November is Diabetes Awareness Month.  In 2006, the United Nations officially designated November 14th as World Diabetes Day.  It is marked every year on Sir Frederick Banting’s birthday, who discovered insulin along with Charles Best in 1922.  Diabetes affects over 500 million people worldwide and about 37 million Americans.   For those with diabetes and their…

Due Now: Credit Balance Reporting now due for the Quarter ending 9/30/2023regardless of whether any credits need to be reported. What to Submit:  The one-page Credit Balance Report – Form CMS-838.  Ensure that it is signed by an authorized representative.  It may be necessary to submit additional Credit Balance Report Detail pages. When To Submit: …

Coding your home health claims is a multifaceted process fraught with complicated issues.  The October 1st, 2023, update including expanded Parkinson’s codes is just such an issue. Gone are the days of choose one code and go. Let’s look at this expansion.  The changes to these diagnosis codes began in September of 2021 with a…

The National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC) expressed strong support for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) with the goal of the hospice Special Focus Program (SFP) as a means to “identify hospices as poor performers, based on defined quality indicators”.  But…NAHC in collaboration with other Home Health and Hospice State Associations submitted…

According to the CDC, an estimated 6.5 million adults over the age of 20 have a diagnosis of heart failure.  Certain conditions and unhealthy behaviors can increase the risk for heart failure.  Caring for the heart failure patient in the home can often be challenging and requires a thorough understanding of the disease and the…

Texas Health and Human Services published a Long-Term Care Regulation Provider Letter on May 22, 2023, for the Home and Community Support Services. This provider letter outlines new reporting requirements for Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation effective July 1, 2023. Suspected ANE for Medicaid consumers are to be reported to Department of Family and Protective Services…

Introduction:  In the evolving landscape of healthcare, home health agencies face increasing demands to provide high-quality care to patients with chronic diseases and complex medical needs. Seeking disease management certification can serve as a catalyst for home health agencies to improve the quality of their services while gaining a competitive marketing edge. In this blog…

The COVID-19 Public Health Emergency ended on May 11th—but now what?  Home health and hospice providers have received some information about how to return to normal following the COVID-19 waivers.  However, we continue to wait for other clarifications and the OSHA final rule.  In the meantime, CMS released a preview of its final rule on May 31st. …

When is the last time you entered a complaint in your grievance log?  One of the core standards of focus for hospice surveyors is §418.52(b)-Exercise of rights and respect for property and person.  The interpretive guidelines for this standard state that a “grievance is a formal or informal written or verbal complaint made to any…

Home health agencies are living in the midst of CMS’ expansion of Home Health Value-Based Purchasing (HHVBP) Model.  There are quite a few intricacies to grasp regarding this program; however, CMS has published a self-assessment tool to help agencies get on track.  An added bonus of this tool is the QAPI aspect.  Don’t forget that MAC Legacy…