News

Over the past week, Senator Ben Cardin has been recognizing the importance of home health and fighting to protect our community from steep Medicare cuts! On Sept. 19, Senator Cardin led a hearing of the Senate Finance Subcommittee on Health Care on aging in place, in which Senators discussed the vital role home health plays…

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently released the Calendar Year (CY) 2024 Home Health Prospective Payment System (HH PPS) Rate Update. This new rule includes an additional 5.653% payment cut to home healthcare services. The Partnership for Quality Home Healthcare is deeply concerned that the cuts to home healthcare services included in…

Home health providers are experiencing significant Medicare reimbursement constraints, including reductions in fee-for-service payments, and increasing enrollments in Medicare Advantage, which provides comparatively low payments. While the annual Market Basket Adjustment is meant to keep pace with inflation, actual price inflation in the market has not been reflected in the forecasts of the market basket…

A new report confirms what we have always known: Home healthcare patients are among the sickest and most vulnerable beneficiaries in the Medicare program. The 2022 Home Care Chartbook, recently released by Research Institute for Home Care (RIHC), offers a detailed overview of the home health landscape. According to the Chartbook, compared to the Medicare…

Last month, CMS proposed to cut rates for Medicare home health services in 2023 by an unprecedented and permanent -7.69%, equaling $1.33 billion in 2023 alone. If implemented, payment cuts included in the CY 2023 Home Health Prospective Payment System (HHPPS) Proposed Rule will threaten patients’ access to care as America’s home health agencies could…

February 1 marks the start of National Patient Recognition Week, and this week, PQHH is recognizing the estimated 3.5 million seniors who reply upon Medicare home health services. Home healthcare is an essential care option for many patients who are often among the Medicare program’s sickest and most vulnerable. On average, home health patients are…

In the seven months since the Choose Home Care Act (S. 2562/H.R. 5514) was introduced, lawmakers from both sides of the aisle and across the country have recognized the value of this important legislation. The Choose Home Care Act would create an additional cost-effective, patient-centered option for seniors to recover at home after being discharged…

A recent poll, conducted by Morning Consult on behalf of the Partnership, found that a majority a respondents support greater patient choice and access to home health care. The findings also highlight the importance of passing the Choose Home Care Act of 2021, which has wide support among the public and bipartisan lawmakers. The data…

Recently, the Choose Home Care Act (S. 2562), a bipartisan bill to allow more American seniors to come home safely after hospitalization, was introduced by Senators Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and Todd Young (R-IN). This important legislation would ensure that Medicare beneficiaries have increased access to care at home following hospitalization—a needed policy change that would…

As the COVID-19 pandemic evolved over the past year, the home health community has worked tirelessly to protect patients, home health care providers, and the communities we serve. Now, with the focus shifted to vaccination efforts, the Partnership spoke with Dr. Steven Landers, President and CEO of the Visiting Nurse Association Health Group, Inc., about…