Lead August 11, 2022
Top Stories:
Let CMS Know You Oppose Medicare Home Health Payment Cuts
Assisted Living:
Brookdale, Belmont Village Honored by Argentum
Supportive Living:
Supportive Living Program Provider Cost Report
Member Hosts State Representative for Visit, Meeting on Workforce
Nursing and Rehabilitation:
Collection of Facility Payee Information for Directed Payments from MCO Plans
Ensuring Accuracy of Nursing Home Staffing Ratings
Home and Community Based Services (HCBS):
Registration Open for CMS Webinar on Home Health Value Based Purchasing Provider Reports
Top Stories:
Let CMS Know You Oppose Medicare Home Health Payment Cuts
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued its 2023 Home Health proposed payment rule on June 17, which would cut provider reimbursements by $810 million by implementing the previously delayed “behavioral assumption adjustment.”
We are in the middle of an ongoing crisis, and home health members need CMS to delay the proposed payment cuts. LeadingAge will submit official comments on the proposed rule and we encourage members to as well–and share this action alert with staff and board members to submit comments.
Now is the time to make your voice heard! Tell CMS just how damaging lower Medicare reimbursement rates will be, particularly as home health agencies continue to manage increased inflation due to the ongoing staffing crisis, raising fuel prices, and supply costs.
Assisted Living:
Brookdale, Belmont Village Honored by Argentum
Argentum has unveiled its Best of the Best award winners for 2022 honoring six member providers for innovative new programs and services that are working to improve the future of senior living. LeadingAge Illinois members Brookdale and Belmont Village were two of the awardees. Please join us in applauding these members for the well-deserved honor.
Supportive Living:
Supportive Living Program Provider Cost Report
The Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS) released the most recent Supportive Living Cost Reports.
Member Hosts State Representative for Visit, Meeting on Workforce
Sherry Barter, CEO of the Voyage Senior Living, and residents and staff hosted State Representative Patrick Windhorst (R-118th District; Harrisburg) for a visit and meeting Wednesday in Marion.
Samella Teague, social services coordinator, and Kimberly Barr, chief people officer, were instrumental in making the visit a success. Jason Speaks, director of government relations at LeadingAge Illinois, represented that association in the meeting. Sherry has served in the industry for over 30 years and has been a leader in the association. She currently has seats on the LeadingAge Illinois board and Supportive Living Cabinet and represents Voyage and the association on the Older Adult Services Advisory Committee (OASAC) and Community Care Program Advisory Committee (CCPAC). She is former recipient of the LeadingAge Illinois Member Legislative Leader Award and has annually hosted her legislators from the state and federal levels at each Voyage community.
Windhorst, a member of the House Appropriations-Human Services Committee, was elected in 2019 and his first Partners in Quality visit was shortly thereafter at the Voyage supportive living community in Anna. In the meeting Wednesday, Sherry and Kimberly explained the unique workforce challenges supportive living providers are having. Other important issues were discussed as the staff educated the representative on current needs and challenges. Samella provided a tour of the community after the meeting so the representative could learn even more about the Voyage.
If you would like to host your legislators, contact Jason Speaks.
Nursing and Rehabilitation:
Collection of Facility Payee Information for Directed Payments from MCO Plans
Quality Incentive and Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) Wage Pass-Through payments are being implemented. These payments will be calculated quarterly and paid on a monthly basis. Payments will be made by Healthcare and Family Services (HFS) as well as by the managed care organization (MCO) plans. This is how the quality and CNA payments will be made. HFS needs this to pay so if you don’t do it, you don’t get paid. See the full notice here.
Ensuring Accuracy of Nursing Home Staffing Ratings
Nursing Home Care Compare incorporated six new staffing measures into the staffing domain rating with the quarterly refresh on July 27. The staffing domain rating impacts the overall star rating and CMS is urging nursing homes to double-check the accuracy of staffing data submitted through the payroll-based journal (PBJ) prior to data submission deadlines to ensure accurate staffing ratings. Read more here.
Housing:
FCC Creates ‘Your Home, Your Internet’ Pilot Program for Households Receiving Federal Housing Assistance
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has created the “Your Home, Your Internet” pilot program designed to raise awareness of, and streamline enrollment in, the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) among households receiving federal housing assistance. The ACP provides a monthly discount of up to $30 on internet service cost to qualifying households, including households receiving rental assistance. LeadingAge has worked with affordable housing members, the FCC, and HUD to improve property-wide adoption of the ACP and to increase program enrollment among HUD-assisted households.
Home and Community Based Services (HCBS):
Registration Open for CMS Webinar on Home Health Value Based Purchasing Provider Reports
CMS announced registration for a webinar titled “Navigating Performance Feedback Reports: Interim Performance Report (IPR) and Annual Performance Report (APR)” on Thursday, August 25 at 1 p.m. CST. The HHVBP Technical Assistance (TA) Team will present information for providers to understand the content of each report, these reports are essential to an HHA accurately and efficiently monitoring data to interpret their total performance score and potential payment adjustments, and inform quality assurance and performance improvement (QAPI) initiatives. During this event, the TA Team will introduce the two (2) types of expanded HHVBP Model performance feedback reports: Interim Performance Reports (IPRs) and Annual Performance Reports (APRs). Content will include a review of the purpose, availability, timing, and location of the reports, followed by a walkthrough of each report type and the content on each tab in the reports. The event will also include a segment showing how data populates from one table to another. Register here.