CMS Releases Home Health Final Rule 2025

On November 1 the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued the Calendar Year 2025 Home Health Prospective Payment System (HH PPS) final rule, which updates Medicare payment policies and rates for Home Health Agencies.  Unlike other Medicare provider types that have PPS rule updates corresponding to the federal fiscal year (10/1), home health … Read more

SNF Survey and Certification Update

When the 2025 Final SNF PPS Rule was released, the focus was on Medicare rate increases.  This is typically known as the “headline”. But as readers and followers here know, there is always a regulatory tidbit or two that can be even more significant in terms of operations, particularly as more and more Medicare patient … Read more

Marketing: Value Propositions and Strategy

On Tuesday, I did a post with regard to senior housing marketing. In the post, I referenced how important it is from a marketing perspective, to develop and communicate, a value proposition as part of a marketing strategy This key theme that I refer to centers around the value proposition or in other words, the … Read more

Senior Housing Marketing and Outlook

Entering the final quarter of the year, it seems timely to examine the current trends in senior housing occupancies, identify effective marketing strategies, observe rate trends, and consider the outlook for 2025. The senior housing sector is experiencing substantial changes driven by the growing need for specialized senior care services and progress in technology and … Read more

Merger/Affiliation Strategy Update – Checklist

A recent federal funds rate cut by the Federal Reserve of 50 bps has created a bit of optimism in the M&A and capital development arena for senior living and senior housing. The expectation of more Fed rate cuts going forward undergirds the optimism BUT…Overall economic conditions remain sketchy including inflation which, ticked a notch higher … Read more

Federal Judge Key Ruling on False Claims Act

On September 30, US District Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle from the Middle District of Florida ruled in a landmark decision that the qui tam provision of the federal False Claims Act (FCA) is unconstitutional. This ruling could have significant impact on whistleblower (Qui Tam) actions filed against healthcare providers, particularly home health and hospice (most … Read more

Senior Living Liability Claims Analysis Report

Marsh (largest insurance broker in the world) recently released its 2024 General and Professional Liability Report 2024-General-Professional-Liability-Benchmark-Report-MAR-USA. The report includes data from fifty senior living and long-term care providers comprising 10,300 closed claims with paid indemnity and expense value of $1.87 billion across a ten-year horizon. The ten-year data was used by Marsh to forecast … Read more

Doc Payment Fix in the Works?

Here’s an oldie but a goodie for today. The House Ways and Means Committee is reportedly considering a markup of legislation this month that would revamp Medicare’s physician payment system. This move could increase the likelihood of incorporating a “doc fix” into a lame duck legislative package. Historic readers and followers of Reg’s Blog will … Read more

Innovation: Think Inside the Box

Not sure how many times I’ve heard the worn phrases of “think outside the box”, “brainstorm”, “explore new perspectives”, across my career.  Now, I’m not saying that these concepts don’t have merit.  I am however, saying that most often, the best innovation comes from “thinking inside the box”. Systematic inventive thinking: the power of thinking … Read more

Nursing Assistants = Supply Shortage

Nursing assistants are anticipated to experience the largest projected shortfall among all healthcare occupations analyzed, with an expected national shortage exceeding 73,000 assistants by 2028. This projection is based on a report by Mercer, which also predicts a nationwide deficit of over 100,000 healthcare workers by the same year. The demand for nursing assistants is … Read more