Washington, D.C. (September 7, 2021)—It is with regret that the National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC) must announce the cancellation of the 2021 Home Care and Hospice Conference and Expo, originally scheduled for Oct. 3-5, 2021, in New Orleans.
This decision was not made lightly, and we are enormously grateful for the support so many people showed for the homecare and hospice community by registering to join their fellow industry leaders at the conference.
WASHINGTON, D.C. (August 31, 2021)—The National Association for Home Care & Hospice submitted comments to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on the latest home health proposed rule 86 Fed. Reg. 35874. The rule proposed changes to the Patient Driven Groupings Model (PDGM) case mix and reimbursement based on 2020 care data.
WASHINGTON, D.C. & OWINGS MILLS, Md. (August 24, 2021)—Increasing the vaccination rates among home health workers is critical to slowing the spread of COVID-19. The National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC) in consultation with industry leaders, estimate a vaccination range of 40% to 90% depending on the company and the discipline of the caregiver.
WASHINGTON, D.C. (August 3, 2021)—Late on July 29, U.S. Sens. Jacky Rosen (D-Nevada) John Barrasso (R-Wyoming), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisconsin) and Deb Fischer (R-Nebraska)—co-chairs and co-founders of the Senate Comprehensive Care Caucus—announced the introduction of the bipartisan Expanding Access to Palliative Care Act (S. 2565). Sens. Rosen, Barrasso and Baldwin also announced the introduction of their bipartisan Improving Access to Transfusion Care for Hospice Patients Act of 2021 (S.
WASHINGTON, D.C. (July 29, 2021)—The National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC) and Partnership for Quality Home Healthcare (PQHH) today commended the introduction of the Choose Home Care Act of 2021. The bipartisan legislation, introduced by Sens.
Updated July 27 at 1:34 p.m. with new information.
WASHINGTON, D.C. (July 27, 2021)—As new variants of COVID-19 are on the rise and vaccination rates are stalling around the country, LeadingAge joined leading health care organizations calling for requiring vaccines for all staff in long-term care and other health care settings.
WASHIGNTON, D.C. (July 23, 2021)—A bipartisan group of Senators led by Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Virginia) have introduced the Supporting Our Direct Care Workforce and Family Caregivers Act (S. 2344), a bill to provide $1 billion in grants to states and other eligible entities to support innovative projects and programs focused on recruitment, retention and training for direct care workers, as well as family caregivers.
WASHINGTON, D.C (July 16, 2021)—The National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC) and a group of like-minded organizations representing America's health providers have written a letter to Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-NY) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), asking them to:
• oppose an extension of mandatory Medicare sequestration as a pay-for in any infrastructure package; and
BIRMINGHAM, Alabama (July 1, 2021)—The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid (CMS) isn’t ready to make dramatic changes yet to the Patient Driven Groupings Model (PDGM) but could reduce base payment rates as soon as 2023 if current tren
WASHINGTON, D.C. (May 25, 2021)—The Senate has confirmed Chiquita Brooks-LaSure as the next administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). The vote was 55 to 44 in favor of her confirmation. Brooks-LaSure will be the first Black woman to hold the position.
Today, leaders in the homecare industry shared their reactions to the news.
WASHINGTON, D.C. (April 27, 2021)—A bipartisan group of U.S. senators introduced legislation on Thursday, April 22, to provide reimbursement to providers for telehealth services in the Medicare Home Health benefit.
Introduced as S. 1309, the Home Health Emergency Access to Telehealth (HEAT) Act is a top 2021 legislative priority for the National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC).
Updated April 14, 3:00 p.m. CST
WASHINGTON, D.C. (April 14, 2021)—The House of Representatives passed an amended version of H.R. 1868 on April 12, extending the pause on the 2% Medicare sequester cuts through the remainder of 2021.
WASHINGTON, D.C. (March 12, 2021)—The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced a further delay of its Primary Care First-Seriously Ill Population (PCF-SIP) physician payment model, a component of the PCF that has been closely followed by the hospice and palliative care community. PCF-SIP had previously been scheduled to begin on Jan. 1, 2021, but CMS announced a delayed (April 1, 2021) start date in June 2020.
WASHINGTON, D.C. (March 5, 2021)—The National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC) has joined with a group of like-minded groups in the Leadership Council of Aging Organizations (LCAO) in urging Congress to protect vital programs like Medicare and Social Security from steep and unnecessary spending cuts that could cause considerable harm to America’s elderly and disabled populations.
Washington, DC (March 4, 2021)—Homecare and hospice are changing at an unprecedented rate. Last year agencies faced two of their biggest challenges—COVID-19 and Patient Driven Groupings Model (PDGM)—on top of staffing shortages. As a result, the sector is evolving and needs national research to guide efforts and help define what it means to provide health care in the home.
WASHINGTON, D.C. (March 2, 2021)—The National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC) has received additional clarification on Medicare coverage policies for home health agencies.
NAHC has reported on responses from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on several key outstanding question. In that report NAHC noted follow-up was needed on two of CMS’s responses.
WASHINGTON, D.C. (February 16, 2021)—With the next COVID-19 relief package currently under development and possibly coming with a significant price tag—upwards of $1.9 trillion as requested by the Biden administration—many elected officials and stakeholder groups are proposing increased funding to Medicaid home and community-based services (HCBS).
WASHINGTON, D.C. (February 5, 2021)—President Biden announced on Tuesday, Feb. 2, an executive order directing federal agencies to review the previous administration’s immigration policies, including the public charge rule, which was initially proposed by the Trump administration in September 2018 and finalized it August 2019.
WASHINGTON, D.C. (February 2, 2021)—During their recent Jan. 14-15 meeting, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) recommended to Congress a 5% base rate cut for home health services.
The recommendations follow the base rate discussions held during MedPAC’s previous meeting in December 2020.
WASHINGTON, D.C. (January 22, 2021)—A definition of “reasonable and necessary” was included of the recently finalized rule, Medicare Program; Medicare Coverage of Innovative Technology (MCIT) and Definition of ‘‘Reasonable and Necessary’’.
WASHINGTON, D.C. (January 19, 2021)—As anticipated, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC), an advisory body to Congress, met last week to finalize payment and policy recommendations that will be incorporated in its annual March Report to Congress.
