Healthcare, Senior Living, Economics
This morning, the Department of Labor issued a final rule interpreting who is and who is not, an independent contractor v. an employee. Contract work in health care has boomed since the pandemic, though even pre-pandemic, the use of contractors (physicians, nurses, therapists, etc.) was on the increase. The final rule is available here: 2024-00067 The … Read more
Happy 2024! I trust everyone had a blessed and happy holiday season and rang in the New Year with joy and optimism. Across the last two months of 2023, JAMA (Journal of American Medical Association) has published two studies on private equity ownership in healthcare, specifically in hospitals and SNFs. Not to accuse JAMA of having … Read more
Happy Hump Day! I hope all readers, followers, and visitors had a great Christmas Holiday. This post will likely wrap-up 2023 for me as tomorrow, I begin a bit of travel to see some long-time friends and celebrate the New Year. I am not much for resolutions into the new year as I try to … Read more
The oldest boomers are about to turn 80 in 2026. This age point is typically the trigger point for advancing needs in secure living environments, services increase (ADL and IADL support), and increasing healthcare consumption. The baby boom generation is defined as folks born between 1946 and 1964. The “boom” reference is the rapid number of children … Read more
I get asked about value-based care a lot. It is a buzzword or term these days, somewhat driven by the rise in Medicare Advantage enrollment. Frankly, it is a bit of a catch-all concept that has its origins in Medicare and various demonstration projects (e.g., bundled payments) and the implementation of quality measures to “improve … Read more
A complex area for providers, especially with respect to their compliance programs, are the concepts of fraud and abuse. Central to current requirements for compliance programs, all post-acute providers are REQUIRED to have compliance programs that, Include policies and procedures to define, test for, and mitigate any issues pertaining to fraud and abuse. In this … Read more
On Friday, I wrote about the explosion of COVID litigation in health care and senior living, especially that which is challenging federal immunity under the PREP Act and cases challenging insurance coverage for business interruption coverage resultant from COVID remediation policies (business closure, school closures, vaccine requirements, etc.). Today’s post is a bit more focused … Read more
Value-Based Care is kind of a vogue term, one that I encounter quite often. I also have used it when speaking or writing and know most people have no idea what it means or how it can be developed and/or applied. Value-based care is not a new concept. Medicare tried a foray into it back … Read more
I’ve written a lot over the years about understanding the unique connection between quality care and the systems to support its delivery, and revenue. Arguably, the most successful provider organizations understand that impeccable quality of care (delivery, outcomes, patient satisfaction) begets high occupancy (referrals) and preferential payer mix (quality mix). Of course, the inverse relationship … Read more
No other segment of senior living/senior care got rocked as much by the pandemic as skilled nursing. Frankly, the industry had challenges from labor shortages and lagging reimbursement entering the pandemic (2020). The pandemic didn’t just accentuate these issues, it blew them up in terms of magnitude (impact) while adding supply chain issues, inflation, and … Read more