While home care leaders haven’t been able to completely eliminate turnover, some have adopted creative solutions that are making a difference. Companies like Griswold Home Care and Senior Solutions Home Care have begun to use automation, gamification, and more. According to Ava CEO Victor Hunt, one of the reasons healthcare providers continue to struggle with turnover is that they haven’t placed enough emphasis on preventing it. “We really have to focus on the avoidable attrition, the people who go to other agencies,” he said during a recent panel discussion at Home Health Care News’ FUTURE conference last week. “Those are…
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As New York State faces many challenges recently that directly impact the state’s Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program (CDPAP), including Governor Hockal’s FY 2025 budget and efforts to reduce Medicaid spending, it seems the only constant in the state is change. Home Healthcare News recently spoke with Evan Ostrowski, CEO of Special Touch Homecare, about the company’s 40-year history, service to 150,000 patients, its expansion into New York’s Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program (CDPAP) as a financial intermediary, and how he expects the company to thrive amid these changes. Below is that conversation, edited for length and clarity. Subscribe to…
Contrary to what some may have heard, the organization providing home health and hospice care in the three counties is not scheduled to close, but some changes are being made.According to Memorial Health System in Abilene, Home Health & Hospice of Dickinson County (HH&H) has been serving a wide area of Dickinson, Morris and Marion counties for many years, and there is no question that the services they provide are greatly needed, and this is especially true in rural Kansas counties.HH&H is a strong supporter of Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) waivers and has participated for many years in the…
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. (WTAJ) — A Pennsylvania-based home care agency has been ordered by a federal judge to pay $129,697 in back wages to 66 caregivers. Blue Ridge HomeCare, based in Philadelphia and Dover, Delaware, was ordered to pay back wages and damages after an investigation found that the company knowingly denied overtime pay to 66 home care workers. Additionally, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania ordered the company to pay $49,434 in civil penalties to the U.S. Department of Labor. Prior to the judgment, the Department of Labor said Blue Ridge had already paid $100,000 in…
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. (WTAJ) — A Pennsylvania-based home care agency has been ordered by a federal judge to pay $129,697 in back wages to 66 caregivers.Blue Ridge HomeCare, based in Philadelphia and Dover, Delaware, was ordered to pay back wages and damages after an investigation found that the company knowingly denied overtime pay to 66 home care workers.Additionally, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania ordered the company to pay $49,434 in civil penalties to the U.S. Department of Labor. Prior to the judgment, the Department of Labor said Blue Ridge had already paid $100,000 in unpaid wages…
A state comptroller’s audit found that New Jersey home care provider Heart to Heart improperly billed and was overpaid by Medicaid by nearly $2.4 million. The provider billed New Jersey Medicaid for unsubstantiated services, failed to verify the professional qualifications of attendants, and failed to meet Medicaid quality of care requirements. TRENTON – The State Comptroller’s Office (OSC) today announced it has issued an audit report that found Heart to Heart, a home care services provider with locations in Paterson, Hackensack, East Orange, Lakewood and Vineland, improperly billed Medicaid and received overpayments totaling $2,386,287, and must repay the overpayments to…
Key Insights CMS is proposing a permanent prospective adjustment of negative 4.067% in 2025 to account for the transition to a patient-driven grouping model. CMS estimates an increase of 2.5%, but when combined with the behavioral offset and other payment changes in the rule, the updates are estimated to result in a 1.7% decrease (approximately $280 million) compared to calendar year 2024. CMS is proposing to replace current COVID-19 reporting standards with new standards that cover a broader range of acute respiratory illnesses. CMS is proposing updates to the enrollment process for providers who resume Medicare billing privileges to reduce…
As a candidate in 2020, President Biden campaigned on building upon the Affordable Care Act (ACA) by increasing the amount of financial assistance available to people buying their own health insurance coverage through the ACA Marketplaces. Temporary subsidies were originally passed as part of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) in 2021, which included two years of enhanced subsidies (2021 and 2022). The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which passed in 2022, extended these enhanced subsidies for an additional three years, ending after 2025. The IRA and ARPA’s enhanced health insurance subsidies both increase the amount of financial help available to…
This article is part of the HHCN+ Membership There is a villainous icon in the home health care industry. But according to William A. Dombe, president of the National Association of Home Care & Hospice (NAHC), there is a difference between a provider who makes an error in billing or delivering quality of care and one who knowingly engages in fraud. “Blatant and deliberate fraud is the issue of greatest concern,” he told Home Health Care News. “Bad actors are those who get into home health care with the intent of stealing money from Medicare, Medicaid, etc. Their goal is…
A Kaiser Permanente home health agency opened in Kona last week, allowing Kaiser Permanente members who need in-home care on Hawaii Island to have that care delivered to their homes. Photo courtesy of Kaiser Permanente The agency aims to provide nursing and physical therapy in the home for members who use assistive devices such as walkers, canes or wheelchairs, or whose health conditions make it difficult for them to leave their homes and whose care can only be safely carried out under the supervision of a skilled nurse or therapist. “Having skilled medical professionals caring for our residents in their…