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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Medicare

Evaluation of the Health Care Innovation Awards, Round 2: Final Report
Summarizes the final evaluation results of 38 Health Care Innovation Awards Round Two projects. Discusses program impacts on healthcare service use and costs, factors associated with positive impacts, and awardees' experiences sustaining programs and implementing payment models after the end of the awards. Offers overall findings and awardee-specific evaluation reports. Includes some information on results for projects serving rural areas.
Additional links: Findings at a Glance
Date: 09/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Mathematica Policy Research
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MedPAC Comment on CMS's Proposed Rule on the ESRD PPS for CY 2021
Comments on a July 13, 2020, Federal Register proposed rule related to Medicare payment policies for end-stage renal disease (ESRD). Includes comments addressing the ESRD Quality Incentive Program and changes to geographic area delineations.
Date: 09/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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State Innovation Model (SIM) Summative Evaluation Report: Activities and Goal Evaluation Award Year 2-4 (AY2-4)
Summarizes the process and implementation activities of the State Innovation Model (SIM) test grant program in Iowa during award years 2 through 4, which spanned November 2016 through April 2019. SIM test awards are administered by the Centers of Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Innovation Center and allow states to implement and test strategies for health system transformation that meet the specific needs of residents of each state. Describes the process evaluation of SIM implementation activities and results of the 2016 and 2018 statewide evaluation surveys. Presents data on outcome measures regarding access and cost of care, diabetes, obesity, and tobacco use.
Author(s): Tessa Heeren, Rochelle Schultz Spinarski, Elizabeth Momany, et al.
Date: 08/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: University of Iowa Public Policy Center
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OIG's Top Unimplemented Recommendations: Solutions To Reduce Fraud, Waste, and Abuse in HHS Programs: August 2020
Annual report identifying the top 25 unimplemented recommendations from the Office of Inspector General (OIG) that, in OIG's view, would have the most substantial positive impact on Health and Human Services (HHS) programs. Positive impact may refer to cost savings, program efficacy and efficiency, and/or quality improvement. Primary areas of interest in the August 2020 edition include: reforming the hospital wage index system; ensuring that Medicaid managed care enrollees have timely access to behavioral health services; developing and implementing a staffing program for recruiting, retaining, and transitioning staff and leadership to remote Indian Health Service hospitals; and ensuring proper payments for 340B-purchased drugs.
Date: 08/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Office of Inspector General (HHS)
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Policy Goals to Support the Healthcare Workforce in Healthy Aging Communities
Report describing a research project funded by the New Mexico Department of Health that examines behavioral healthcare workforce needs and the growing elderly population in rural Grant, Sierra, Socorro, Catron, and Valencia counties. Presents key points from discussions with project participants, including professionals in health promotion, hospital, community health centers, local government, and educational institutions. Offers policy goals related to regional services, economic planning, and expansion of Medicaid and Medicare reimbursable services.
Author(s): Susan Wilger, Anne Hayes Egan, Alexis Brandt, Micaela Imar de la Rosa
Date: 08/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Center for Health Innovation
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Ohio Medicaid and Medicare Telehealth Reimbursement for Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHC) and Rural Health Clinics (RHC)
Provides an overview of Medicaid and Medicare telehealth reimbursement policies for Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) and Rural Health Clinics (RHCs) in Ohio in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Date: 08/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Upper Midwest Telehealth Resource Center
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Michigan Medicaid and Medicare Telehealth Reimbursement for Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHC) and Rural Health Clinics (RHC)
Provides an overview of Medicaid and Medicare telehealth reimbursement policies for Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) and Rural Health Clinics (RHCs) in Michigan in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Date: 08/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Upper Midwest Telehealth Resource Center
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Indiana Medicaid and Medicare Telehealth Reimbursement for Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHC) and Rural Health Clinics (RHC)
Provides an overview of Medicaid and Medicare telehealth reimbursement policies for Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) and Rural Health Clinics (RHCs) in Indiana in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Date: 08/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Upper Midwest Telehealth Resource Center
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MedPAC Comment on CMS's Proposed Rule on the Home Health Prospective Payment System for CY 2021
Comments on a June 30, 2020, Federal Register proposed rule related to Medicare payment policies for home health agencies. Includes comments addressing the use of technology under the Medicare home health benefit and changes to geographic area delineations.
Date: 08/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Living at Home in Rural America: Improving Accessibility for Older Adults and People with a Disability
Information on current federal resources, programs, and initiatives intended to improve home safety and accessibility for rural older adults and people with disabilities. Supports the Rural Health Strategy, launched by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in 2018 to improve health care in rural America by leveraging partnerships on the federal, regional, state, and local levels.
Date: 08/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Administration for Community Living, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Health Resources and Services Administration, U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
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