and another $2,010 for occupational therapy. 

Home health care agencies should now be complying with the new Conditions of Participation that went into effect Jan. 13. Unfortunately, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has yet to finalize the interpretive guidelines that offer more detailed information on certain measures. 

Feb. 14 is the due date for care centers to submit Payroll Based Journal (PBJ) staffing data for the period Oct. 1, 2017 – Dec. 31, 2017. Submitting timely and accurate data may be especially important this quarter, as the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has said it will utilize PBJ data in 2018 to calculate the staffing measures posted on the Nursing Home Compare website and used in the Five Star Quality Rating System.  

A three-day government shutdown came to an end on Monday when the Senate advanced a continuing resolution to provide funding for the federal government through Feb. 8.