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On September 21, 2016, the House Ways and Means Committee approved H.R. 5713, the “Sustaining Healthcare Integrity and Fair Treatment Act of 2016” or “SHIFT Act.”  The primary focus of the SHIFT Act is to provide an additional delay in full implementation of the “25 Percent Rule” for long-term acute care hospitals (LTCHs).  The legislation also would tighten CMS’s authority to impose Medicare enrollment moratoria to prevent providers and suppliers from evading the moratoria by locating outside of moratoria areas. 
Continue Reading House of Representatives Approves Bill to Delay LTCH 25% Rule Implementation, Make Other LTCH Reforms, and Tighten Medicare Enrollment Moratorium Authority

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has released its final rule to update Medicare acute hospital inpatient prospective payment system (IPPS) and long-term care hospital (LTCH) prospective payment system (PPS) payments and policies for fiscal year (FY) 2017.  With regard to the IPPS, CMS projects that the cumulative rate and policy changes in the final rule will increase total IPPS payments by about $746 million in FY 2017 compared to FY 2016. The rule provides a 0.95% operating payment rate update for hospitals that submit quality data and are meaningful users of Electronic Health Records (EHRs).  This update reflects a 2.7% market basket update, adjusted by a -0.3 percentage point multi-factor productivity (MFP) adjustment and an additional -0.75 percentage point adjustment (as mandated by the Affordable Care Act, or ACA), resulting in a 1.65% update.  This update is subject to an additional -1.5 percentage point documentation and coding recoupment adjustment (required by the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012) and a one-time increase of approximately 0.8 percentage points to permanently negate the cumulative impact of a “Two Midnight Policy” adjustment adopted in the final FY 2014 rule.
Continue Reading CMS Finalizes FY 2017 Update to Medicare IPPS, LTCH PPS Rates and Policies

The House Ways and Means Committee has approved an amended version of H.R. 5273, the “Helping Hospitals Improve Patient Care Act of 2016.”  While most of the provisions address Medicare payment policies pertaining to hospitals (including long term care hospitals (LTCHs) and hospital outpatient departments), certain other reimbursement policies, including Medicare Advantage and physician payment…

CMS has published corrections to its August 22, 2014 final update to the Medicare Hospital Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS) and the Long-Term Care Hospital Prospective Payment System for FY 2015. Among other things, CMS made technical errors in its calculation of the operating and capital IPPS budget neutrality factors, outlier threshold, operating standardized amounts,…

On August 22, 2014, CMS is publishing a final rule to update the Medicare acute hospital inpatient prospective payment system (IPPS) and long-term care hospital (LTCH) prospective payment system (PPS) for fiscal year (FY) 2015, which begins October 1, 2014.  The following are highlights of the sweeping regulations.Continue Reading CMS Finalizes Medicare IPPS/LTCH PPS Update for FY 2015

Late on April 30, 2014, CMS released the advance text of its proposed rule to update the Medicare acute hospital inpatient prospective payment system (IPPS) and long-term care hospital (LTCH) prospective payment system (PPS) for fiscal year (FY) 2015.

With regard to IPPS hospitals, the rule would provide for a 1.3% operating payment rate update…

On August 19, 2013, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) published a final rule updating FY 2014 Medicare payment policies and rates under the acute inpatient prospective payment system (IPPS) and the long-term care hospital (LTCH) prospective payment system (PPS). The following are highlights of the lengthy rule:
Continue Reading CMS Finalizes FY 2014 Medicare IPPS, LTCH Rates

On May 10, 2013, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) published its proposed rule updating Medicare inpatient prospective payment system (IPPS) and long-term acute care hospital prospective payment system (LTCH PPS) rates and policies for fiscal year (FY) 2014, which begins October 1, 2013. Comments on the proposed rule will be accepted until June 25, 2013. Highlights of the sweeping rule include the following: Continue Reading CMS Proposes Medicare IPPS and LTCH PPS Rates/Policies for FY 2014

On April 26, 2013, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) released the proposed update to the Medicare long-term acute care hospital prospective payment system (“LTCH PPS”) policies and payment rates for fiscal year (“FY”) 2014. The proposed changes would apply to discharges occurring on or after October 1, 2013 through September 30, 2014. CMS will accept comments on the proposed rule until June 25, 2013, and will respond to comments in a final rule to be issued by August 1, 2013. Reed Smith has prepared a Client Alert that provides a summary of the most significant proposed changes to the LTCH PPS in the proposed rule.
Continue Reading CMS Proposed Changes to Medicare LTCH Payment Rates and Policies for FY 2014

On June 11, 2012, CMS published corrections to the May 11, 2012 proposed rule to update Medicare inpatient prospective payment system (IPPS) hospital and long-term care hospital prospective payment system (LTCH-PPS) payment and other policies for fiscal year (FY) 2013. Among other things, CMS is decreasing the national capital standard federal payment rate, which in…

On February 1, 2012, CMS published a notice correcting technical errors in the tables accompanying the final rule entitled “Medicare Program; Hospital Inpatient Prospective Payment Systems for Acute Care Hospitals and the Long-Term Care Hospital Prospective Payment System and Fiscal Year 2012 Rates,” which appeared in the August 18, 2011 Federal Register. The errors…

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has launched the Bundled Payments for Care Improvement Initiative under Section 3021 of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which authorizes the Secretary to test innovative delivery arrangements to reduce federal spending while preserving or enhancing the quality of care. Under the Bundled Payments Initiative, CMS seeks applicants who will strive to improve care coordination for Medicare beneficiaries who are hospitalized and when they leave the hospital. Very broadly, applicants will offer a discount to Medicare compared to usual Medicare spending; the applicant will be paid the Medicare savings beyond the discount level, but will assume risk for Medicare expenditures above an established risk threshold. CMS invites proposals with one of following four approaches to bundled payments:
Continue Reading CMS Seeks Applicants for ACA Bundled Payment Initiative

On August 18, 2011, CMS is publishing its final rule updating Medicare long-term care hospital (LTCH) PPS policies and payment rates for FY 2012 (affecting discharges and cost reporting periods beginning on or after October 1, 2011 through September 30, 2012). Medicare payments to LTCHs are projected to increase by $126 million (2.5%) in FY…

Reed Smith attorneys have prepared a Client Alert which provides a summary of the most significant proposed changes to the Medicare program’s long-term acute care hospital prospective payment system (“LTCH-PPS”) for fiscal year (“FY”) 2012. On Tuesday, April 19, 2011, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) released on its website an advance copy of the “Proposed Rule” revising the LTCH-PPS for fiscal year FY 2012, which applies to discharges occurring on or after October 1, 2011 through September 30, 2012. The official copy of the Proposed Rule will be published in the Federal Register in the coming days. Comments on the Proposed Rule must be submitted no later than 5 p.m. on June 20, 2011.
Continue Reading CMS Issues Proposed Changes to LTCH Payment Rates and Other Payment Policies for Fiscal Year 2012