Federal Watch
April 12th, 2013
AGS is tracking developments of interest to geriatrics health professionals in order to provide weekly updates for our readers via our List Serv, americangeriatrics.org, our Facebook page, and our Twitter feed. This week, we update you on a recent CMS decision to increase private payments to Medicare Advantage plans next year. We also report on a new Dashboard for Medicare Chronic Conditions. In addition, an article from POLITICO discusses the overwhelming support that Marilyn Tavenner received from the Senate Finance committee earlier this week. Lastly, we share a podcast released by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) about Medicare Part D Medication Therapy Management Programs.
Course on Medicare Advantage rate reversed by CMS
In February, CMS proposed cutting Medicare Advantage plan payments by 2.3 percent. However, after push back from the insurance industry and more than 120 Democrats and Republicans there has been a reversal of this proposal. CMS will now boost private Medicare plan’s payments by 3.3 percent next year. This increase assumes that Congress will pay the same in 2014 as it is paying this year, and will balance the 25 percent cuts in physicians’ payments. To read the entire article, please click here.
New Medicare Chronic Conditions Dashboard advances goals of ACA
Last week, CMS released a statement about a new Dashboard for Medicare Chronic Conditions. This dashboard furthers the Affordable Care Act’s objectives for management and prevention of multiple chronic conditions and health promotion. This dashboard provides physicians, public health professionals and policy makers a tool to attain current data on which services chronic conditions require, where they occur, and how much Medicare spends assisting Medicare beneficiaries with multiple chronic conditions. This dashboard is a component of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Initiative on Multiple Chronic Conditions, which was established in 2009. The database can be accessed by clicking here.
Marilyn Tavenner receives overwhelming support from Senate Finance Committee
Marilyn Tavenner has served as the acting administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) for over two years, but on Tuesday she was overwhelmingly commended by the Senate Finance Committee to serve as the head of CMS. The majority of the concerns during the hearing were related to state specific health matters, such as increased dental care in Maryland and more attention to rural health in states such as Kansas and South Dakota. Tavenner was also asked questions related to the implementation of the health care exchanges. Confirmation of Tavenner’s position at CMS is awaiting a decision from the full Senate, but every indication shows that she will be approved for this position. To read the full article, click here.
Podcast released by CMS related to Medicare Part D Medication Therapy Management Programs
The podcast provides an overview of the Part D Medication Therapy Programs (M-T-M) and presents updates regarding the changes that providers may notice in 2013 when seeing patients who are enrolled in the program. These changes include patients receiving a printed standardized summary, commonly known as Form CMS-
10396. The summary includes a cover letter introducing the plan and providing contact information for M-T-M. It also contains the patient’s personal medication list which includes all of the patient’s medications at the time of review, and the medication action plan, which describes the patient’s action plans and assists them in resolving any problems they may be experiencing with the drug therapy. To view the podcast and podcast transcript, visit here.
What AGS Did This Week
AGS wrote an appropriations letter for FY 2014 to the Senate and House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, HHS and Education. In the letter AGS discussed its membership in the Friends of NIA, a broad-based coalition of more than 45 aging, disease, research, and patient groups committed to the advancement of medical research that affects millions of older Americans, and asked for increased funding to the NIA in FY 2014.
Should you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact Ashley Fletcher, Senior Coordinator of Public Affairs & Advocacy afletcher@americangeriatrics.org.
Modified On: April 12th, 2013
