Cleveland Clinic Looks to Home Care, EHR to Reduce Readmissions

Posted on 02. Feb, 2010 by Editor.

Home health providers: Are you in a ‘black box?’

Medicare spends about $12 billion a year on “potentially preventable” hospital readmissions, according to MedPAC. With the feds hankering to cut health care costs, it’s only a matter of time before…

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RAC Targets Home Care Topics For Review

Posted on 01. Feb, 2010 by Editor.

We’ve got the links to help you prepare — plus one attorney’s advice for protecting your HHA.

Home health agencies and hospices may not technically be under Recovery Audit Contractor reviews just yet, but current issues that at least one…

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Hospice Experience Sheds New Light On Health Care Debate

Posted on 29. Jan, 2010 by Editor.

Oncologists, hospice providers & palliative caregivers shouldn’t miss this eye-opening op ed piece.

While most Americans fretted about the ‘death panel’ discussions that surfaced during last year’s health care reform debate, hospice providers — and perhaps the patients and families…

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HHA Management: Gas Prices Up, Mileage Rate Down

Posted on 26. Jan, 2010 by Editor.

You may save money on your travel costs, depending on how you reimburse your staff.

Your visiting staff are likely feeling the pinch when they head to the gas pump. The average U.S. price for gas is $2.74 per gallon,…

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OASIS Toolkit: Use These 4 Steps To Minimize Adverse Drug Reactions

Posted on 26. Jan, 2010 by Editor.

Following these steps will make M2010 and M2015 easier to answer.

Here’s the most important question to ask yourself about each of the patient’s medications: “Is there a good reason for not stopping this medicine?”

Two new OASIS C process…

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What Home Care Coders Need to Know About ICD-10

Posted on 26. Jan, 2010 by Editor.

With ICD-10’s 200 diabetes codes, just one code reports both the diabetes and the manifestation.

The Oct. 1, 2013 deadline may seem like a distant date, but it’s not too early to begin preparing for ICD-10 implementation. Experts advise taking…

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HHAs Save On Fuel With These 11 Tips

Posted on 25. Jan, 2010 by Editor.

Gasoline prices can cut into your HHA’s bottom line, but this savvy advice keeps your engine purring.

It still holds true today. Just a few simple steps can save your HHA tons on gas prices. We dug up this classic…

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Hospice Documentation How-To: What it Takes to Write a Good Physician Narrative

Posted on 20. Jan, 2010 by Editor.

Good news! Specificity wins over length.

Hospices looking for guidance on how physicians should write their attestations of hospice patients’ terminal illnesses aren’t getting much help from a recent CMS Q&A on the matter.

“We have not mandated that specific…

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Will Enteral Nutrition Suppliers See Reimbursement Cuts?

Posted on 20. Jan, 2010 by Editor.

Medicare’s fee schedule amounts exceed available market prices for ENT.

Suppliers of enteral nutrition might have a harder time arguing against competitive bidding or other payment-rate-reducing mechanisms, thanks to a new report from…

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Big Home Care Players Shop for Small HHAs

Posted on 20. Jan, 2010 by Editor.

Remember the home health shakeout after 1997’s BBA? It’s déjà vu all over again.

Home care is anticipating “the largest period of consolidation in the industry’s history” as big players ready themselves to shop around for small companies to buy,…

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