Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Post-acute care
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
Sponsoring organizations: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, RTI International
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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
Sponsoring organizations: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, RTI International
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Nursing Homes in Rural America: A Chartbook
Explores county-level nursing home availability and evaluates the supply of nursing home beds per 1,000 population aged 65 and older. Identifies nursing home availability for counties with and without hospitals with swing beds, and describes the resident and nursing home characteristics including occupancy levels, payer mix, demographics, and healthcare needs. Features statistics with breakdowns by noncore, micropolitan, and metropolitan counties.
Author(s): Hari Sharma, Lili Xu, Fred Ullrich, Clint MacKinney, Keith J. Mueller
Date: 07/2022
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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Explores county-level nursing home availability and evaluates the supply of nursing home beds per 1,000 population aged 65 and older. Identifies nursing home availability for counties with and without hospitals with swing beds, and describes the resident and nursing home characteristics including occupancy levels, payer mix, demographics, and healthcare needs. Features statistics with breakdowns by noncore, micropolitan, and metropolitan counties.
Author(s): Hari Sharma, Lili Xu, Fred Ullrich, Clint MacKinney, Keith J. Mueller
Date: 07/2022
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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MedPAC Comment on CMS's Proposed Rule on the Inpatient Rehabilitation Facility PPS for FY 2023
Comments on an April 6, 2022, Federal Register proposed rule addressing updates to the prospective payment system for inpatient rehabilitation facilities (IRFs) for fiscal year 2023. Includes comments on the IRF teaching and rural payment adjustments.
Date: 05/2022
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Comments on an April 6, 2022, Federal Register proposed rule addressing updates to the prospective payment system for inpatient rehabilitation facilities (IRFs) for fiscal year 2023. Includes comments on the IRF teaching and rural payment adjustments.
Date: 05/2022
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Post-Acute and Long-term Care Providers and Services Users in the United States, 2017–2018
Describes the supply, organizational characteristics, staffing, and services offered by post-acute and long-term care providers. Provides descriptions of service users, including residents of nursing homes and residential care communities, patients receiving home health or hospice care, and people who attend adult day services centers. Features statistics including distribution of post-acute and long-term care providers in 2017-2018, with breakdowns by metropolitan, micropolitan, or other areas.
Author(s): Manisha Sengupta, Jessica Penn Lendon, Christine Caffrey, Amanuel Melekin, Priyanka Singh
Date: 05/2022
Sponsoring organization: National Center for Health Statistics
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Describes the supply, organizational characteristics, staffing, and services offered by post-acute and long-term care providers. Provides descriptions of service users, including residents of nursing homes and residential care communities, patients receiving home health or hospice care, and people who attend adult day services centers. Features statistics including distribution of post-acute and long-term care providers in 2017-2018, with breakdowns by metropolitan, micropolitan, or other areas.
Author(s): Manisha Sengupta, Jessica Penn Lendon, Christine Caffrey, Amanuel Melekin, Priyanka Singh
Date: 05/2022
Sponsoring organization: National Center for Health Statistics
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MedPAC Report to the Congress: Medicare Payment Policy, 2022
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, improving Medicare payment for post-acute care, Medicare Advantage, Medicare Part D, and the impact of healthcare provider consolidation.
Date: 03/2022
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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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, improving Medicare payment for post-acute care, Medicare Advantage, Medicare Part D, and the impact of healthcare provider consolidation.
Date: 03/2022
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Quality of Home Health Agencies Serving Rural Medicare Beneficiaries
Describes a study examining the quality of home health agencies (HHAs) that serve rural beneficiaries, based on ratings from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services star rating system. Features statistics including characteristics of HHAs, patient care ratings, and patient experience ratings in 2018 by rural-serving status.
Date: 02/2022
Sponsoring organization: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
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Describes a study examining the quality of home health agencies (HHAs) that serve rural beneficiaries, based on ratings from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services star rating system. Features statistics including characteristics of HHAs, patient care ratings, and patient experience ratings in 2018 by rural-serving status.
Date: 02/2022
Sponsoring organization: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
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Quality of Skilled Nursing Facilities Serving Rural Medicare Beneficiaries
Policy paper describing a study examining the quality of skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) that serve rural beneficiaries, based on ratings from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services star rating system. Features statistics including characteristics of SNFs, overall star ratings, and staff star ratings in 2018 by rural-serving status.
Date: 02/2022
Sponsoring organization: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
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Policy paper describing a study examining the quality of skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) that serve rural beneficiaries, based on ratings from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services star rating system. Features statistics including characteristics of SNFs, overall star ratings, and staff star ratings in 2018 by rural-serving status.
Date: 02/2022
Sponsoring organization: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
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Keeping the Doors Open: Vulnerable Rural Hospitals Benefit from Federally Funded Technical Assistance
Features the work of Texas A&M's Center for Optimizing Rural Health (CORH), which provides technical assistance through a federally funded program for vulnerable hospitals. Highlights the experiences of a participating Oklahoma hospital.
Author(s): Kay Miller Temple
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 09/2021
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Features the work of Texas A&M's Center for Optimizing Rural Health (CORH), which provides technical assistance through a federally funded program for vulnerable hospitals. Highlights the experiences of a participating Oklahoma hospital.
Author(s): Kay Miller Temple
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 09/2021
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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The Swing Bed Program: Impacting Patients, Providers, and Community
Brief video overview of the swing bed program, which helps rural hospitals provide patient- and community-centric post-acute healthcare. Describes the history, related policy issues, early implementation, and evolution of the program.
Date: 08/2021
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Brief video overview of the swing bed program, which helps rural hospitals provide patient- and community-centric post-acute healthcare. Describes the history, related policy issues, early implementation, and evolution of the program.
Date: 08/2021
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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History of the Swing Bed: A Look Through the Rural Rearview Mirror
Reviews the history of the swing bed program, which helps rural hospitals serve patients and the community through provision of post-acute care. Shares insights from experts who describe early implementation and key program elements that have contributed to the program's success.
Author(s): Kay Miller Temple
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 08/2021
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Reviews the history of the swing bed program, which helps rural hospitals serve patients and the community through provision of post-acute care. Shares insights from experts who describe early implementation and key program elements that have contributed to the program's success.
Author(s): Kay Miller Temple
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 08/2021
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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