Tuesday Links: How to profit from new CMS regulation changes, New electronic claims regulation could save providers time, and more

Here are some recent items of interest for skilled nursing facilities: Has the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services underestimated us again? Shelly Measure with McKnight's seems to think so. An interesting article on how to profit from new CMS regulation changes. A recent article in McKnight's reports HHS: New electronic claims regualtion could save providers time, money. McKnight's article reports that republican presidential hopeful Rick Santorum says he favors privatizing Medicare and says he would like to see the elimination of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Patricia Sheehan with Long-Term Living published an interesting profile recently about...

Friday Links: New Technology Program Using iPads, New Software Release from McKesson for Improved Medication Management, and more

Some additional items of interest for skilled nursing facilities: CRL Senior Living Communities has introduced two new programs, Seniors In Touch and iBraincercise, that empower community residents to make social networking and tablet computing a part of their daily lives. Health Dimensions Group will host the National Summit: Building the Continuum Essential for Success in Post-Health Care Reform February 1-3, 2012, in Phoenix, Arizona. The NewCourtland School of Practical Nursing celebrated its first graduation recently, marking the successful preparation of 20 students aspiring licensure, employment and service to the community as LPNs. New Software Release Drives Down Medication Cabinet Stock...

Thursday Links: Growth seen for telemedicine, HIMSS updates its ICD-10 Playbook, and more

Here are some recent items of interest for skilled nursing facilities: Telemedicine will play a much larger role in healthcare during 2012, according to a recent report from Euro RSCG. Jeron Electronic Systems has announced the release of its Provider 790 line of nurse call systems. This networked solution makes it possible to reach every corner of a facility, according to the firm. The Healthcare Information Management and Systems Society recently unveiled an updated version of its ICD-10 PlayBook. Among its new features: free access to its VitalVendors, which helps providers know which software firms have the resources to support...

Patient Placement Systems Enables Tracking of “Dual-Eligible” Patients in its Web-based Bed Management System for Skilled Nursing Facilities

We are pleased to announce the ability to identify and track coverage days remaining for dual-eligible patients within the Bed Management System, part of the 4.0 release of the Referral Management System: Patient Placement Systems (PPS) announced today enhancements to its Web-based bed management system that allows skilled nursing facilities to identify and track coverage days remaining for dual-eligible patients—those eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid coverage. PPS included the dual-eligible functionality as part of the new 4.0 release of the Web-based Referral Management System. Click here to learn more...

Wednesday Links: Bill would require speedier Medicaid reimbursements to SNFs, GOP bill discounting Medicare bad debt ignites skilled nursing backlash, and more

Here are some recent items of interest for skilled nursing facilities: Newly introduced legislation would require Medicaid to reimburse 90% of Medicaid providers, such as skilled nursing facilities, within 30 days, and any leftover claims within 90 days. GOP Bill discounting Medicare bad debt ignites skilled nursing backlash A former nursing home administrator was found guilty of receiving illegal payments for referring residents for fraudulent ambulance transport services. An MRI scan that detects atrophy patterns in the brains of Alzheimer's patients also can detect cognitive decline in Parkinson's patients, a new finds. The Senate Special Committee on Aging is holding...

The 11.1% Survival Guide for SNFs: Survival Tip 4 of 5—Know Your Situation and Surroundings

Tip 4: Capture Business Intelligence to Support Smarter—And Bolder—Strategies So far we’ve given you some sage advice. “Keep investing in growth when times are tough.” “Grow your census.” “Optimize your payer mix.” We’ll forgive you at this point if you’re saying, “Well, yeah, of course we’d like to do those things. But how?” These last two survival tips focus on the “how.” How do you make the business case for maintaining and investing in strategic programs? How do you start building and managing the highest quality census? Your most valuable starting asset is knowledge. If you’re going to champion a...

The 11.1% Survival Guide for SNFs: Survival Tip 5 of 5—Arm Yourself with the Right Tools for Battle

Here is the final excerpt of "The 11.1% Survival Guide for SNFs: 5 Tips for Thriving When Times Are Tough." Tip 5: Outmaneuver Your Competitors While They Stand Still SNF organizations that will survive—or better yet, thrive—in tough times will invest in strategies and resources that build quality census and revenue. They will arm themselves with business intelligence to make smart, nimble decisions that promote performance. And they’ll need to do one more important thing: Whip their competition. Current anxiety and uncertainty in the SNF industry open a tremendous opportunity for savvy providers. While other providers scale back staff and...

The 11.1% Survival Guide for SNFs: Survival Tip 2 of 5—Replenish Your Resources

As promised, excerpt number two from "The 11.1% Survival Guide for SNFs: 5 Tips for Thriving When Times Are Tough." Tip 2: Focus on Generating Revenue to Overcome Reimbursement Cuts This is an extension of what we’ve said already—it’s not enough to just focus on cutting costs. Think about the revenue. We provide census and revenue analyses for multi-location SNF clients that illustrate the potential revenue growth associated with incremental census growth up to 5 percent (growth we've documented with a 26-SNF client using our Referral Management System). These analyses take actual financial and census data from skilled nursing facilities...

The 11.1% Survival Guide for SNFs: Survival Tip 3 of 5—Master the Mix

Here is excerpt number three from "The 11.1% Survival Guide for SNFs: 5 Tips for Thriving When Times Are Tough." Tip 3: Optimize Your Payer Mix—It’s More Important Than Ever After CMS issued RUG IV in 2010, many SNFs focused on obtaining high-therapy, high-rehab Medicare patients, which had the highest reimbursement rates. Those RUGs, from RLA to RUX, took the brunt of the October 1 cuts from Medicare, representing a disproportionate percentage of the overall cuts. In fact, Medicare adjusted the reimbursement rates specifically to “correct” rates in those categories which they determined had been oversized with the introduction of...

The 11.1% Survival Guide for SNFs: Survival Tip 1 of 5 -- Choose Fight Over Flight

We recently published "The 11.1% Survival Guide for SNFs: 5 Tips for Thriving When Times Are Tough." We will post all all five tips here over the next few weeks. Here's the first excerpt: Tip 1: Stay On Course with Sound Strategies, Especially for Sales and Marketing Cutting costs and deferring “nonessential” projects can have short-term rewards, including in some cases an immediate positive effect on the balance sheet. And the cost-cutting process lets management do something, taking control in a positive way that can reassure executives and the entire organization that they are preparing for survival. But do drastic...