Nursing homes may see a $320 million cut to their Medicare Part A payments in fiscal 2023 under a proposed rule the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services issued Monday.
The decrease is the result of the transition to a new payment case-mix classification model in 2019. The model has to be budget neutral, but a CMS analysis uncovered an unintended increase in payments for fiscal 2020, which means the agency has to cut payments for next year, the draft regulation says.
The proposed rule also seeks feedback on how to establish minimum staffing requirements for nursing homes, as directed by President Joe Biden.
CMS additionally wants input on including a staff turnover rate measure in the nursing home quality incentive program. The proposes adding other new measures to the incentive program in fiscal 2023, including one on healthcare-associated infections requiring hospitalizations and one that measures total nursing hours per resident each day.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.