April 28, 2017
MLN Connects® Special Edition – Friday, April 28, 2017
In This Edition:
- Skilled Nursing Facilities: Proposed FY 2018 Payment and Policy Changes
- Inpatient Rehabilitation Facilities: Proposed FY 2018 Payment and Policy Changes
- Medicare Hospice Benefit: Proposed FY 2018 Updates to the Wage Index and Payment Rates
Skilled Nursing Facilities: Proposed FY 2018 Payment and Policy Changes
CMS issued a proposed rule (CMS-1679-P) outlining proposed FY 2018 Medicare payment rates and quality programs for Skilled Nursing Facilities (SNFs). Additionally, CMS released an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (CMS-1686-ANPRM), which solicits comment on potential revisions to the SNF payment system, based on research conducted under the SNF Payment Models Research project.
Proposed Rule Details:
- Changes to payment rates under the SNF Prospective Payment System (PPS)
- SNF Quality Reporting Program
- SNF Value-Based Purchasing (VBP) Program
- End-Stage Renal Disease Quality Incentive Program
- Request for Information
- Survey team composition
For More Information:
- Proposed Rule
: CMS will accept comments until June 26
- Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
: CMS will accept comments until June 26
- SNF PPS Payment Model Research
webpage
- SNF PPS
website
- SNF QRP
website
- SNF VBP Program
website
See the full text of this excerpted CMS Fact Sheet (issued April 27).
Inpatient Rehabilitation Facilities: Proposed FY 2018 Payment and Policy Changes
CMS issued a proposed rule (CMS-1671-P) outlining proposed FY 2018 Medicare payment policies and rates for the Inpatient Rehabilitation Facility (IRF) Prospective Payment System (PPS) and the IRF Quality Reporting Program (QRP). In addition to the proposed rule, CMS is releasing a Request for Information to welcome continued feedback on the Medicare Program.
Proposed Rule Details:
- Proposed updates to IRF payment rates
- Proposed removal of 25 percent payment penalty for late transmissions of the IRF- Patient Assessment Instrument
- Proposed refinements to the 60 percent rule presumptive methodology
- Solicitation of comments regarding the criteria used to classify facilities for payment under the IRF PPS
- Proposed technical IRF process revisions
- Proposed changes to the IRF QRP
For More Information:
- Proposed Rule
: CMS will accept comments until June 26
See the full text of this excerpted CMS Fact Sheet (issued April 27).
Medicare Hospice Benefit: Proposed FY 2018 Updates to the Wage Index and Payment Rates
CMS issued a proposed rule (CMS-1675-P) that would update FY 2018 Medicare payment rates and the wage index for hospices serving Medicare beneficiaries and releases Request for Information within the proposed rule. This proposed rule would update the hospice wage index, payment rates, and cap amount for FY 2018.
Proposed Rule Details:
- Routine annual rate setting changes
- Discussion and solicitation of comments regarding sources of clinical information for certifying terminal illness
- Hospice CAHPS® Experience of Care Survey
- Quality measure concepts under consideration for future years
- New data collection mechanisms under consideration: Hospice Evaluation & Assessment Reporting Tool (HEART)
- Public reporting
For More Information:
- Proposed rule
: CMS will accept comments until June 26
- Hospice Center
webpage
See the full text of this excerpted CMS Fact Sheet (issued April 27).