Medicare Compliance & Reimbursement

The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations will serve as a national accrediting organization for Medicare and Medicaid hospice facilities for another six years, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services says in a May 30 Federal Register notice. CMS's reapproval of JCAHO - which is based on a determination that the accrediting body's standards are at least as rigorous as Medicare's - extends JCAHO's deeming authority through June 19, 2009. CMS announced the availability of funding this week for Real Choice Systems Change Grants for Community Living and for Aging and Disability Resource Center programs. The announcements appear in the May 29 and May 30 installments of the Federal Register. Technical corrections to Dec. 31 revisions to payment policies under the physician fee schedule and to the March 28 update to the list of covered procedures for ambulatory surgical centers appear in the May 30 Federal Register. Also on May 30, CMS sought nominations for vacant posts on the Medicare Coverage Advisory Committee. In addition, the agency invited comments on the paperwork burdens associated with the advance beneficiary notice.