On January 1, 2013, Congress passed the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 , which the president has signed. The act delays sequestration for two months, but assumes the remaining sequestration will resume on March 1, 2013. This means that, for two months, health care providers have avoided the 2 percent cuts in Medicare payments scheduled to take place January 1.
Although compliance programs for skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) are not a new concept, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act , enacted March 23, 2010, requires nursing facilities to have a compliance and ethics program in operation by March 23, 2013, that effectively prevents and detects criminal, civil and administrative violations under the Social Security Act of 1935 and promotes quality of health care.
The Supreme Court upheld President Obama’s health care overhaul, holding that it is constitutional in substantially all respects. The ruling further confirms that major changes are coming as a result of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education Tax Credits Reconciliation Act of 2010 . The acts have tax and penalty implications for both individuals and businesses.
In accordance with the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), the Secretary of Health and Human Services issued a report to Congress on April 11, 2012, addressing a plan to reform the Medicare wage index methodology.