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| February 13, 2025 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 This Week at CT Healthcare At Home
Federal Legislative UpdateAssociation Urges Legislators to Increase Medicaid Rates for HCBS With the release of the governor’s budget last week, our Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) provider members, once again, are left out in the cold. While there is a line item in the budget to address a modest hike to low-wage caregivers (Home Health Aides and Homemaker-Company Agency caregivers), this line item is targeted to offset the 4.2% minimum wage increase that was effective January 1, 2025, AND not included in our current budget.
To all Medicaid providers, we need your voices to be heard during the Appropriations Human Services public hearing on Monday February 24th. If planning to testify, please notify Tracy Wodatch (wodatch@cthealthcareathome.org), who will guide and support you through the process.
News UpdateSource: McKnights Home Care, February 5, 2025
Troubled by recent Medicaid portal outages and lawmakers’ discussions of cuts to the program, home- and community-based services organizations are urging providers to take a stand to protect this key source of funding.
“The time is now for all providers of community-based services to let their members of Congress know what an important role Medicaid plays in the lives of the people that they serve,” Julie Ward, senior executive officer of public policy at nonprofit service organization The Arc, told McKnight’s Home Care Daily Pulse Wednesday. “This is our opportunity to really educate Congress about the complexity of the program and the impact that any potential freezes or cuts would have on the service system as it is today.”
Source: Home Health Care News, February 7, 2025
As home health providers increasingly serve people with more complicated and serious conditions, and the push for cost-effective and value-based care continues, wound care is becoming more important than ever. The good news is that technology is changing the game for at-home wound care, but the bad news is that serious challenges remain regarding access to this type of at-home care.
Chronic wounds are increasingly burdening the U.S. health care system, affecting millions of people and incurring costs exceeding $25 billion annually, as an aging population and rising comorbidities suggest a rising demand for innovative home-based wound care solutions, according to a study done by researchers at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln.
Source: Alliance Daily, February 10, 2025
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has posted the January 2025 Quarterly OASIS Q&A. The majority of the questions pertain to the submission of the OASIS for all patients regardless of payer.
Home health agencies are required to collect and submit OASIS data for all patients with any pay source who are not exempt from OASIS data collection and who begin receiving home health care services with an OASIS SOC M0090 date on or after July 1, 2025. OASIS data collection and submission for non-Medicare/non-Medicaid patients is voluntary January 1 – June 30, 2025. See the CMS Transition to All-Payer OASIS Data Collection and Submission fact sheet here. Source: Alliance Daily, February 10, 2025
Many employers with more than 10 employees are required to keep a record of serious work-related injuries and illnesses. Some health care and home care companies must electronically submit injury and illness reports to the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) annually through OSHA’s Injury Tracking Application (ITA). The deadline for submission of the 2024 data is March 2, 2025.
Source: The Newtown Bee, February 2, 2025
Regional Hospice marked a momentous milestone in January with the tenth anniversary of its Center for Comfort Care & Healing, a one-of-a-kind facility that has redefined end-of-life care in Connecticut... ToniAnn Marchione, LRT (M), BS, president and CEO of Regional Hospice, notes Regional Hospice has been providing care in the community for more than 40 years. “When we opened our doors to the Center a decade ago, our former president & CEO, Cynthia Emiry Roy, MS, LCSW, CHA, who was the visionary, along with our board members and others, created more than just a hospice facility — the idea was to build a true home where patients and their loved ones could find comfort, dignity, and peace,” Marchione said.
Publisher's note: Several hospices advocated to change Connecticut's regulations to reclassify hospice facilities under "hospice" rather "hospital" just over a decade ago. Source: Home Health Care News, January 29, 2025
Home-based care deals significantly slowed in 2024, but conditions are improving, according to a new report from Mertz Taggart.
M&A activity declined from 183 deals in 2021 to 110 in 2023, and then further decreased to 72 in 2024, according to the report. Ultimately, only 14 transactions took place in the last quarter, marking the lowest level of home-based care M&A activity since the pandemic. Those deals were inclusive of home care, home health and hospice, with some transactions involving more than one type of care.
Membership News Join us for an important, interactive IN-PERSON workshop with the Department of Public Health (DPH) Home Health and Hospice Survey Team.
The six state home care and hospice associations throughout New England are excited to announce that the 2025 New England Home Care & Hospice Conference and Trade Show (NEHCC) will take place from April 15 to 17 at the Holiday Inn by the Bay in Portland, Maine. This premier event is designed for professionals in the home care, home health and hospice industry, offering a unique opportunity to:
Early Bird Registration ends TOMORROW! Secure your spot before Friday, February 14, 2025, to take advantage of discounted rates. Hotel accommodations are available until rooms are sold out — which is happening quickly! Do not miss this chance to enhance your industry knowledge and expand your professional network.
Education
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Home Health Nuts & Bolts: Beyond the Basics
