August 4, 2008
Medicare Increases Nursing Home Payment Rates, Recalibration of RUGs to be Studied Further
Medicare payment rates to nursing homes will increase by $780 million next year, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced today.
The boost in payments is the result of a 3.4 percent increase in the annual market basket calculation of the cost of goods and services included in a skilled nursing facility stay. The price of the items in the basket is measured every year and Medicare payments are adjusted accordingly.
A recalibration of the payment categories, intended to correct a previous error that had been proposed for Fiscal Year 2009 has been delayed while CMS continues to evaluate the data. The proposed rule announcing the planned recalibration was published in the Federal Register on May 4, 2008.
