Recent decisions by CMS, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, have a direct and significant impact upon nursing practice and care, for RNs as well as APRNs. The proposed rule for Medicare Conditions of Participation is open for comments; the rule regarding ACOs is a final rule. The link to the Federal Register notice of each rule appears after each heading. ANA comments can be found on our website, Nursing World, at http://www.nursingworld.org/comments.

Read more...

After months of debate and intense negotiation between the U.S. House of Representatives, Senate, and White House, President Barack Obama signed The Budget Control Act of 2011 (S. 365) into law on August 2nd. This legislation will raise the debt ceiling through the end of 2012 and paves the way for trillions of dollars in government spending cuts. Although Medicare and Medicaid dodged a bullet in this first round, ANA remains concerned that safety net programs will be on the chopping block once the newly created Deficit Reduction Committee seeks to identify another $1.5 trillion in savings.

Read more...

On July 8, Secretary Kathleen Sebelius of the Department of Health and Human Services announced three new initiatives to help states improve the quality and lower the cost of care for the approximately nine million Americans who are eligible for benefits under both Medicare and Medicaid programs. These individuals, known as “dual-eligibles,” include some of the sickest patients, and account for a significant and growing portion of health care costs — over $300 billion per year. A technical resource center will help states coordinate care, and demonstration projects are designed to improve care coordination and decrease hospital admissions of nursing home residents. The nursing home demonstration project calls for facilities to adopt improvements such as employing more nurse practitioners, and increasing evidence-based interventions to prevent falls, pressure ulcers, and other preventable conditions.

Read more...

Nurses may be interested to know about recent final rules which may directly impact the practice of nursing, patient care and access, and health care policy at the federal level. Executive agencies and departments are required to publish notices of all rules and decisions in the Federal Register, and accept public comments on proposed rules. Final rules are not open for comment, and become part of U.S. law in the Code of Federal Regulations.

Read more...

On June 3, 2011, Representative John Olver (D-MA) re-introduced the Medicaid Advanced Practice Nurses and Physician Assistants Access Act (H.R. 2134). This ANA-endorsed legislation would remove barriers that keep advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) from participating fully in state Medicaid Programs. The Senate companion bill, S. 56, was reintroduced in February by Senator Daniel Inouye (D-HI).

Read more...

In recent weeks, most of the conversation in and around the nation’s capital has been the debt ceiling and the fiscal year 2012 budget. Will Congress raise the debt ceiling? Will President Obama and the House Republican Speaker John Boehner be able to work out an agreement they can sell to their parties? Will Congress approve a 2012 budget or end up doing continuing resolutions like the 2011 budget? How big will cuts be to Medicare/Medicaid? Will there be tax increases? Even as the different parties involved draw their lines in the sand, these questions need to be answered.

Read more...