Eli's Hospice Insider

Published on Wed Jan 20, 2021 PDF

CMS offers education on new model.

Hospices have begun the first year hospice services will be included in Medicare Advantage plans, but they’re not happy about it.

There are many flaws and gray areas in the model, noted the National Association for Home Care & Hospice in writing to Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services leaders asking for a one-year delay to the Value-Based Insurance Design (VBID) option. But “we are deeply concerned that in planning for the Model, [CMS] failed to take into consideration the need to address some of the most basic operational issues, including how hospice providers will bill for patients enrolled in the Model,” NAHC notes in its member newsletter.

Nevertheless, the VBID carve-in began Jan. 1.

Meanwhile, but planning for the second year is already underway.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has released the Calendar Year 2022 Request for Applications (RFA) for the Value-Based Insurance Design (VBID) Model, and the applications are due April 16. CMS will hold a 2022 VBID Model and Hospice Benefit Component Overview Webinar Jan. 28 and office hours on Feb. 11.

More information is at https://innovation.cms.gov/innovation-models/vbid.