AHPA submitted comments on the CY 2027 Home Health Prospective Payment System Rate Update [CMS-1844-P].

Click here for the full article. Below are some key takeaways.

  • Payment update: AdventHealth supports the proposed 2.4% Medicare home health payment increase, but cautions that it is not enough to offset continued inflation, workforce shortages and rising labor costs.
  • Medicare Advantage payment: The system recommends greater payment parity and more timely reimbursement from Medicare Advantage plans, noting that payment delays and administrative complexity can threaten providers’ financial stability and patients’ access to home health services.
  • Enrollment moratoria: While supporting stronger protections against fraud, waste and abuse, AdventHealth urges CMS to create targeted exceptions for nonprofit integrated health systems, organizations that made significant investments before a moratorium and providers operating in states with Certificate of Need oversight.
  • Palliative care access: AdventHealth supports expanding community-based palliative care through the Medicare home health benefit, particularly in rural and underserved areas where home health agencies may be the only practical access point for these services.
  • Home health wage index: The system encourages CMS to explore a home health-specific wage index that better reflects the sector’s labor market and staffing patterns, while protecting providers from payment volatility and unintended disruptions to patient access.