Recent News

Federal Legislative Report - Week Ending July 30, 2021

By Sarah Mills posted yesterday
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Members, Please see the following federal report brought to you by your federal lobby group, Akin Gump. Introduction of Choose Home Care Act Senators Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and Todd Young (R-IN) have officially introduced the Choose Home Care Act of 2021 ( S.2562 ), which would create an add-on to the existing Medicare home health benefit allowing certain Medicare patients to receive post-hospital services in their homes. The new benefit would be available for those eligible for both skilled nursing facility (SNF) and home health agency care, and include a 30-day unit of service combining today’s Medicare Home Health Benefit with additional supportive ...
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BREAKING NEWS! New Guidance for HCSSAs on Masks

By Sarah Mills posted May 24,2021
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Members,  Please see the notice below regarding home and community support services agencies, now not required to comply with any requirement in HHSC rule that mandates face coverings in response to the COVID-19 disaster. Providers must continue to comply with applicable infection control rules, including those addressing compliance with CDC and CMS guidance. (see complete notice below). As a reminder, although not mentioned in this HHSC's notice, providers are required to comply with Section 5(a)(1) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act (the "General Duty Clause") which requires an employer to furnish to its employees: "a place of employment which are ...
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Palmetto - COVID-19 Accelerated/Advance Payment Repayment Tracking

By Jennifer Elder posted Apr 14,2021
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On April 12, 2021, Palmetto released an article updating providers on the new transaction numbers associated with CAAP recoupment activity.  A new transaction number with a format starting "CVDA" will appear on the remittance advice for any recoupment activity related to CAAP repayment. This new transaction number will replace the old transaction number formatted with "CVD" that was previously communicated to providers on October 16, 2020. Providers will use this new transaction number when looking up the repayment balance via eServices. Please review the article HERE and share the information with applicable staff.
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Next Week: Home Care & Hospice Month + A Message From Your New PAC President

By Helen Carrillo posted Oct 29,2020
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Governor Abbott declared November Home Care & Hospice Month in Texas- it begins next week: we encourage you to advance the ideas of home care and hospice throughout your community during this special month using your media kit! Here are a few words from your new PAC President Chrystal Everett: "   It's an honor to be the newly elected President for the Texas Homecare & Hospice PAC. I am genuinely excited to be an advocate and an example to each individual, encouraging them to understand and contribute to Texans who deserve access to quality home care and hospice services. In our rapidly changing environment, contributing to the PAC is vital ...
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Palmetto - RCD - Refresher 2020 On-Demand Webinar

By Jennifer Elder posted Sep 17,2020
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Palmetto GBA has provided an on-demand webinar on the basics of the RCD process. Learn about eServices and how to submit a review, hear tips from a Medical Review perspective and obtain helpful resources to help you navigate with success. Access to the webinar is immediate, so you can listen to it anywhere, anytime.  Register here to access the on-demand webinar.
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CMS – Provider Opportunity to Participate in Medical Documentation Interoperability Pilot

By Jennifer Elder posted Sep 17,2020
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CMS is encouraging providers to participate in an interoperability pilot to test medical documentation exchanges. The initiatives of this program include reducing administrative burden for providers and improve provider-to-provider communication. The EMDI stakeholders include hospitals, physicians, DME companies, home health agencies, health information exchanges, electronic health record vendors, electronic medical record vendors, laboratories, and other healthcare organizations. The Electronic Medical Documentation Interoperability (EMDI) Initiative  is designed to reduce provider burden by helping you standardize your workflow, so you can send and receive ...
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CMS - Launches Care Compare for Patients Making Important Health Care Decisions

By Jennifer Elder posted Sep 16,2020
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On September 3, under the leadership of President Trump, CMS launched Care Compare , a streamlined redesign of eight existing CMS health care compare tools available on Medicare.gov . Care Compare provides a single user-friendly interface that patients and caregivers can use to make informed decisions about health care based on cost, quality of care, volume of services, and other data. With just one click, patients can find information that is easy to understand about doctors, hospitals, nursing homes, and other health care services instead of searching through multiple tools. “President Trump has long recognized that a free and vibrant health care market ...
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Palmetto GBA RTP 39621

By Anna Gilerman posted Jul 20,2020
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All ACO patients claims RTP 39621. Per explanation, UTN needs to be removed. All these chart Provisionally Affirmed by Palmetto GBA. These are final claims, not LUPA . Does anyone had same issue ?
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El Paso - COVID-19 Assisted Living / Hospice / Nursing Information Session

By Becky Campbell posted Mar 10,2020
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The El Paso Department of Public Health will be holding an informational session on COVID-19 for area assisted living / hospice / nursing etc. agencies/businesses.  They feel that since the older population has been found to be more susceptible to the effects of COVID-19, they want to make time to specifically address caretakers in this community. The meeting will be at 10751 Montana Ave El Paso, TX 79935 (TecH2O Center) on March 16, 2020 at 1:00 pm MT.   There is a lot of space, so they’re hoping to get as many people as possible to attend.  For questions, contact Bri Morales at (915) 212-6502 or at moralesbn@elpasotexas.gov .
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Looking for a new or updated policy for your agency?

By Becky Campbell posted Mar 09,2020
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TAHC&H has developed a number of sample policies for the membership.  The first of these samples include: Avoiding Abandonment of Patients (English/Spanish) Billing & Coding Statement of Employment (English/Spanish) DNR (English/Spanish) Emergency Preparedness Guide for HCCSA’s Family Violence Law/Forms (English/Spanish) General Enforcement Policy Guidance on Nursing Delegation Incident Based Nursing Peer Review Mandatory Reporting Policy Ongoing Pain Assessment Tool Pain Management Flow Sheet Pediatric Nurse Competency Personal Safety in the Community/Workplace Violence Prohibition on Illegal Remuneration Pronouncement ...
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CMS Plans Redesign of Compare Websites for Home Health and Hospice

By Jennifer Elder posted Jan 23,2020
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According to a blog post today from CMS Administrator Seema Verma, CMS is planning to launch a new Medicare Care Compare on Medicare.gov. The new compare tool, which CMS plans to launch in Spring 2020, will combine the eight existing compare tools for Home Health, Hospice, Hospital, Nursing Home, Dialysis Facility, Long-Term Care Hospital, Inpatient Rehabilitation Facility, and Physician. Currently, these eight compare tools are among the most popular and utilized sections of the Medicare.gov website. The new compare tool will be designed to allow “users to access the same information through a single point of entry and simplified navigation to find the information ...
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Tyson Murphy - A Santa to Central Texas Seniors in need this holiday season

By Becky Campbell posted Dec 11,2019
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More than a thousand seniors in need in Central Texas are expected to receive gifts this year through the program, and there's still time left to give.   Once again, a TAHC&H Member, Tyson Murphy with Home Instead has stepped in to help.  Home Instead Senior Care , has a holiday program called Be a Santa to a Senior .  Participants can go to Walmart’s in Pflugerville, Round Rock and Georgetown, pick up a tag hanging on the Christmas trees, then buy the items you see on a senior's wish list and give them back to customer service. The wish list items range from blankets to slippers and once they're purchased, students from area elementary schools hand ...
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Why Secure Messaging is Safer Than Texting

By Becky Campbell posted Oct 15,2019
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Texting is a quick and easy way to communicate with colleagues and patients.  Home health providers appreciate the convenience of using text messaging to confirm appointments, answer questions, and address concerns with fellow staff members and their case load.  However, text isn’t always best despite its popularity for convenient communications.  Agencies might be more at risk than they think if staff members are texting each other information about patients.  And, free consumer group messaging apps utilize vulnerable platforms which are unable to address health care-specific needs in terms of security and compliance.  An agency places itself and its patients ...
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From Texas HHS: New Features for Hospice Forms 3071 and 3074 Beginning Aug. 23, 2019

By Giovanna Cooke posted Aug 02,2019
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From Texas Health and Human Services: New Features for Hospice Forms 3071 and 3074 Beginning August 23, 2019 Beginning Aug. 23, 2019, providers can monitor and interact with hospice forms 3071, Individual Election/Cancellation/Update and 3074, Physician Certification of Terminal Illness. To do this, go to the Long-Term Care Online Portal and view form status. Besides the existing “Save as Draft” and “Print” form actions, providers also have access to the following form actions (depending on the user’s security permissions or the current form status): Add Note • Correct this Form • Inactivate Form • Reactivate Form • Resubmit Form • Use as Template ...
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Don’t Miss CMS Open Door Forum on Home Health, Hospice, DME

By Rachel Hammon posted Jul 08,2019
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The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will hold an Open Door Forum (ODF) on Tuesday, July 9, 2019 from 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM Eastern Time to discuss the latest developments in home health, hospice, and durable medical equipment. Please call in at least 15 minutes before the start of the ODF. The agenda for the July 9 ODF is subject to change, but is scheduled as follows: Opening Remarks Acting Chair – Brian Slater, Center for Medicare Moderator – Jill Darling (OC) Announcements & Updates *DMEPOS Update * Competitive Bidding Implementation Contractor  website and the  Round 2021  DMEPOS Competitive Bidding ...
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Your Membership At Work; TAHC&H Successes At The Texas Capitol - Part 2 Managed Care Bills

By Sarah Mills posted Jun 21,2019
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In this update TAHC&H is providing you with a short list of Medicaid bills that deal with the operation and administration of the Medicaid program, especially in regards to managed care. The 86 th session was very different for bills filed to address concerns and fix issues with Texas Medicaid and there was not a shortage of bills filed this session. However, the legislators who filed the majority of the bills did not receive hearings. Only a handful of bills that impact our members made it across the finish line and were signed by the Governor. Below are the key bills that are important to your business and the patients you serve. SB 1207, by Senator ...
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TAHC&H Founding Member Celebrates 50 Years!

By Rachel Hammon posted Jun 11,2019
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Congratulations Wichita Home Health Service, Inc. on 50 extraordinary years.  Our industry at large is blessed to have, Dr. Ruth Constant, such an exceptional advocate for home care and hospice whose passion and foresight lead her to become one of the founding members of the Texas Association for Home Care & Hospice also celebrating 50 years (original name; H ome H ealth A gencies A ssociation of T exas, Inc.). When the Association first started, August 28 th , 1969, it was only through those members who devoted their time, money and energy to the cause that we have the Association we have today.  “ Our beginnings were bold and daring and grew out ...
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Your Membership at Work; TAHC&H Successes at the Texas Capitol

By Sarah Mills posted Jun 10,2019
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As everyone has probably heard the 86th General Legislative Session is all but a memory. Sine Die fell on Memorial Day, May 27th, as it does every odd numbered year and this year we are happy to report there are a handful of good bills impacting the membership of TAHC&H that passed. This week we are highlighting 3 of those bills. Over the next few weeks we will continue to highlight bills so stay tuned to your weekly newsletter for a Perspective you will only get as a member of TAHC&H. Electronic Visit Verification (EVV) was a top tier issue for TAHC&H this session. Prior to this legislative session TAHC&H began approaching legislative offices ...
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Countdown to RCD - 3 days until Launch

By Rachel Hammon posted May 28,2019
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Only 3 days stand between home health agencies and the launch of the dreaded Review Choice Demonstration (RCD) in Illinois. Having quality documentation processes in place and a strong electronic medical record (EMR) partner will be the keys to surviving the upcoming demo, experts caution. But picking the right claims review option will also be critical to agencies’ RCD success. “You have to have good processes in place, with staff buying into what you’re trying to accomplish,” Cheryl Adams, the home health administrator for Sparta Community Hospital, told Home Health Care News. “And you want to have a strong EMR, one that adapts to different regulation ...
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US Dept. of HHS presents free "Civil Rights and HIPAA Training for Small Providers" in Houston on 6/26/2019

By Giovanna Cooke posted May 22,2019
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The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights, Southwest Region will be providing a free "Civil Rights and HIPAA for Small Providers" presentation on Wednesday, June 26, 2019 from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm, at: Mickey Leland Federal Building 1919 Smith St. Houston, TX 77002 This introductory training will include: Civil Rights Race, Color, National Origin Disability Conscience & Religious Freedom Enforcement Updates HIPAA Access Security Rule Breach Highlights Enforcement Updates Space is limited! To reserve your seat, please RSVP to Erica Broussard by June 19, 2019, at erica.broussard@hhs.gov
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