compliance

WASHINGTON, D.C. (January 27, 2022)—The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has published the 2021 Medicare Fee-For-Service Supplemental Improper Payment Data report. This is an annual report published by CMS’s Comprehensive Error Rate Testing (CERT) program that is intended to measure the improper payments made in the Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) program.

WASHINTON, D.C. (January 21, 2022)—The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has increased its civil penalties based on cost of living adjustments.

WASHINGTON, D.C. (January 18, 2022)—The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) recently opened the Provider Relief Fund (PRF) reporting portal for providers to begin entering data to submit their second period PRF reports. Providers who received one or more General and/or Targeted PRF payments exceeding $10,000, in the aggregate, from July 1, 2020 to Dec. 31, 2020 must report on their use of funds in Reporting Period 2.

WASHINGTON, D.C. (January 11, 2022)—The deadline for home health agencies to submit a request for an exemption from participating in the Home Health CAHPS (HH CAHPS) Survey for the CY 2023 Annual Payment Update (APU) is March 31, 2022.

WESTLAKE, Ohio (December 1, 2021)—Applied Home Healthcare Equipment, a long-trusted resource for oxygen filling, technical and regulatory support for home medical equipment providers, has announced the launch of their new drug reporting service. 

WASHINGTON, D.C. (October 12, 2021)—Hospice providers have been anxiously awaiting additional information on two new Hospice Quality Reporting Program (HQRP) measures:

•    Hospice Visits in Last Days of Life (HVLDL)
•    Hospice Care Index (HCI)

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (October 1, 2021)—Husch Blackwell’s Hospice & Palliative Care team successfully represented hospices who were facing a 2% payment reduction penalty for Fiscal Year 2022 based on alleged noncompliance with Hospice Quality Program Reporting Program (HQRP) requirements.

PITTSBURGH, Penn. (June 8, 202)—sovaSage Incorporated, a Pittsburgh based company, announced the latest release of its TherapistAssist software (version 7.0). This new release provides an effortless and instantaneous handoff of mask and mask sizing recommendations between sleep labs, home sleep study services and durable medical equipment (DME) providers.