CMS Finalizes 1.9% Home Health Rate Increase for 2021, Keeps PDGM’s Behavioral Adjustment

Posted Oct. 31, 2020

The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued its final 2021 home health payment rule Thursday, Home Health Care News reported. 

In doing so, it changed very little from what it first proposed in June.

The final rule adds an estimated $390 million home health payment boost for agencies in 2021, or an aggregate increase of 1.9%. That estimate is less than the $540 million boost and 2.6% increase originally outlined in CMS’s proposed rule.

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ADVOCACY ALERT: Agencies Need Higher Reimbursement To Cover Aurora's Proposed Minimum Wage Increase

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Aurora City Councilmember Alison Coombs has returned to the Aurora City Council with a revised proposed minimum wage proposal increasing the city's minimum wage to $17 per hour by 2025. The proposal would establish wages that significantly exceed even those minimum wages set by nearby Denver, which are currently the highest in Colorado.

Because of low Medicaid reimbursement, home care agencies already struggle to keep up with increased employment costs. The Home Care & Hospice Association of Colorado is concerned that agencies will not take new Medicaid clients in Aurora, or worse, will discharge Medicaid clients in Aurora because they can’t comply with the increased wage requirements.

We urge the state to raise reimbursement rates to cover higher minimum wages in Colorado cities, and we'd ask that Aurora hold off on this proposed increase until reimbursement is increased. 

URGENT: The Aurora City Council is considering this proposal at its evening meeting on Monday, Nov. 2.

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LHC Group To Acquire Aurora-Based Hospice Provider Santa Rita And Rebrand as At Home

Posted: Oct. 30, 2020

LHC Group announced plans to acquire Santa Rita Hospice, an Aurora, Colorado-based end-of-life care provider. Under the deal, Santa Rita Hospice will operate under the name At Home Hospice, Home Health Care News reported.

The eight-county Santa Rita Hospice has been owned and operated by a local family, based in Denver, Keith Myers, LHC Group’s chairman and CEO, said in a press release.

“We see growth potential for hospice services in the Aurora market,” Myers said. “This transaction aligns with our strategy to co-locate home health and hospice services in markets where it makes sense — enabling us to reach even more patients and families with the quality care and service they deserve.”

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Charter Health Acquires Denver's Phoenix Home Care & Hospice

Posted: Oct. 30, 2020

Covina, California-based post-acute care provider Charter Health Care Group has acquired two hospice service companies, part of a series of acquisitions this year, according to an Oct. 13 announcement, the Los Angeles Business Journal reports. 

Charter, which is owned by private equity firm Pharos Capital Group, has acquired Denver-based Vitality Home Healthcare (doing business as Phoenix Home Care & Hospice) and Salt Lake City-based Heartwood Home Health & Hospice, according to the announcement from Pharos.

“We are pleased to add Phoenix and Heartwood to Charter’s portfolio,” Charter Chief Executive Steve Larkin said in the announcement. “We look to partner with teams that share our mission of leading the home care and hospice industry toward the best solutions for patients, families, and caregivers.”

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