|
Acting HHS Secretary Norris Cochran extended the current public health emergency for an additional 90 days, effective January 21st. HHS has also made the decision that the PHE "will likely remain in place for the entirety of 2021." (1/22/21)
The Biden Administration announced that former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Budget at HHS Norris Cochran will serve as Acting Secretary of HHS while the Senate holds confirmation hearings on the appointment of California Attorney General Xavier Becerra as the HHS Secretary. The Biden Administration also announced that longtime veteran at CMS, Liz Richter, will serve as Acting Administrator of CMS while we await the appointment of a new CMS Administrator. (1/21/21)
CMS published a MLN Matters Article that provides for a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) document on the 3-day payment window for services provided to outpatients who later are admitted as inpatients. (12/30/20)
Congress passed the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 (H.R. 133), a sweeping bipartisan $1.4 trillion dollar year-end government funding piece of legislation, which includes $900 billion in COVID relief. The bill now heads to the President’s desk for final signature, which we expect to occur this week. Of importance to NASL’s members, is a partial fix to the Physician Fee Schedule cuts scheduled to begin January 1 in the 2021 Physician Fee Schedule (PFS). (12/22/20)
“Devastating’ Medicare Cuts Threaten Access to Therapy in Senior Living,” Senior Housing News. “CMS Administrator Seema Verma has made comments that the Part B cuts were part of the normal ups and downs of Medicare reimbursement, but this is not the case, Morton told SHN. ‘I found those comments shocking,’ she said.” (12/14/20)
CMS' Medicare Physician Fee Schedule for CY 2021 released. (12/1/20)
“Big, big changes” coming to nursing home regulation thanks to pandemic’s destruction, Grabowski says, McKnight’s Long Term Care News. “COVID-19 has revealed the fragility of nursing homes’ business model and our underinvestment in high-quality long-term care,” said Dr. Grabowski in his keynote address to the NASL 31st Annual Meeting. (11/16/20)
Medicare cuts to seniors in nursing homes during COVID-19 is unfathomable, Op-Ed by Cynthia Morton in The Hill. (11/14/20)
NASL submits letter to US House Members in support of the Holding Providers Harmless from Medicare Cuts During COVID-19 Act of 2020 (H.R. 8702). The bill would provide for a temporary fix to the fee schedule cuts in the form of a 2-year temporary additional payment in the amount of the difference between 2020 rates and 2021/2022. (11/10/20)
NASL submits letter to Congressional leadership and Hill. NASL's letter focuses on the message that during an ongoing public health emergency is the wrong time to impose steep cuts to the financial support that underpins care for Medicare beneficiaries, and urges Congress to include provisions providing relief from the E/M cuts in the CY 2021 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule in a legislative package before the end of the year. The letter was also submitted to the Senate Finance, House Ways & Means, and House Energy & Commerce Committees, as well as to every office in both the House and Senate (535 in all). (10/22/20)
NASL submitted comments to CMS in response to its CY2021 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Proposed Rule, focusing on concerns with the prpoosed change to the CY2021 Conversion Factor, the importance of continuing telehealth services after the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency, and other issues. (10/5/20)
|