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On Immigration Status, Caregivers Don’t Care

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Among the many tragedies born of the mass shooting in El Paso, Texas, which killed 22 and injured another two dozen, was the news that some victims might not have sought care at hospitals because of their immigration status.

This fear was so widespread that the West Texas wing of U.S. Customs and Border Protection tweeted: “We are not conducting enforcement operations at area hospitals, the family reunification center or shelters.”

CMS Issues Final Rule for FFY 2020 Hospice Payment

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The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued its final rule updating hospice payment rates for federal fiscal year (FFY) 2020. CMS finalizes a net payment increase of 2.6%, or $520 million, as compared to FFY 2019. The rule also rebases the rates hospices are paid for certain types of care. In addition, the rule modifies the beneficiary hospice election statement to reduce the time spent trying to obtain information needed for treatment decisions and accurate claims submissions.

CMS Issues FFY 2020 Long Term Care Hospital PPS Final Rule

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The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued the final rule for the long-term care hospital (LTCH) prospective payment system (PPS) for federal fiscal year (FFY) 2020. The provisions of the final rule will be effective Oct. 1, 2020.  

Below are highlights of the final rule.  

Payment Impact
As provided in the FFY 2016 final rule, LTCHs are reimbursed under a dual-rate system; patients who meet specified criteria are reimbursed by the LTCH PPS standard federal payment amount and remaining patients are reimbursed at the lower site-neutral payment rate. Implementation of the dual-rate payment system included a transition period during which facilities received a blended rate.  For cost reporting periods beginning in FFY 2020, the transition period will end and LTCHs will be paid exclusively on the site-neutral payment rate for patients who do not meet LTCH PPS criteria.   

Overall, CMS projects that LTCH PPS payments will increase by approximately 1%, or $43 million. For cases reimbursed at the site-neutral rate, CMS projects a decrease of approximately 5.9%.  

Quality Reporting/SPADEs
CMS finalizes several proposals relating to the LTCH Quality Reporting Program (QRP), including the addition of several standardized patient assessment data elements (SPADEs), several of which address social determinants of health. CMS also finalizes two new measures addressing transfer of health information and changes the existing “Discharge to Community” measure to exclude baseline nursing home residents. 

CDPH Notifies Nursing Facilities About Revised Minimum Data Set Section S Form

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The California Department of Public Health has issued All Facilities Letter 19-25, notifying nursing facilities, skilled-nursing facilities, intermediate care facilities, and swing bed hospitals of revisions to two forms – the Minimum Data Set (MDS) 3.0 Section S form and the California Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment (POLST) form. Beginning Oct. 1, all Medicare and Medicaid health care facilities must use the revised MDS form specific to California.

CMS Releases Final, Proposed Rules

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This week, CMS released the following rules: 

Inpatient Psychiatric Facility Prospective Payment System (PPS) Final Rule
Hospice Payment Final Rule 
Long-Term Acute Care Hospital PPS Final Rule

Discharge Planning for Homeless Patients Updates During Volunteer Mini-Conference

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Effective July 1, 2019, SB 1152 requires hospitals to have a written plan for coordinating services and referrals for homeless patients. Successful implementation will hinge upon working with your regional health care and social service agencies to ensure appropriate homeless patient discharge. Further, the law requires that hospitals maintain a log of homeless patients discharged and the destinations to which they were released after discharge. 

Join Peggy Broussard Wheeler, CHA vice president, rural health & governance, at the California Association of Hospitals and Health Systems (CAHHS) Volunteer Services mini-conferences as she explains the intricacies of SB 1152 and the updates since our 2019 California Hospital Volunteer Leadership Conference.  

Registration is available until August 12, 2019. Select your desired location below for more information and to register.

Northern California | August 15, 2019 | NorthBay Healthcare Green Valley Administration Center, Fairfield 

Southern California | August 16, 2019 | Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce, Los Angeles

Questions should be directed to Melanie Shanley at (916) 552-7648 or volunteers@calhospital.org. 

Upcoming Disaster Conference to Feature Executive Panel

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At this year’s Disaster Planning for California Hospitals Conference, to be held Sept. 10-11 in Pasadena, attendees will have a unique opportunity to hear directly from hospital executives about their role during and after a crisis.