The agency emphasized relaxing prior authorizations that could impact transferrals between general acute-care hospitals and longer-term care facilities. CMS has requested that Medicare Advantage organizations relax or waive prior authorizations due to the impact of the coronavirus Delta variant. “The ability of hospitals to transfer patients to appropriate levels of care without unnecessary delays […]
Getting shots into arms has been a top priority for healthcare providers since the federal government gave the green light to several COVID-19 vaccines. But while speed was key for immunizers, medical coding efficiency has taken a major hit. At the heart of the issue is the way two major COVID-19 vaccines were created, Amber […]
A leaked CMS report targeting HCA Healthcare-owned Good Samaritan Hospital in California warns the hospital to fix Medicare noncompliance issues or risk termination. A leaked CMS report put HCA Healthcare-owned Good Samaritan Hospital in California at risk of program termination by October if they fail to fix Medicare noncompliance issues that resulted in patient harm. […]
AMA announced that the CPT codes for the third doses of the Moderna and Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines are finalized and ready for the upcoming booster shot administrations. The American Medical Association (AMA) announced that the Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) codes for the third doses of the Moderna and Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines are effective for immediate […]
CMS’ proposed actions are intended to increase price transparency, access to care, patient safety, positive healthcare outcomes, and health equity. On July 19, 2021, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced new proposed actions to address the health equity gap, decrease mounting healthcare costs, and increase medical accessibility and patient quality of care. […]
Hospital price transparency is now a requirement from CMS, but providers should be going beyond the rule to ensure transparency meets patient demands, too. Hospital price transparency goes beyond just compliance with federal regulations. Patients are also demanding more transparent pricing information from their providers in order to make more informed decisions about their healthcare. […]
Regence BlueShield’s new partnership will offer members access to quality acute home healthcare services. Regence BlueShield (Regence) has partnered with a home healthcare provider to increase member access to acute home healthcare services. Regence members in Pierce County, Washington will have access to the new program. The payer plans to expand the acute home healthcare […]
Analysis from Kaufman Hall reveals a historically low number of healthcare mergers and acquisitions in Q2, but revenue continues to rise. Healthcare merger and acquisition (M&A) activity was minimal in Q2, but total transacted revenue rose as health systems focused on acquiring smaller hospitals and strengthening regional partnerships, according to Kaufman Hall’s quarterly M&A report. […]
The payer will debut its Medicare Advantage plans in select Arizona counties and expand coverage to additional counties in North Carolina and Nevada. Alignment Healthcare (Alignment) is extending its Medicare Advantage (MA) footprint in Arizona, North Carolina, and Nevada to provide coverage for more senior beneficiaries. Starting in 2022, Alignment will introduce its MA health […]
The AMA is warning the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) that rate-cutting provisions in its proposed 2021 Medicare physician payment schedule pose “a very real threat to the ability of many physicians to deliver health care services to their patients.” CMS has proposed new office-visit policies that should result in a significant […]