Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Archives

Major Health Systems, Hospital-at-Home Company Launch Advocacy Effort

by Mara McDermott | Nov 24, 2021 | Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans

A coalition launched by several major health systems and a hospital-at-home company aims to continue delivering hospital-level-at-home care in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. McDermott+Consulting Vice President Mara McDermott said providers have demonstrated that the model is “of high value to patients.”

“At the end of the pandemic, without some sort of extension, the new model is at risk of going away or dramatically shrinking,” McDermott said. “Action by the federal government will ensure that this important and innovative source of care can continue.”

Hospitals Push Back Against HHS Slashing of Reimbursement Rates

by Emily J. Cook | Nov 23, 2021 | Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans

Hospitals are pushing back after the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) cut Medicaid reimbursement rates to participating hospitals under the 340B drug discount program.

According to this article published in The Well News, 340B program supporters have filed a petition with the Supreme Court, arguing that HHS failed to collect sufficient data and that the department overstepped its authority with the cuts. McDermott Partner Emily Jane Cook said that the cuts will mean rural hospitals are “deprived of an important source of support for the services that they provide to their communities.”

CMS Proposes Heightened Penalties and Additional Requirements Under the Hospital Price Transparency Rule

by Emily J. Cook and Steven J. Schnelle | Sep 28, 2021 | Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans

On July 19, 2021, US President Joe Biden’s administration released a proposed rule that would increase penalties for hospitals that do not comply with the Hospital Price Transparency Rule, effective January 1, 2022. According to McDermott’s Emily Jane Cook and Steven J. Schnelle, the proposed rule also provides certain potentially burdensome clarifications and requests comment on further rulemaking activity relating to the Hospital Price Transparency Rule.

Medicare Part D Creditable Coverage Notices due before October 15, 2018

by Megan Mardy | Oct 4, 2018 | Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans

The Medicare Modernization Act of 2003 requires employers who offer prescription drug coverage to provide an annual notice to all Medicare Part D eligible individuals who are participants in, or eligible for, the employer’s prescription drug coverage indicating whether such coverage is creditable before October 15th of each year. “Creditable coverage” means that the prescription drug coverage offered by an employer plan is expected to pay, on average for all plan participants, as much as the standard Medicare prescription drug coverage pays. Prescription drug coverage is “non-creditable” when it is not expected to pay, on average for all plan participants, as much as the standard Medicare prescription drug coverage pays.

The notice must be furnished regardless of whether the employer plan pays primary or secondary to Medicare, and must be sent to all Part D eligible individuals including retirees, actives, COBRA beneficiaries and dependents of such individuals. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) provides Model Disclosure Notices for creditable and non-creditable coverage.

If you would like additional information about this requirement, or if you have any questions, please contact your McDermott lawyer or one of our Benefits attorneys.

Charnae Supplee, a law clerk in the Firm’s Washington, DC office, also contributed to this article.

What’s Next After the Affordable Care Act?

by Gary Scott Davis | Aug 30, 2018 | Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans

When passed in 2010, the Affordable Care Act (ACA), often called “Obamacare,” had three basic goals: increase access to health insurance, reduce costs and spending, and offer patients stability with respect to their insurance coverage. By offering a subsidy for low- and middle-income Americans to purchase private insurance plans, the ACA was successful in expanding coverage for about 14 million previously uninsured individuals, including those with pre-existing medical conditions.

Gary Scott Davis authored this bylined article about the future of the ACA. “We need to learn from both the strengths and weaknesses of the ACA to build a long-term sustainable approach that promotes access to care, brings insurance coverage within the reach of the many, contains costs, and aligns economic incentives among payors, providers and patients, while improving the nation’s overall level of health,” he wrote.

Access the full article.

CMS Aims to Stabilize Exchanges but Does Not Address Issuers’ Biggest Questions

by Ankur J. Goel, Jeremy Earl and Seth Schneer | May 16, 2017 | Health and Welfare Plans

CMS recently released a final rule with the goal of stabilizing Exchange markets for 2018. The agency also issued several significant guidance documents where CMS extended the deadlines for 2018 rate and Exchange qualified health plan application submissions, adopted a good faith compliance standard for 2018 and delegated additional plan certification responsibilities to states. While these steps may provide some comfort for issuers, the agency did not address the most significant areas of issuer concern when it comes to 2018 Exchange participation. Namely, the Final Rule and guidance documents do not resolve ongoing uncertainty regarding cost-sharing reduction funding, the enforcement of the individual mandate or ongoing efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act.

Read the full article.

New October 15 Deadline for Medicare Part D Creditable / Non-Creditable Coverage Notices

by McDermott Will & Emery | Oct 4, 2011 | Health and Welfare Plans

by Susan M. Nash and Elizabeth A. Savard

Group health plans that offer prescription drug coverage are required to issue a notice of creditable or non-creditable coverage to Medicare-eligible participants and beneficiaries each year prior to the annual Medicare Part D open enrollment period. In the past, the Medicare Part D open enrollment period ran from November 15 through December 31, so the notice had to be provided by November 15. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act moved the Medicare Part D open enrollment period earlier, beginning in 2011, to October 15 through December 7. Therefore, this year’s notice of creditable or non-creditable coverage must be provided by October 15, 2011.

A plan’s notice of creditable or non-creditable coverage describes whether prescription drug coverage under the plan is "creditable" — i.e., expected to pay out at least as much as standard Medicare prescription drug coverage, on average for all participants. This information is designed to help Medicare-eligible individuals avoid late enrollment penalties, which can apply when an individual who does not have creditable coverage fails to enroll in Medicare Part D when first eligible.

Plan sponsors will need to update their notices of creditable or non-creditable coverage to reflect the new dates for the Medicare Part D open enrollment period. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services have updated their model notices of creditable and non-creditable coverage to reflect the new dates. No other substantive changes were made to the model notices. The updated notices are available here.