Aug 28, 2019 | Inpatient Psych, Medicare
CMS has finalized the Inpatient Psychiatric Facility (IPF) rule for FY2020. The rule has no major policy changes and updates rates by +1.75% which combined with adjustments to the outlier threshold is projected to increase IPF payments by +1.5%. Click to read more.
Aug 26, 2019 | Legislation/ Budgets/ Macro
Recently, Congress passed—and President Trump signed—a budget agreement for FY2020 and FY2021. The deal ends the possibility of government shutdowns for this fall and next fall, and removes the politically contentious issue of the debt limit from the agenda by suspending the limit through July 31, 2021. Click to read more.
Aug 23, 2019 | Managed Care Friday
1. Younger but Not Better: Millennials are a less healthy generation compared to Generation X at the same age. One in three millennials do not have a primary care physician and are less likely to seek preventative care on a regular basis, based on a new study of medical claims by the BCBS Health Index. The report found that millennials had substantially higher diagnoses for eight of the top 10 health conditions than Generation X, and based on their current health status, millennials are more likely to be less healthy when they’re older, compared to Gen Xers. These findings are based off a...
Aug 21, 2019 | Drugs, Medicare, Part D
An increasing share of Medicare prescription drug (Part D) spending is made up of expensive specialty drugs and biologics. This has driven up costs for both Part D enrollees and the Federal government’s subsidies of the Part D program. This brief summarizes MedPAC’s study of the impact of specialty drugs on the Part D program and recommendations to Congress. Click to read more.
