On August 1st, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a final rule to update the Medicare hospice payment rate for federal fiscal year (FY) 2019. The rule also finalizes changes to the scope of practice for physician assistants, Hospice Compare website, and Hospice Quality Reporting Program (QRP).
Unless otherwise specified, the provisions of the rule will go into effect on October 1, 2018. A summary of the rule is attached, and the full 138-page rule is available here.