Coronavirus Daily Update: CMS Voices Commitment to Value-Based Care

During this critical time, Home Health Care News remains committed to bringing you all the essential news related to home-based care operations. At the same time, we also recognize the seriousness of the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to our regular content, we’ll continue to highlight industry-related developments and mitigation strategies in this rolling bulletin.

What you need to know from Monday (June 22):

— The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued a “renewed national commitment” to value-based care in light of new Medicare claims data. The data shows that older adults and people with chronic conditions face the highest risk for COVID-19. The new data also highlights racial and ethnic health disparities. 

— While older adults are at the highest risk of contracting COVID-19, more young people in southern states are testing positive for the virus. In states such as Florida, South Carolina, Georgia and Texas, 62% of new COVID-19 cases are people who are under the age of 45, reports CNN.

— A handful of hospital trade organizations are calling for forgiveness on repaying CARES Act Medicare loans, according to Modern Healthcare.  

— Several home health and home care agencies have transitioned to a fully remote workforce, with many organizations planning to stay remote even after COVID-19 goes away. But a large portion of America’s workers aren’t able to work from home, according to Axios. About 25 to 30 million front-line workers are unable to work remotely.

— The Treasury Department and the Small Business Administration said they would disclose the names of small business owners who received $150,000 or more in forgivable loans, the Associated Press reports. The agencies will reveal the general amount these businesses received, their address, demographic data and the number of jobs they helped protect.

CMS announces commitment to value-based care

The Trump administration called for a renewed commitment to value-based care on Monday, supporting its call to action with new claims data painting “an early snapshot” of the coronavirus’s impact on the Medicare population.

The new data show that more than 325,000 Medicare beneficiaries had a diagnosis of COVID-19 between Jan. 1 and May 16. That translates to 518 COVID-19 cases per 100,000 Medicare beneficiaries.

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The data also indicate that nearly 110,000 Medicare beneficiaries were hospitalized for COVID-19-releated treatment, which equals 175 COVID-19 hospitalizations per 100,000 Medicare beneficiaries.

Individuals who identify as Black were hospitalized with COVID-19 at a rate nearly four times higher than individuals who identify as white.

Individuals with chronic kidney disease undergoing dialysis had the highest rate of hospitalization among all Medicare beneficiaries, with 1,341 hospitalizations per 100,000 beneficiaries. The second highest rate was among beneficiaries enrolled in both Medicare and Medicaid; that “dual eligible” population had a hospitalization rate of roughly 473 hospitalizations per 100,000 beneficiaries.

For daily updates from the week of June 15, click here.

For daily updates from the week of June 8, click here.

For daily updates from the week of June 1, click here.

For daily updates from the week of May 26, click here.

For daily updates from the week of May 18, click here.

For daily updates from the week of May 11, click here.

For daily updates from the week of May 4, click here.

For daily updates from the week of April 27, click here.

For daily updates from the week of April 20, click here.

For daily updates from the week of April 13, click here.

For daily updates from the week of April 6, click here.

For daily updates from the week of March 30, click here.

For daily updates from the week of March 23, click here.

For daily updates from the week of March 16, click here.

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