CMS Released Updates to the 2017 PPS Final Rule

Posted on Friday, November 4, 2016 5:37 PM

CMS made several changes to the 2017 PPS final rule, including measures that will be used to determine value-based purchasing demonstration bonuses and adding some measures that agencies will need to collect data for to receive their inflation update in 2018.

Come January 1, the following measures will be removed:
• Care management: Types and sources of assistance
• Prior functioning activities of daily living (ADL)/ instrumental activities of daily living (IADL)
• Influenza vaccine data collection period
• Reason pneumococcal vaccine not received

These measures hadn’t been “fully fleshed out,” and agencies were waiting on additional information anyway so they could prepare for them, says Joy Cameron, vice president for policy and innovation for the Visiting Nurse Associations of America.
4 new quality measures tied to payment

CMS also announced that four measures will be added to the list of those that will be tied to agencies’ payments in 2018. Action is required for agencies, or else they will receive a 2% reduction in payments.

The following four measures were selected to help meet requirements of the IMPAT Act:
• Potentially preventable 30-day post-discharge readmission measure for post-acute care home health quality reporting program
• Total Medicare spending per beneficiary — post acute care home health quality reporting program
• Discharge to community — post-acute care home health quality reporting program
• Drug regimen review conducted with follow-up for identified issues-post-acute care home health quality reporting program.

Of the four measures, three will automatically be calculated by CMS based on claims, says Mary Carr, vice president for regulatory affairs, for the National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC). The other measure — involving the drug regimen review — is information agencies already are collecting.

Corridor has industry-leading experience and knowledge on value-based purchasing, and can help you prepare for a seamless transition. Contact us to learn more.

For the full article, please see the November 7, 2016 Home Health Line Edition.


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