Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare On April 4, 2023, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a proposed rule to update Medicare payment policies and rates for the Inpatient Psychiatric Facility Prospective Payment System (IPF PPS) for fiscal year (FY) 2024. CMS is publishing this proposed rule consistent with…… Continue reading Fiscal Year 2024 Medicare Inpatient Psychiatric Facility Prospective Payment System (IPF PPS) and Quality Reporting (IPFQR) Updates Proposed Rule (CMS-1783-P)

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare World Tuberculosis (TB) Day – To celebrate World TB Day, CDC is continuing our efforts to raise awareness of latent TB infection testing and treatment among healthcare providers. New Think. Test. Treat TB resources and activities are available to help healthcare providers: Know the risk factors…… Continue reading World TB Day

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare The Information for Critical Access Hospitals (CAH) booklet (14 pages – February 2023) explains how to properly document and bill for services, including: Bed and board, nursing, and other related services Facilities Medical social services Drugs Biologicals Supplies, appliances, and equipment for inpatient hospital care and treatment An…… Continue reading Critical Access Hospitals: Bill Correctly

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare The OIG has posted its annual report on Medicaid fraud for FY2022.  The 29-page report highlights: Here’s the Table of Contents: Reducing Medicaid fraud is a top priority for OIG, and its role in overseeing MFCUs helps achieve that priority. OIG oversees the MFCU grant program…… Continue reading Medicaid Fraud Control Units Fiscal Year 2022 Annual Report   

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare On Monday, March 20, 2023, CMS posted this Press Release: Candida auris (C. auris), an emerging fungus considered an urgent antimicrobial resistance (AR) threat, spread at an alarming rate in U.S. healthcare facilities in 2020-2021, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention…… Continue reading Increasing Threat of Spread of Antimicrobial-resistant Fungus in Healthcare Facilities: Candida auris

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare As the threat of cyber attacks on the health care system continues to inflict disruptive harm on clinical operations, privacy of protected health information and data, financial and scheduling systems, and ultimately patient safety, appropriately resourced hospital systems maintain a team of security professionals with dedicated…… Continue reading Cybersecurity for the Clinician

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare CMS posted this blog on Thursday, March 16, 2023. The authors are Lee Fleisher, MD., Michelle Schreiber, MD., and Jonathan Blum, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services – names you may recognize from CMS National Stakeholder Calls. Ensuring patient safety is at the heart of the…… Continue reading First Do No Harm

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare On March 16, 2023 CMS issued Transmittal 11905 – same title as this blog. The effective date of these revisions was October 19, 2022 with implementation date of April 17, 2023. Effective July 1, 2021, CMS updated Medicare coverage requirements to align with ACIP recommendations. ACIP…… Continue reading Revisions to Medicare Part B Coverage of Pneumococcal Vaccinations

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is publishing the Long-Term Care Hospital (LTCH) Continuity Assessment Record and Evaluation (CARE) Data Set (LCDS) Quarterly Q&As, March 2023, Consolidated September 2020 to March 2023 document so that all LTCH providers have the benefit of the clarifications…… Continue reading Long-Term Care Hospital (LTCH) Continuity Assessment Record and Evaluation (CARE) Data Set (LCDS) Quarterly Q&As

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare On March 15, 2023, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) released its March 2023 Report to the Congress: Medicare Payment Policy. The report includes MedPAC’s analyses of payment adequacy in traditional fee-for-service (FFS) Medicare and reviews the status of Medicare Advantage (MA) and the prescription drug…… Continue reading MedPAC Releases March 2023 Report on Medicare Payment Policy