Literature Review

FTC makes changes to healthcare breach reporting Becker's Health IT; by Naomi Diza; 4/26/24... The changes clarify the rule's scope regarding health apps and similar technologies while expanding the information covered entities must provide to consumers in the event of a breach of their health data, according to an April 26 FTC news release. Under the new rule, vendors of personal health records and related entities not governed by HIPAA are mandated to notify individuals, the FTC and, when applicable, the media, in case of a breach of unsecured personally identifiable health data. [Click on the title's link for more revisions to the rule.]

New federal rule meant to strengthen nondiscrimination protections, advance civil rights in healthcare McKnights Senior Living; by Kathleen Steele Gaivin; 4/30/24 The Department of Health and Human Services on Friday released a final rule aiming to protect individuals from discrimination in healthcare, including members of the LBGTQ+ community. ... The rule “reverses a Trump-era regulation and restores gender identity and sexual orientation discrimination protections under Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act,” Bloomberg Law reported. Section 1557 prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age or disability by entities that primarily provide healthcare and receive federal funding. It is enforced by the HHS Office for Civil Rights.

Nurse pleads guilty to 22 counts of patient murder, attempted murder Becker's Hospital Review; by Mariah Taylor; 5/2/24 Heather Pressdee, a Pennsylvania nurse, pleaded guilty to three counts of first-degree murder and 19 counts of attempted homicide, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported May 1. Ms. Pressdee pleaded guilty on May 2 in an ongoing hearing that is expected to go until May 3. She was given three consecutive life sentences and 380 to 760 years consecutively. Ms. Pressdee, 41, was first charged in May 2023 in connection with the mistreatment of three nursing home patients while working at Quality Life Services in Chicora, Pa., including two counts of homicide and one count of attempted murder. In November, she was charged in connection with the mistreatment of 19 additional patients that were in her care at five different facilities since 2020. 

Executive Personnel Changes - 5/3/24

Why hospital executives think Walmart Health failed Becker's Health IT; by Giles Bruce; 5/1/24 Health system leaders told Becker's they're not surprised by the failure of Walmart Health given the arduous economics of healthcare and the difficulty of providing primary care at scale.Walmart said April 30 it would be closing its 51 Walmart Health Centers and virtual care offerings five years into its foray into healthcare. The company cited the "challenging reimbursement environment" and "escalating operating costs" that left its healthcare arm unprofitable.

Premier Physician Network partners with Empatia on palliative care Hospice News; by Jim Parker; 4/30/24 Premier Physician Network (PPN) has launched an integrated palliative program among its medical group operations, in partnership with agilon health (NYSE: AGL) and its palliative arm Empatia. The program, branded as Senior Health Connect, will provide a palliative care program for Medicare Advantage patients who suffer from serious illnesses. Senior Health Connect is based on agilon’s palliative care model. “Our role there is as a partner. We bring technology. We bring insights. We can bring powerful data and care pathways,” Dr. Benjamin Kornitzer, agilon’s chief medical officer, previously told Hospice News. 

Hospice care scam has FBI issuing warning after 'huge increase in complaints'ABC TV 13, Houston, TX; by Samica Knight; 4/29/24The Federal Bureau of Investigations is warning about a scam in which crooks sign people up for hospice care without their knowledge. The FBI has received numerous reports from victims in the Houston area about this costly scam. "It's a little bit more egregious and distasteful than some of the other Medicare frauds we typically deal with," FBI Supervisory Special Agent Shannon Brady said. "We've had a huge increase in complaints." Fraudsters are actually signing mostly elderly victims up for end-of-life hospice care when they don't need it and without the victim even knowing about it.

Why health systems should embrace advanced in-home care models McKnights Home Care; by Marcy Carty, MD, MPH; 4/25/24Over the next two decades, the adult demographic over 50 years of age will increase by 25 million, and with over 75% expressing a strong desire to age in place, it’s imperative to champion care models that support safe, high-quality care within the home. Despite proactive care models to support aging in the home, acute needs still arise. Health systems stand to gain manifold by embracing the paradigm shift to care in the home. By moving more advanced care delivery into peoples’ homes, systems can effectively curb acute healthcare utilization, decreasing hospital-acquired conditions and drastically improving patient and family experience.

Nurses have reservations about use of AI on the job: survey McKnights Senior Living; by Kathleen Steele Gaivin; 4/29/24More than half of the nurses responding to a new survey by Cross Country Healthcare said they have reservations about the potential benefits of artificial intelligence in the nursing field. The online survey of 1,127 nursing professionals and students at hospitals and other healthcare facilities was conducted Jan. 18 to March 11. Respondents who said they are uncomfortable using AI expressed concerns about the potential absence of empathy and diminished patient connection. Those who said that they are comfortable with using AI on the job expressed a belief that the technology enhances efficiency, documentation, data analysis and research, upskilling opportunities and automated monitoring systems.

[FL] Attorney General Moody announces arrest of two Seminole County residents for Medicaid fraud Office of Attorney General Ashley Moody [Florida]; by Kylie Mason; 4/23/24 Attorney General Ashley Moody’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, ... announced the arrest of Debora Behnke and Suman Bhattacharjee ...  [They] ran Pioneer Medical Transportation LLC and submitted fraudulent claims for nonemergency medical transportation for Medicaid recipients, stealing more than $250,000 from the Medicaid program.  "Instead of transporting vulnerable Medicaid recipients, these individuals falsely billed the taxpayer-funded program for services never completed. In some instances, they even convinced patients to move across the state—with no regard for the best interest of the patients—and still charged Medicaid for transporting them from the original, longer distance. ..."

34 recent hospital, health system executive moves Becker's Hospital Review; by Kelly Gooch and Alexis Kayser; updated 4/26/24 The following hospital and health system executive moves have been shared with or reported by Becker's this year: [Click on the title's link; 34 executive moves are listed for the week of April 20-26.]

To stay open, rural nursing homes in the Midwest prioritize nurses NPR KCUR 89.3; by Aaron Bonderson; 5/1/24... Not enough nurses. Nursing home closures are creeping across Nebraska and other parts of the Midwest. Since 2020, 13 Nebraska nursing homes have shuttered, according to the American Health Care Association (AHCA). During that time, 25 Kansas nursing homes, 27 in Missouri, and 36 in Iowa closed their doors. According to the Center for Medicare Advocacy (CMA), 22 nursing homes in Iowa closed in 2022 alone because of poor quality of care and low occupancy. ... Staffing shortages and quality of care concerns are the leading reasons long-term care facilities shut down, according to the AHCA and the CMA. The pandemic didn’t help matters, stretching employees and resources to their limits.Editor's Note: Click on the title's link and scroll down for a US map of states with data for rank, nurse staff hours per resident per day (HRPD), total nurses, and total providers.

Southern states fare worst in USA Today’s searchable staffing level database McKnights Long-Term Care News; by Josh Henreckson; 4/26/24 Many US skilled nursing facilities currently meet some provisions of the new federal staffing rule at least some of the time, but only 160 — slightly more than 1% — consistently meet all requirements, according to a new analysis. Facilities located in southern states had the most ground to make up on staffing, based on a review of summer 2023 Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services data by USA Today. The analysis, published Wednesday, includes a searchable database with information on individual facilities — including the facility’s name, address and the average hours of care per resident per day compared to the new national standard of 3.48.