CMS proposes pay increase for nursing homes
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has proposed a $690 million increase in Medicare payments to nursing homes for fiscal year 2008. The 3.3 percent increase to the skilled nursing facility prospective payment system (SNF PPS) would raise reimbursements for certain centers that provide skilled nursing and rehabilitation care to Medicare beneficiaries. Under the SNF PPS, CMS pays a daily rate to nursing homes based on individual patients’ needs, adjusting for local labor costs.
Physicians boost hospitals’ revenues by $1.5m annually
Physicians generate an average of $1.5 million in annual revenue for their affiliated hospitals, a new survey of hospitals’ chief financial officers has found. The survey, conducted by the Irving, Texas-based research firm Merritt, Hawkins & Associates, looked at physician-driven hospital revenue in 17 specialties and included net inpatient and outpatient revenue derived from patient referrals, tests and procedures. Among the specialties, cardiologists were found to generate the most annual hospital revenue on average ($2.6 million).
U.S. Justice Department joins false claims case
The United States Justice Department has intervened in a suit that alleges a Kentucky-based provider of geriatric care violated the False Claims Act by knowingly inflating its claims to Medicare. Three separate lawsuits filed against HealthEssentials Solutions Inc. have been consolidated into a single false claims case. Former HES employees filed the suits under whistleblower provisions, alleging that the company billed Medicare using higher-level billing codes than appropriate for the care provided.
Group to open Centers for Preventive Medicine
USF Health, a partnership of the University of Southern Florida’s healthcare entities including the colleges of medicine and nursing, has announced that it will open several Tampa Bay, Fla.-area Centers for Preventive Medicine. The centers will focus on areas of care such as preventive cardiology, cancer screening and women’s health screening. USF Health will also enact U.S. Preventive Medicine’s Prevention Plan, a benefit offering preventive health services to workers through their employers.