Headline
The latest stories from AHA Today.
Hospitals participating in Medicare accountable care organizations reduced rehospitalizations from skilled nursing facilities faster than other hospitals after the program was initiated, according to a study published last week in Health Affairs. The study compared rehospitalization rates…
The National Quality Forum today named as its president and CEO effective Jan. 30 Shantanu Agrawal, M.D., former deputy administrator and director for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ Center for Program Integrity. “I am honored to lead NQF during this exciting and…
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has extended through March 13 the deadline for eligible hospitals participating in the Hospital Inpatient Quality Reporting and/or Medicare Electronic Health Records Incentive Program to submit electronic Clinical Quality Measure data for the…
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services today issued a final rule further limiting states’ ability to increase or create new pass-through payments for hospitals, physicians or nursing homes under Medicaid managed care contracts. The rule prevents states from adding new or…
LIFEPAK 1000 defibrillators may not be able to deliver therapy during a resuscitation attempt due to an intermittent connection between the battery and device electrical contacts, according to a safety alert issued Saturday by the Food and Drug Administration. Device maker Physio-Control has…
The rate of diabetes-related kidney failure decreased 54% among Native American adults between 1996 and 2013 to match the rate for whites, according to a Vital Signs report released last week by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Rates for other racial/ethnic groups also decreased…
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services last week announced a new all-payer global budget model for rural critical access and acute-care hospitals in Pennsylvania. Under the Pennsylvania Rural Health Model, the state will prospectively set the all-payer global budget for each…
The House of Representatives today voted 227-198 to pass a fiscal year 2017 budget resolution, continuing the process to potentially repeal and replace parts of the Affordable Care Act.
The Department of Health and Human Services today released a final rule that attempts to address the significant backlog in Medicare appeals by making certain procedural changes. Specifically, the final rule in some cases allows attorney adjudicators to hear appeals in lieu of Administrative…
The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission yesterday finalized recommendations that Congress forgo increasing or reduce Medicare payment rates in 2018 for home health agencies, skilled nursing facilities, inpatient rehabilitation facilities and long-term care hospitals. Citing a 15.6% Medicare fee-…