The Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare has published a notice in the Pennsylvania Bulletin listing all hospitals eligible for Medicaid disproportionate share adjustments (Medicaid DSH) during the state’s 2013 fiscal year. See the Pennsylvania Bulletin notice here
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The Safety-Net Association of Pennsylvania has submitted a formal comment letter to the state’s Department of Public Welfare in response to the department’s expressed interest in establishing an observation rate in the state’s Medical Assistance fee-for-service program.
DPW expressed this interest in a June 29 Pennsylvania Bulletin notice.
SNAP supports the creation of an observation rate, and in its letter it outlines how it believes DPW should go about developing a rate that is fair to hospitals.
Safety-net hospitals have a special interest in this issue because observation rate candidates enter hospitals through their emergency rooms and safety-net hospitals typically have among the busiest emergency rooms in the communities they serve.
Read SNAP’s observation rate comment letter here
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The Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare is considering instituting a Medicaid observation rate for some hospital services.
According to a recently published Pennsylvania Bulletin,
The Department is considering the establishment of an observation rate for hospital cases for which an inpatient admission is not medically necessary but medical observation of a patient is required. The Department is currently considering developing criteria under which observation services provided by a hospital may be compensable under the MA Program. The Department intends to establish a comprehensive rate to cover observation services determined to be compensable under the Program.
DPW will accept written comments about this proposal for the next 30 days.
Read the Pennsylvania Bulletin notice here.
The Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare has announced its intention to seek renewal of the Philadelphia hospital assessment first authorized in 2008.
The purpose of the assessment is to generate additional revenue to fund state Medicaid expenditures for hospital outpatient and emergency department services in Philadelphia and to provide additional funding to support the city’s public health clinics.
Read the Pennsylvania Bulletin announcement of DPW’s intention here.
The Department of Public Welfare has unveiled its plan for increasing the fees it pays for Medicaid primary care services in 2013 and 2014. The limited-term pay increase, which will raise Medicaid primary care payments to Medicare levels, is mandated by the Affordable Care Act.
A Pennsylvania Bulletin notice that addresses how and when the fee increases will be paid, and to whom they will be paid, can be found here.
The revised fee schedule with the new, higher fees can be found here.
The Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare (DPW) has updated its Medical Assistance fee-for-service fee schedule for a variety of physician services, podiatrist services, surgical services, and more.
See a complete list of changes here, in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.
The Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare has published a notice that it will increase the fees Medical Assistance pays for selected primary care services.
The pay raise, funded 100 percent by the federal government, is part of the Affordable Care Act.
For further information about the pay raise, which physicians qualify for it, and how they can receive the pay raise, see the notice here, in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.
In addition, members of the Safety-Net Association of Pennsylvania (SNAP) have received a detailed memo outlining the terms of the Medicaid primary care pay raise. Members who have not seen the memo and others who would like a copy can request it at info@paysafetynet.org.
The Department of Public Welfare (DPW) has issued a Medical Assistance Bulletin to announce that it “is implementing copayments for services provided to children with disabilities, under the age of 18, who are eligible for Medical Assistance (MA) under the PH95 category” – that is, with incomes greater than 200 percent of the federal poverty level. Find that bulletin here. The state further elaborates on why it has adopted this policy in this Pennsylvania Bulletin notice.
The Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare (DPW) has published a notice providing final notice of implementation of its revised Medical Assistance (MA) payment methodology for inpatient hospital services provided, on a fee-for-service (FFS) basis, in acute care general hospitals. Additionally, the Department is giving final notice of its amended qualifying criteria and payment methodology for inpatient disproportionate share hospital (DSH), outpatient DSH supplemental and direct medical education (DME) payments and allocated funding for Fiscal Year (FY) 2010-2011 for these payments. The Department is also providing final notice of the establishment of additional types of DSH and supplemental payments.”
This notice essentially describes the new eligibility criteria and payment methodologies arising from Act 49 and can be seen in its entirety in this Pennsylvania Bulletin notice.