Medicare Advantage plans hold up their end of the contract with CMS, and provide, at a minimum, a fair reimbursement for services delivered. The physician advisor is a fast-growing specialty that has evolved into so much more than someone who performs endless chart reviews for observation status determinations, medical necessity reviews, peer-to-peer conversations with payors, […]
Along with that growth, the number of plans offering more than one benefit increased 15%, from 175 to 202. The findings show that under the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ reinterpretation of “primarily health-related” benefits, supplemental benefit offerings in Medicare Advantage – such as home-based palliative care, in-home support services, caregiver support and therapeutic […]
Hospitals across the nation are seeing lower profits, and it’s all because of a sudden tsunami of Medicare and Medicaid provider audits. Whether it be by Recovery Audit Contractor (RACs), Medicare Administrative Contractors (MACs), Unified Program Integrity Contractors (UPICs), or otherwise, hospital audits are rampant. Billing errors, especially “supposed bundling,” are causing a high rate […]
More plans will offer meals, nutrition, transportation or in-home support services at a $0 premium in 2022. Ahead of the annual election period, which began on October 15, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services published information on MA and Part D plan (PDP) premiums, benefit offerings and star ratings. Avalere analyzed that data […]
On average, Medicare Advantage-prescription drug plans scored 4.37 stars for the 2022 Medicare Advantage Star Ratings. Over nine in ten Medicare Advantage-prescription drug plans (94.26 percent) received a 3.5 star rating or higher on the 2022 Medicare Advantage Star Ratings, with an average star rating of 4.37 stars, CMS announced. In contrast, in 2019 over […]
Prime’s New Jersey hospitals will continue to honor the rates and services in the agreements until the end of the cooling off period. The decision impacts Saint Clare’s Health in Denville, Dover and Boonton, Saint Michael’s Medical Center in Newark, and Saint Mary’s General Hospital in Passaic. Dr. Sonia Mehta, regional CEO and chief medical […]
SCAN Health Plan will offer its senior-first Medicare Advantage Plans in 17 markets across three states starting in 2022. SCAN currently provides senior-focused Medicare Advantage plans to 220,000 Californians and aims to reach even more seniors by extending its offerings to Alameda and San Mateo counties. The payer had not offered plans in states other […]
Dive Brief: A federal appeals court has ruled against UnitedHealthcare, the biggest private payer in the U.S., and reversed a 2018 decision overturning Medicare’s overpayment rule requiring insurers to refund reimbursement to CMS within 60 days if they learn a diagnosis lacks medical record support. UnitedHealthcare argued in court in November the overpayment rule was […]
Dive Brief: In a win for providers, CMS dropped a requirement that would have forced hospitals to disclose their contract terms with Medicare Advantage plans from its final inpatient pay rule for 2022 released Monday. The rule bumps payment for inpatient services by 2.5%, which will result in hospitals getting $2.3 billion more than this […]
Regence BlueShield’s new partnership will offer members access to quality acute home healthcare services. Regence BlueShield (Regence) has partnered with a home healthcare provider to increase member access to acute home healthcare services. Regence members in Pierce County, Washington will have access to the new program. The payer plans to expand the acute home healthcare […]