Welcome to the HealthPRO Heritage Blog

CMS released the 2021 home health final rule on Thursday, October 29, 2020. HealthPRO Heritage at Home sorted through the mixed bag and found more treats than tricks!

There were minimal changes compared to the home health proposed rule that was released in July 2020. Probably the best news in the rule was the 1.9% aggregate increase (or $390 million) in reimbursement that agencies will realize in 2021. Although the increase was less than the original 2.6% increase that was in the proposed rule.

Other highlights from the final rule are as follows:

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Happy Physical Therapy Month!
The profession of physical therapy is 99 years old this year (2020)! To celebrate, HealthPRO Heritage would like to recognize and applaud all of our dedicated, hard-working Physical Therapy Practitioners. We are grateful for each and every one of you, and we are thankful to have you as vital parts of our team. Thank you for your continued dedication to the residents/patients/clients you serve!

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From CMS' press release  on October 8, 2020 there are amended terms for repayment on Accelerated and Advance Payment (AAP) Program. This allows CMS to make advance payments to providers and are typically used in emergencies. 

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The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine have made recommendations to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services about who should get priority for SARS-CoV-2 vaccines when they become available. (NASEM’s recommendations are usually followed.) You can buy a copy of this detailed document for $70 at the link below. These are the proposed phases of rollout as recommended by NASEM:

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HHS announced $20 billion in new funding for providers on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic. This Phase 3 distribution was made possible through the bipartisan CARES Act and the Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act (which allocated $175 billion in relief funds to hospitals, skilled nursing, home health and other healthcare providers.) Skilled nursing & home health providers and others who have received Provider Relief Fund payments (and some who were previously ineligible providers) are invited to apply for additional funding to cover operating expenses caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

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On CMS' Technical Page, the agency announced via this post that an error was made in the PDPM Grouper! Six ICD-10 codes (T8484XA, T8389XA, T8321XA, T82399A, T82392A, and T83021A) were excluded. These codes are significant, because they contribute points toward the NTA case mix group when coded on the PPS MDS assessment.

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