Lofty goals for reducing healthcare spending
The Commonwealth Fund Commission on a High Performance Health System proposed 10 polices that may help slow healthcare spending by $2 trillion by 2023. The policies fall under three themes: provider payment reforms to promote value and accelerate delivery system innovation, policies to expand options and encourage
high-value choices by consumers, and system-wide actions to improve how healthcare markets function.
Telemedicine recognized in Congress
A new bill was proposed to Congress that would help promote and expand telehealth services. One of the most beneficial provisions of the Telehealth Promotion Act of 2012 is that access to telemedicine will be expanded by mandating telehealth providers receive reimbursements for consultations or visits at the same rate as in-person consultations. To read the entire bill, go to http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/BILLS-112hr6719ih/html/BILLS-112hr6719ih.htm .
New quality measures for home healthcare
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services recently released a recommended set of core, state-wide healthcare quality measures to be used when assessing home healthcare delivery models. These measures were created as an answer to the home health provision of section 2073 of the Affordable Care Act and will be used as a tool for home healthcare providers to receive payment/reimbursement.
Does your organization have a “surge” plan?
Hospital EDs across the country are dealing with a large influx of patients with influenza. To treat this expansive population, some hospitals have enacted their “surge” plans, which allow healthcare professionals to treat patients with influenza at physician’s offices and clinics instead of overcrowding the ED.
Earn CE credit by reading this peer-reviewed, continuing education article from
Nursing Management and taking the test.
Don’t cross the line: Respecting professional boundaries
Angela F. Hanna, ASN, RN, and Patricia Dunphy Suplee, PhD, RNC-OB