CMS Nixes Medicare Deadline Extension

Leslie Norwalk, deputy administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), said unequivocally that extending the Medicare prescription drug program deadline is “legally not permissible.” The deadline for enrolling in the program is May 15.
Under exceptional circumstances, however, CMS allows additional time without penalty. From a Kaiser Network report:

Under a new policy [...]

Amnesty, Illegal Immigration, and Medicaid

President George W. Bush’s amnesty plan for illegal aliens is controversial for many reasons. Some believe it will “reward” criminal behavior, while others believe illegal aliens depress wages. Some lawmakers and their constituents believe granting legal status to aliens would be potentially burdensome to the Medicaid system.
From Medical News Today:

Under the 1996 welfare law, legal [...]

Provider Letter: Texas NATCEP Review

The Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services has issued a new provider letter to nursing facilities alerting them to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid’s (CMS) recent review of the Nurse Aide Training and Competency Evaluation Program (NATCEP).
You may download the letter here. From the letter:

Among its findings, CMS reporting difficulty in evaluation nursing [...]

The Time to Plan for Long Term Care is Now

Long term care expert Catherine Hawes, Ph.D., a professor at the Texas A&M Health Science Center School of Rural Public Health, says: “We spend more time doing research about a car we want to buy than we do when selecting a nursing home or assisted living facility.” (Medical News Today)
Hawes is right, of course. We [...]

New Jersey Democrats Ask For Medicare Drug Extension

As many of you may know, May 15 is the deadline for beneficiaries to enroll in Medicare’s new prescription drug program. I’ve blogged about the controversial drug plan several times. According to some news stories, the plan is confusing to doctors, providers, and beneficiaries. According to others, beneficiaries aren’t as confused about the plan as [...]

Universal Health Care in Massachusetts

By now you’ve probably heard or read about Massachusetts’s new health care law, which would require the uninsured to sign up for health coverage or risk being penalized on their state income taxes. Plans will be offered on a sliding scale, and those who can’t afford plans will receive subsidies.
Medical News Today has a round-up [...]

Should CMS Release Provider Quality Data?

The New York Times stated in a recent editorial that employers and Medicare beneficiaries should have access to information that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid keep on who the best doctors are at the most affordable rates, and reported that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) refuses to release the data. [...]

Medicaid Estate Recovery Program

In a provider letter dated April 12, 2006, the Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services (DADS) requests that Nursing Facility Providers (NF) begin giving the Medicaid Estate Recovery Plan Receipt Acknowledgement (Form 8001) to Social Security income-only NF residents.
DADS implemented the Medicaid Estate Recovery Program (MERP) on March 1, 2005. From the letter:

As part [...]

New Per Diem Rates

The Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services has issued a new provider letter to nursing facility administrators and hospice directors about new per diem rates. You may download the letter here (PDF).
The Texas Health and Human Services Commission has raised per diem rates for the Nursing Facility Program, the Hospice Program in Nursing [...]

Assisted Living Facilities’ Ability To Restrict Residents Contracting for Health or Personal Care Services.

Texas AG Issues important Opinion for DADS Regarding “Retirement Centers.”

Next Page »