Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Post-acute care
MedPAC Report to the Congress: Medicare Payment Policy, 2023
Annual review of Medicare payment policies, with recommendations to Congress. Includes discussion on Medicare payment policies directly affecting rural providers and beneficiaries. Addresses payment adequacy for healthcare facilities and services; Medicare Advantage (MA), including a mandated report comparing per enrollee spending in the MA program with that of traditional fee-for-service (FFS) Medicare; and Medicare Part D.
Date: 03/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
view details
Annual review of Medicare payment policies, with recommendations to Congress. Includes discussion on Medicare payment policies directly affecting rural providers and beneficiaries. Addresses payment adequacy for healthcare facilities and services; Medicare Advantage (MA), including a mandated report comparing per enrollee spending in the MA program with that of traditional fee-for-service (FFS) Medicare; and Medicare Part D.
Date: 03/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
view details
Perspectives on the Long of COVID: From Doomscrolling to Rural Management Strategies
An overview of how Long COVID is impacting rural areas. Features a Tennessee rural health researcher sharing his Long COVID experience and a rural New York healthcare system discussing the condition's management options.
Author(s): Kay Miller Temple
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 03/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
view details
An overview of how Long COVID is impacting rural areas. Features a Tennessee rural health researcher sharing his Long COVID experience and a rural New York healthcare system discussing the condition's management options.
Author(s): Kay Miller Temple
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 03/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
view details
Filling Behavioral Health Gaps in Rural Communities: A Unique Partnership in Washington State
Discusses a collaboration between a Critical Access Hospital (CAH) in Washington and state hospitals to accept patient transfers by utilizing swing beds to care for patients with complex behavioral health and social needs, such as substance use disorder, mental health, homelessness, and more. Includes data on swing bed admissions and information on incorporating behavioral health services into primary care.
Author(s): Sarah Klein, Martha Hostetter
Date: 02/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: The Commonwealth Fund
view details
Discusses a collaboration between a Critical Access Hospital (CAH) in Washington and state hospitals to accept patient transfers by utilizing swing beds to care for patients with complex behavioral health and social needs, such as substance use disorder, mental health, homelessness, and more. Includes data on swing bed admissions and information on incorporating behavioral health services into primary care.
Author(s): Sarah Klein, Martha Hostetter
Date: 02/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: The Commonwealth Fund
view details
January 2023 MACPAC Meeting Transcript
Transcript from the Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission's (MACPAC) January 2023 meeting. Covers Medicaid race and ethnicity data collection and reporting, nursing facility provider payment principles, challenges for states administering Medicaid home- and community-based services and access barriers for Medicaid beneficiaries, Medicaid managed care quality oversight, the unwinding of the Public Health Emergency, and more. Includes rural references and considerations throughout.
Date: 01/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission
view details
Transcript from the Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission's (MACPAC) January 2023 meeting. Covers Medicaid race and ethnicity data collection and reporting, nursing facility provider payment principles, challenges for states administering Medicaid home- and community-based services and access barriers for Medicaid beneficiaries, Medicaid managed care quality oversight, the unwinding of the Public Health Emergency, and more. Includes rural references and considerations throughout.
Date: 01/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission
view details
Telerehabilitation Has Potential, but More Research, Funding, and Advocacy Are Needed
Reviews existing evidence on the use of telerehabilitation in the delivery of rehabilitation services, including physical therapy. Identifies barriers to the effective implementation of telerehabilitation and suggests potential areas that professional advocacy and policy can address to improve access to telerehabilitation services.
Author(s): Elizabeth Cornforth
Citation: Health Affairs Forefront
Date: 01/2023
Type: Document
view details
Reviews existing evidence on the use of telerehabilitation in the delivery of rehabilitation services, including physical therapy. Identifies barriers to the effective implementation of telerehabilitation and suggests potential areas that professional advocacy and policy can address to improve access to telerehabilitation services.
Author(s): Elizabeth Cornforth
Citation: Health Affairs Forefront
Date: 01/2023
Type: Document
view details
Factors Predicting Swing Bed Versus Skilled Nursing Facility Use
Examines differences between patients discharged to swing beds versus skilled nursing facilities (SNFs). Features statistics on discharge disposition of people from rural Critical Access Hospital (CAH) and Prospective Payment System (PPS) hospitals, characteristics of people discharged to swing beds or SNFs, with breakdowns by rural CAH discharges and rural PPS discharges, and hospitalization type for discharges to swing beds or SNFs. Includes the 10 most common diagnostic categories for discharges to swing beds or SNFs.
Author(s): Tyler Malone, Mark Holmes
Date: 10/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: North Carolina Rural Health Research Program
view details
Examines differences between patients discharged to swing beds versus skilled nursing facilities (SNFs). Features statistics on discharge disposition of people from rural Critical Access Hospital (CAH) and Prospective Payment System (PPS) hospitals, characteristics of people discharged to swing beds or SNFs, with breakdowns by rural CAH discharges and rural PPS discharges, and hospitalization type for discharges to swing beds or SNFs. Includes the 10 most common diagnostic categories for discharges to swing beds or SNFs.
Author(s): Tyler Malone, Mark Holmes
Date: 10/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: North Carolina Rural Health Research Program
view details
September 2022 MedPAC Meeting Transcript
Transcript from the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission's (MedPAC) September 2022 meeting. Covers Medicare payments to safety-net clinicians, the development of a prototype post-acute care prospective payment system, nursing facility staffing requirements and data, the expansion of telehealth during the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE) and payment for telehealth services after the PHE, inpatient psychiatric facility care, and Part D data on drug rebates and discounts. Includes rural references and considerations throughout.
Date: 09/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
view details
Transcript from the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission's (MedPAC) September 2022 meeting. Covers Medicare payments to safety-net clinicians, the development of a prototype post-acute care prospective payment system, nursing facility staffing requirements and data, the expansion of telehealth during the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE) and payment for telehealth services after the PHE, inpatient psychiatric facility care, and Part D data on drug rebates and discounts. Includes rural references and considerations throughout.
Date: 09/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
view details
2022 National Strategy to Support Family Caregivers
Report details and defines a national support strategy for family caregivers of all ages. Highlights strategies for caring for children, elderly adults, people with disabilities, people with chronic conditions, and post-acute conditions, among others. Also, discusses recommendations for caregivers residing in rural and underserved areas.
Additional links: Actions for States, Communities, and Others, Federal Actions, First Principles: Cross-Cutting Considerations for Family Caregiver Support
Date: 09/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Administration for Community Living
view details
Report details and defines a national support strategy for family caregivers of all ages. Highlights strategies for caring for children, elderly adults, people with disabilities, people with chronic conditions, and post-acute conditions, among others. Also, discusses recommendations for caregivers residing in rural and underserved areas.
Additional links: Actions for States, Communities, and Others, Federal Actions, First Principles: Cross-Cutting Considerations for Family Caregiver Support
Date: 09/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Administration for Community Living
view details
Measure Applications Partnership 2022 Considerations for Measure Set Review in Federal Programs: Clinician, Hospital, and Post-Acute Care/Long-Term Care
Reviews the 32 healthcare quality and efficiency measures used by the National Quality Forum's Measure Applications Partnership (MAP) during 2022. Discusses measures for clinician programs, hospital programs, and post-acute care/long-term care programs. Includes the MAP Rural Health Advisory Group's support or determination of the suitability of each measure for rural providers.
Date: 09/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Quality Forum
view details
Reviews the 32 healthcare quality and efficiency measures used by the National Quality Forum's Measure Applications Partnership (MAP) during 2022. Discusses measures for clinician programs, hospital programs, and post-acute care/long-term care programs. Includes the MAP Rural Health Advisory Group's support or determination of the suitability of each measure for rural providers.
Date: 09/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Quality Forum
view details
Report to Congress: Unified Payment for Medicare-Covered Post-Acute Care
Presents a prototype for a Unified Post-acute Care (PAC) prospective payment system (PPS) that would set payment for PAC services on the basis of the clinical characteristics of the patient rather than the type of provider. Details the structure of the prototype and the data used in the analyses to design and calibrate the PPS. Explores key considerations for unifying PAC payment, such as cost-sharing and value-based payment. Includes data on PAC provider characteristics, including facility size and rural status, as well as rural payment adjustments.
Additional links: Appendices
Author(s): Benjamin Silver, Anne Deutsch, Nicole Coomer, et al.
Date: 07/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, RTI International
view details
Presents a prototype for a Unified Post-acute Care (PAC) prospective payment system (PPS) that would set payment for PAC services on the basis of the clinical characteristics of the patient rather than the type of provider. Details the structure of the prototype and the data used in the analyses to design and calibrate the PPS. Explores key considerations for unifying PAC payment, such as cost-sharing and value-based payment. Includes data on PAC provider characteristics, including facility size and rural status, as well as rural payment adjustments.
Additional links: Appendices
Author(s): Benjamin Silver, Anne Deutsch, Nicole Coomer, et al.
Date: 07/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, RTI International
view details