CMS advises providers to prepare for end of PHE waivers, flexibilities
By
Alicia Lasek
Aug 22, 2022
The agency has asked providers to quickly reestablish previous health and safety standards and billing practices, and is directing providers to new resources.
Quicker palliative care referrals in severe COVID may improve survival: study
By
Alicia Lasek
Aug 19, 2022
Severe breathlessness may serve as a telltale sign that a referral is urgently needed, investigators say.
Use of common hospice drugs varies widely by state, highlighting limited guidance
By
Alicia Lasek
Aug 16, 2022
Antipsychotics prescribing rates, for example, ranged from 62% for hospice beneficiaries in Oregon to 15% in Oklahoma, investigators say. Five states topped the prescriptions list.
FDA approves over-the-counter hearing aids, no exams required
By
Alicia Lasek
Aug 17, 2022
Consumers may be able to purchase the more readily accessible OTC hearing aids in retail and drug stores as early as mid-October, when a new rule takes effect, the agency announced Tuesday.
Nursing facilities, nursing assistants lead COVID incidence, state study finds
By
Alicia Lasek
Aug 15, 2022
Nursing facilities lead COVID-19 infections in healthcare, and nursing assistants top incidence in occupational subgroups, finds a detailed new data analysis.
In-home COPD management program cuts 30-day acute-care readmissions
By
Alicia Lasek
Jun 29, 2022
Thirty-day readmission rates were 12% for post-acute COPD participants in an at-home pulmonary rehab program, and 22% for those without the intervention, a new study finds.
FDA advisers: Older adults top candidates for new COVID boosters
By
Alicia Lasek
Jun 29, 2022
It’s time to update COVID-19 vaccines to include an omicron component, a panel of experts decided in a 9 to 2 vote Tuesday. Seniors and other at-risk Americans should likely be first in line, they said.
Hospice boosts care quality for Medicare beneficiaries with dementia: study
By
Alicia Lasek
Jun 07, 2022
Patients with dementia greatly benefit from hospice, but that care must be tailored to avoid counterintuitively long stays and disenrollment, investigators say.
Community burden of dementia similar to nursing homes: survey
By
Alicia Lasek
Apr 29, 2022
Frequent, unsubtle symptoms have a big impact on the patient quality of life, but are often unreported in primary care, investigators report.