Health and Human Services Department Proposed Rule

2016-15448: Medicare and Medicaid Programs; CY 2017 Home Health Prospective Payment System Rate Update; Home Health Value-Based Purchasing Model; and Home Health Quality Reporting Requirements

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Summary

This proposed rule would update the Home Health Prospective Payment System (HH PPS) payment rates, including the national, standardized 60-day episode payment rates, the national per-visit rates, and the non-routine medical supply (NRS) conversion factor, effective for home health episodes of care ending on or after January 1, 2017. This proposed rule also: Implements the last year of the 4- year phase-in of the rebasing adjustments to the HH PPS payment rates; updates the HH PPS case-mix weights using the most current, complete data available at the time of rulemaking; implements the 2nd-year of a 3-year phase-in of a reduction to the national, standardized 60-day episode payment to account for estimated case-mix growth unrelated to increases in patient acuity (that is, nominal case-mix growth) between CY 2012 and CY 2014; proposes changes to the methodology used to calculate outlier payments (with regards to payments made under the HH PPS for high-cost "outlier" episodes of care (that is, episodes of care with unusual variations in the type or amount of medically necessary care)); proposes changes in payment for Negative Pressure Wound Therapy (NPWT) performed using a disposable device for patient's under a home health plan of care; discusses our efforts to monitor the potential impacts of the rebasing adjustments mandated; includes an update on subsequent research and analysis as a result of the findings from the home health study; solicits comments on a potential process for grouping HH PPS claims centrally during claims processing; and proposes changes to the Home Health Value-Based Purchasing (HHVBP) Model, which was implemented on January 1, 2016; and proposes updates to the Home Health Quality Reporting Program (HH QRP).

The agency’s own summary, as published.

What this changes

Amends 2 parts of the Code of Federal Regulations — the standing rules this notice rewrites.

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