Healthcare News of Note: Biden administration appears to be well-aligned with all sectors of the industry
Healthcare News of Note for healthcare finance professionals is a roundup of recent news articles, including the industry’s alignment with President Biden, why many HHS regulations could be in peril and the effect of vaccines on chronic COVID-19 symptoms.
Hospitals can use new CMS Condition of Participation regarding ADTs to enhance strategic alignment with independent physicians and post-acute providers
New requirements regarding notifications of admissions, discharges and transfers present both a challenge and a strategic opportunities for hospitals.
With insolvency looming for the Medicare Hospital Insurance Trust Fund, provider payments could be impacted
The Medicare Hospital Insurance Trust Fund, used to pay for Part A hospital care, is on track to become insolvent as soon as 2024. Insolvency could lead to delays in payments to providers and adversely affect patient access.
GAO report examines how pass-through status affects Medicare payments for drugs used in outpatient care
A Government Accountability Office report finds that Medicare pays more to cover drugs used in hospital outpatient settings when pass-through payment status is in effect.
Healthcare News of Note: Trump administration diverted nearly $10 billion in funds slated for hospitals to Operation Warp Speed
Healthcare News of Note for healthcare finance professionals is a roundup of recent news articles, including the discovery that provider funds were used for Warp Speed operations, the need to retain the Medicare telehealth expansion and healthcare antitrust issues to watch.
After OIG says hospitals may be engaging in upcoding, CMS and AHA dispute the finding
The HHS Office of Inspector General says a significant rise in high-severity inpatient admissions with no corresponding increase in length of stay indicates a possible pattern of upcoding by hospitals in recent years.
Navigating change: Implications of CMS’s 2021 Physician Fee Schedule
Changes to the CMS Physician Fee Schedule for 2021 require immediate deliberation by provider organizations with respect to how they will structure their physician compensation arrangements.
Hospital groups ask Supreme Court to reverse payment cuts to 340B hospitals, off-campus provider-based departments
The American Hospital Association and other hospital groups are challenging 2020 appeals court decisions that allow HHS to continue slashing payments to 340B hospitals and to off-campus provider-based departments.
Is the Medicare Appeals Backlog Finally Breaking?
Facing a court order to eliminate its Medicare appeals backlog, the Trump administration has seen early success.
Significance of ACO Departures Downplayed by Industry Analysts
Industry analysts downplayed the recent revelation that 74 Medicare accountable care organizations (ACOs) left the program at some point in 2018.