After
giving billions of dollars to nursing facilities from the Provider Relief Fund
(PRF) “without strings,”[1]
and allowing facilities to spend the funds “without limitations,”[2] the Department of Health
and Human Services (HHS) has now announced the first round of “performance
payments” to nursing facilities under PRF: $333 million to 10,631 nursing
facilities, representing more than 77% of the 13,795 eligible facilities.[3] HHS describes the
performance payments as recognizing facilities “for demonstrating significant
reductions in COVID-19 related infections and deaths between August and
September.” HHS defines “significant reductions” as “keeping new COVID-19
infection and mortality rates among residents lower than the communities they
serve, as analyzed against CDC data.”
These
criteria both support the nursing home industry’s ongoing pass-the-blame
argument that geography, not facility practices, determines the presence of
COVID-19 in nursing facilities and undermine the argument (if facilities can
take actions to reduce the spread of COVID-19, then geography is not destiny!).
HHS
reports that the facilities receiving performance payments had “5,000 fewer
COVID-19 infections in nursing homes in September than in August” and that
10,501 facilities (76%) had 1,200 fewer COVID-19 related deaths in September
than in August. HHS identifies payments by state (identifying, by state, the
total number of facilities and the total dollar payout).[4] HHS does not identify which
facilities are receiving performance payments.
The
Center asks:
- Which nursing facilities will actually receive “performance
payments” and how much money will each one receive?
- How many COVID cases were identified in each facility in
August and in September?
- How many COVID deaths were identified in each facility in
August and in September?
- Did any of the facilities getting performance payments
receive an infection control deficiency in August or September?
- Has any of these facilities with an infection control
deficiency in August or September had a civil money penalty imposed for
the deficiency?
- How do the performance payments compare with the civil money
penalties? Which are higher?
- Is HHS rewarding facilities’ “performance” at the same time
that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is citing these
facilities with deficiencies for infection control and imposing civil
money penalties?
___________________
[1] In April 2020, CMS
Administrator Seema Verma announced the initial payout of $1.5 billion to all
skilled nursing facilities receiving Medicare (nearly all the facilities in the
country) and said, “‘There are no strings attached, so the health care providers
that are receiving these dollars can essentially spend that in any way that
they see fit.’” Alex Spanko, “Skilled Nursing Facilities Could Soon See
$1.5B Under CMS’s Emergency Relief Plan, With More on the Way,” Skilled Nursing News (Apr.
8, 2020), https://skillednursingnews.com/2020/04/skilled-nursing-facilities-could-soon-see-1-5b-under-cmss-emergency-relief-plan-with-more-on-the-way/,
links to the White House press conference where Verma made this “no strings”
announcement.
[2] CMS, “Reporting
Requirements Policy Update” (Oct. 22, 2020), https://www.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/reporting-requirements-policy-update.pdf.
See “Provider Relief Funds: Care for Patients or Boosting Provider Revenues?”
(CMA Alert, Oct. 29, 2020), https://medicareadvocacy.org/provider-relief-funds-care-for-patients-or-boosting-provider-revenues/.
[3] HHS, “Trump
Administration Distributes Incentive Payments to Nursing Homes Curbing COVID-19
Deaths and Infections” (Press Release, Oct. 28, 2020), https://www.hhs.gov/about/news/2020/10/28/trump-administration-distributes-incentive-payments-to-nursing-homes-curbing-covid-19-deaths-and-infections.html.
[4] https://www.hhs.gov/about/news/2020/10/28/trump-administration-distributes-incentive-payments-to-nursing-homes-curbing-covid-19-deaths-and-infections.html.
No comments:
Post a Comment