Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Concern That Improvements To Quality Of Care Have Lagged In Rural Areas Prompts Proposed Measures For CMS
Modern Healthcare: CMS Urged To Adopt Core Quality Measures For Rural Providers
The National Quality Forum on Monday released its first-ever set of quality measures for rural hospitals and ambulatory care facilities to improve quality of care and access in rural communities. The NQF urged the CMS to adopt the measures, developed by a 25-member multi-stakeholder group including hospitals, for the traditional Medicare program first and perhaps later for Medicare Advantage plans and integrated delivery systems. (Meyer, 9/17)
In other news on CMS —
Modern Healthcare: ASC Outpatient Transfers Can't Be Rejected By Hospitals, Medicare Says
The CMS issued sweeping regulation Monday meant to ease Medicare regulations. The overall goal is to reduce administrative burden on providers and ease access to care for patients. Collectively, the CMS estimates the provisions will save providers $1.12 billion every year. The CMS wants to prevent hospitals from rejecting patients being transferred from competitive ambulatory surgical centers. Currently, surgical centers must have a written transfer agreement with a hospital or ensure all physicians performing surgery have admitting privileges in a nearby hospital. The CMS proposes removing that requirement, citing complaints from the "largest ASC trade association." (Dickson, 9/17)
