Literature Review

Emergency department management of common end-of-life and palliative care symptoms: Three casesCureus, by Alice Chang, James Espinosa, Alan Lucerna; 2/4/24... Patients with serious illness, even hospice patients, present to the ED in increasing numbers for symptom management. It has become essential for emergency physicians to care for patients who are not seeking life-sustaining measures but instead need quality-of-life interventions. The development of a clear, concise review of the most common acute symptoms can provide a framework for EM physicians to adequately address the needs of patients at the EOL.

SSM Health assumes ownership of Visiting Nurse Association of Greater St. LouisSSM Health; 2/1/24SSM Health and Visiting Nurse Association of Greater St. Louis (VNA) announced today they’ve successfully completed a transfer of ownership of VNA’s health care services. Effective immediately, the exceptional services VNA is known for – including hospice care, Advanced Illness Management (AIM),community-based palliative care, private duty care, Visit-A-Bit, vaccination, wellness, and music appreciation programs – will now operate as part of SSM Health at Home.

How does care coordination promote senior health & longevity?MediaFeed.org, by Kara Lewis; 2/2/24... Care coordination offers several fundamental benefits to seniors, according to an American Nurses Association report:

Medicare Advantage profitability on the decline, Moody's findsHealthcare Finance, by Jeff Lagasse; 2/2/24A significant spike in utilization is putting cost pressure on insureres, which will likely affect earnings. While Medicare Advantage remains attractive to the healthcare industry due to strong growth, high revenue and earnings per member, profitability is on the decline, according to a new analysis by Moody's Investor Service.

A journalist assisted a woman’s quest for suicide. Did he get too involved?The Washington Post, by Jeremy Barr; 2/3/24The Boston Globe acknowledged that writer Kevin Cullen crossed an ethical line by signing a legal form for Lynda Bluestein. But the woman’s husband is grateful for what he did. Kevin Cullen, a veteran columnist for the Boston Globe, spent months shadowing a terminally ill Connecticut woman as she campaigned for permission to have an assisted suicide and ultimately died that way several weeks ago. ... But Cullen did more than just chronicle [her] journey. He also got involved in her story by signing a legal form attesting that she was sound of mind when she requested to die in Vermont, which granted her the right to do so.

CMS proposes Medicare Advantage rate cutBecker's Payer Issues, by Rylee Wilson; 1/31/24CMS proposed a slight decrease in Medicare Advantage benchmark payments for 2025. The agency issued its proposed 2025 rate notice Jan. 31, cutting benchmark payments by 0.2% on average. Risk model revision will amount to a 2.45% decline in revenue, according to a fact sheet issued by the agency. Plans should expect to see 3.7% higher revenue overall, with an MA risk score trend of 3.86% — the average increase in risk adjustment payments year over year — offsetting risk model revisions and a projected decline in star rating bonuses.

Private equity’s growing footprint in home health care draws scrutinyAlabama Reflector, by Anna Claire Vollers; 1/31/24Critics point to Help at Home’s departure from Alabama as a cautionary tale for what can happen when states that spend little on health care rely on private equity-owned providers to care for their most vulnerable residents.

What happens to the pets of local hospice patients?InterReviewed, by Mercedez Hernandez; 2/1/24Nonprofit organizations dedicated to finding homes for animals say there is a great need for these services when a pet owner is experiencing their final moments in hospice care. Kerrvile Pets Alive recently rescued Gracie, a 9-year-old tabby cat whose owner was about to die in hospice. Karen Guerriero, president of the nonprofit’s board of directors, said the agency works directly with Peterson Health Hospice in Kerrville to accommodate pets when requested, as in Gracie’s case.

Lee County belt tightening means a reduction in hospice careWIUM Trstates Public Radio, by Will Buss; 2/1/24Lee County Supervisors are looking for ways to reduce spending. As a result, the health department is scaling back the level of hospice care it provides terminally ill residents. Administrator Michele Ross said the department has pushed to retain hospice service but will refer more residents to private providers.

Medical records specialists reach higher ground in healthcareAAPC News, by Michelle Dick; 2/1/24AAPC's 2024 Medical Coding and Billing Salary Report reveals that, as unemployement rates slide down, salaries climb to new heights. ... AAPC’s 2024 Medical Coding and Billing Salary Report shows the largest year-to-year salary increases across the board in the history of the Salary Survey. 

Electronic visit verification will become industry standard in the near future, expert predictsMcKnights Home Care, by Adam Healy; 2/2/24As state Medicaid programs’ adoption of electronic visit verification (EVV) continues to grow, the technology is poised to become the norm for all of home-based care, a marketplace executive says. “For the first time in the history of this industry, you have real-time access to the caregiver in the home,” noted Stephen Vaccaro, president of home care software firm HHAeXchange, in an interview with McKnight’s Home Care Daily Pulse. “States are now starting to look at this and say, ‘What’s next?’”

A pathophysiological approach for selecting medications to treat nociceptive and neuropathic pain in servicemembersMil Med, by Khan Thi Nguyen, Daniel W Beauchamp, Reginald B O'Hara; 1/31/24The prevalence of chronic pain of service members (SMs) in the U.S. is estimated to be higher (roughly 31-44%) compared to that of civilian population (26%). This higher prevalence is likely due to the high physical demands related combat and training injuries that are not immediately resolved and worsen over time. Mental Health America reports that chronic pain can lead to other mental health conditions such as severe anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder.