UPDATE Weekly

The General Assembly will begin deliberations on the State’s 2013-14 budget in the next few days. The House and Senate will pass a Continuing Resolution by week’s end to extend the legislative session beyond June 30th. NCHCFA members have been sent a “CALL TO ACTION” e-mail (Microsoft Word format, PDF format) detailing how to help us to minimize cuts to Medicaid provider rates. The House and Senate have appointed a Conference Committee to work out differences with the 2013-14 State budget. It is very important that we generate calls, emails and letters to members of the General Assembly in support of NCHCFA’s position. Please generate contacts from your staff and families. Contacts need to begin today and continue through next week. Your legislator needs to hear from you. Tell them how further cuts to Medicaid funding will impact your residents and your community. We need your help. Please start your contacts now!

[Return to top]

Register today to attend the second annual NCHCFA Summer Symposium, August 6-8, 2013 at the Marriott Grande Dunes Resort, Myrtle Beach, SC for the most up to date information affecting long term care. You can register and pay on-line. Visit http://www.NursingHomesNC.com & click on Second Annual Summer Symposium Registration! Administrators and registered nurses will be able to earn up to 14.0 hours of continuing education.

Don’t miss “Medicaid Managed Care – Will North Carolina Be Next?” on Wednesday, August 7th. Many states have placed portions of their Medicaid programs in the hands of Medicaid Managed Care Organizations (MCO’s). In April, Governor McCrory broadly outlined his plan to reform North Carolina’s Medicaid program. His initiative, “Partnership for a Healthy North Carolina” would create several Comprehensive Care Entities (CCE’s) that would “provide the framework to deliver high quality, patient-oriented care to Medicaid recipients.” Under the plan, CCE’s would be statewide in scope and manage all Medicaid services including skilled nursing care. There is much uncertainty surrounding the merits of turning the administration of the Medicaid program over to private managed companies. Providers are understandably nervous about managed care especially in light of the experiences from some states to date. This session will provide you with an overview of the Governor’s plan, what we have learned from other states, and the possible impact on skilled nursing services in North Carolina.

The North Carolina Health Care Facilities Association would like to thank the 2013 Summer Symposium Hosts for supporting this year’s event:

[Return to top]

The latest NCTracks newsletter is available. This edition discusses:

• What to expect on July 1st
• Things providers should do on July 1st
• Trainings and seminars
• Pending claims in the HP system
• Other items of interest

To read the current newsletter, click here.

[Return to top]

In preparation for the transition to the new NCTracks system, the current HPES Automated Voice Response System (AVRS) will be retired on Friday June 28th at 5:00 PM. This service allows providers to verify recipient eligibility, checkwrite information, prior approval, and claim status. This message is to provide notice to the provider community that they will not have access to the current AVRS after it is shut down on June 28th. The replacement AVRS, which will have the same telephone number (800) 723-4337, will be available on July 1st at 6:00 AM with the implementation of NCTracks. The current NCECS WebTool will remain available to verify recipient eligibility until 11:59 PM on June 30th.

Providers are reminded that they will have from approximately 1:00 PM on Thursday June 27th until 11:59 PM on Sunday June 30th retrieve their 835s and PDF RAs.

[Return to top]

The American Health Care Association (AHCA) is proud to offer members access to its Affordable Care Act (ACA) Web page, which features all of the latest health reform analysis and tools for long term care providers. In addition to important resources and ACA updates, the site also features a critical timeline regarding upcoming deadlines and compliance programs. For more information, send an e-mail to insurancecoverage@ahca.org.

[Return to top]

Some members have recently received letters from the North Carolina Central Cancer Registry (NCCCR) requiring the data submission of cancer or benign brain tumor diagnoses in patients. N.C. General Statutes § 130A-209 requires that all providers that engage in the detection, diagnosing, or treatment of cancer – including physicians, hospitals, nursing homes, assisted living facilities and hospices – report to the central cancer registry each diagnosis of cancer or benign brain or central nervous system tumors.

The N.C. Division of Public Health has identified a gap in the actual number of cancer deaths and the number of cases reported each year by providers. For example, in 2010 there were approximately 18,000 actual cancer deaths, but 2,300 of those deaths were not previously reported and were found only by checking the death certificates. However, it can often take up to two years to obtain the necessary data when only using the death certificates and this can delay public health intervention efforts targeting specific types of cancer.

NCHCFA staff has been in discussions with the North Carolina Division of Public Health to discuss ways in which the legal requirements can be met in a less time consuming and less burdensome way for nursing home providers. We reached an agreement with the N.C. Division of Public Health to report only a limited number of fields for each nursing home resident with a cancer diagnosis, as opposed to all of the fields normally reported by hospitals and physicians. The principle information to be reported is: Resident’s Name, Address, Date of Birth, Gender, Cancer Site, and Date of Diagnosis, if known. This is a simplified process that is more appropriate and less time consuming in the nursing home setting.

[Return to top]

Beginning in 2014 employers with 50 or more full-time or “full-time equivalent” employees during the previous calendar year must offer minimum essential health care coverage or pay a penalty.

Join Nancy Taylor, attorney Greenberg Traurig, for expert guidance on meeting the employer requirements in the Affordable Care Act. This free Webinar will be held July 16, 2013 from 2:00 to 3:00 PM ET. This Webinar will help participants:

1. Use the ACA Readiness Checklist
2. Understand triggers for whistleblower action
3. Understand audit triggers and risks

To register, click here. If you have questions or need more information, please e-mail the ACA team at insurancecoverage@ahca.org.

[Return to top]

On Friday, June 28th, at 11:00 AM, the American Health Care Association will host a 30-minute Webinar titled The Medicaid Information Clearinghouse: A New Resource for Members. In this session, participants can learn about the new tool that provides members with a single location where they can go to answer questions and find resources about the Medicaid program.

The recently launched Medicaid Information Clearinghouse includes summary information about Medicaid and how it is changing, program issue briefs of interest to the long term care sector, and state-specific information about nursing center payment policies in Medicaid. The Web page also includes detailed information for nearly every state on the Medicaid payment methodology used to reimburse nursing centers.

To register, go to http://webinars.ahcancal.org/session.php?id=11156.

[Return to top]

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has developed a national partnership to improve the quality of care provided to individuals with dementia living in nursing homes. This partnership is focused on delivering health care that is person-centered, comprehensive, and interdisciplinary. By improving dementia care through the use of individualized, person-centered care approaches, CMS hopes to continue to reduce the use of unnecessary antipsychotic medications in nursing homes and eventually other care settings as well. The partnership promotes a systematic process to evaluate each person and identify approaches that are most likely to benefit that individual. While antipsychotic medications are the initial focus of the partnership, CMS recognizes that attention to other potentially harmful medications is also an important part of this initiative.

The call has been schedule for Wednesday, July 10 from 1:30 to 3:00 PM ET. During this National Provider Call, CMS subject matter experts will discuss the progress that has been made during the implementation of this national partnership, its successes, and next steps. A question and answer session will follow the presentation.

Topics include:

• National partnership overview: Success through data
• Stories from the field: State coalitions, providers, clinicians
• Next Steps
  • Provider feedback
  • What outreach strategies have been successfully implemented and have led to meaningful change in nursing homes
• Question and answer session

In order to receive call-in information, you must register for the call on the CMS Upcoming National Provider Calls registration Web site. Registration will close at 12:00 PM on the day of the call or when available space has been filled; no exceptions will be made, so please register early.
A link to the slide presentation will be e-mailed to all registrants on the day of the call. Continuing education credit may be awarded for participation in certain CMS National Provider Calls. Visit the Continuing Education Credit Information Web page to learn more.

[Return to top]

This pre-recorded Webinar discusses the different types of Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF) Medicare required notices, such as Generic and Detailed notice under the expedited determinations process, the Advanced Beneficiary Notice (ABN) and the Notice of Exclusion from Medicare Benefits (NEMB). To register for this Webinar, click here.

[Return to top]

Providers that employ or contract with an excluded person or entity may be subject to civil monetary penalties of $10,000 for each item of service provided by the excluded person, plus three times the amount billed to the federal health care program. The Office of Inspector General has published a special, advisory bulletin that provides guidance to health care providers on the scope and frequency of screening employees and contractors to determine if they have been excluded.

To view the bulletin, click here.

[Return to top]

The May 2013 edition of the AHCA’s RAI/MDS User’s Manual, Version 3.0 is now available! The latest updates from CMS include revisions/updates to Chapters 2, 3, and 5. AHCA offers the RAI/MDS in two versions, a 3-ring binder with 49 tabs for easy reference or an e-book that is easy to navigate, and has excellent search capabilities. The expected ship date is late June.

AHCA is now taking pre-orders for The Long Term Care Survey. The new May 2013 edition has all the recent updates from CMS, including revisions to Appendix P on dementia Care in Nursing Homes, and Appendix PP: F-Tag 309, Quality of Care, F-Tag 329, Unnecessary Drugs, as well as the earlier revisions to F-Tag 441 on Infection Control and F-Tag 155, Advanced Directives. New BONUS CD-ROM includes an electronic manual for convenient search of keywords and F-Tag numbers, exhibits/forms, and CMS transmittals. Pre-order your copy today! The Long Term Care Survey is currently at the printer and the expected ship date is late July.

To order, visit http://www.AHCApublications.org or call (800) 321-0343.

[Return to top]

This brochure outlines what physical restraints are, when they should be used, rules and regulations concerning restraints, and making decisions about using them. Contact Jan Williams at janw@nchcfa.org to order brochures for your facility.

• NCHCFA Member: $30.00/100 brochures plus tax and shipping
• Non-Members: $60.00/100 brochures plus tax and shipping

[Return to top]

Stroke Survivors May Experience PTSD Symptoms.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/19/stroke-ptsd-symptoms_n_3468305.html

[Return to top]

During the battle of Gettysburg, a random bullet went through the door of a house, striking and killing 20-year-old Mary Virginia Wade making her the only civilian killed during the entire battle.

[Return to top]