On November 1, 2012, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released the final 2013 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) and its updated conversion factor.
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) introduced various ways to strengthen primary care by improving care coordination, making it easier for clinicians to work together and helping clinicians spend more time with their patients. One such program is the Comprehensive Primary Care (CPC) initiative.
Long-Term Care M&A Activity Accelerates With consecutive increases in transaction volume each of the last six quarters, long-term care (LTC) mergers and acquisitions (M&A) volume has been on a torrid pace following the 40-transaction jolt in fourth quarter 2009. This accelerated deal volume can be traced to a number of factors affecting buyers and sellers. What’s driving sellers: Increased regulation and reimbursement pressures Uncertainty about future reimbursement Aging facilities needing major renovations or replacement Improving valuations Beginning wave of baby boomer owners nearing retirement age What’s driving buyers: The need to spread overhead costs due to regulatory and reimbursement changes Availability of cheap financing The impending wave of baby boomers needing future care As the graphs below illustrate, after 110 transactions in 2010, there have already been 74 reported through the first half of 2011
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued proposed rules to update the End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) prospective payment rates and quality incentive program (QIP) and ambulance fee schedules, as well as proposed changes to the definition of Durable Medical Equipment (DME). CMS projects payment rates for dialysis treatments will increase by 1.8 percent, representing a projected inflation (or ESRD market basket) increase of 3 percent, less a projected productivity adjustment of 1.2 percent as required by statute, effective for dialysis treatments furnished for calendar year 2012.