The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is a department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The current administrator is Seema Verma, appointed by President Donald Trump.
CMS oversees the Medicare and Medicaid programs. CMS collects and analyzes data, produces research reports, and works to eliminate instances of fraud, waste and abuse within the health care system.
WASHINGTON—President-elect Donald Trump announced his nomination of Mehmet Oz, physician, surgeon, former television host and founder of the nonprofit health education company HealthCorps, as administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).
WASHINGTON—The Office of the Inspector General (OIG) conducted an audit to determine whether Medicare Part B properly paid for durable medical equipment, prosthetics, orthotics and supplies to hospice enrollees from the time period of 2017 through 2021. This audit took place in order to follow up on a prior OIG audit, which found Medicare Part B improperly paid suppliers for such supplies.
NASHVILLE, Tennessee—HarmonyCares, a provider of value-based in-home care, announced that its Medicare care coordination company, HarmonyCares ACO LLC, achieved a net savings rate of 23% in its first performance year (2023) as an accountable care organization realizing equity, access and community health (ACO REACH) participant.
WASHINGTON—Last month, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) implemented a fix that will impact suppliers who provide disposable medical supplies to Medicare beneficiaries, the American Association for Homecare (AAHomecare) wrote in a recent newsletter to members. This fix aims to lay the groundwork for ongoing engagement with CMS in order to address denials triggered by unknown Part A episodes.
WASHINGTON—The Office of the Inspector General (OIG) reviewed Medicare Advantage (MA) companies’ use of health risk assessments (HRAs), which often increase payments to MA plans by billions of dollars. As a result of the review, OIG offered suggestions to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).
WASHINGTON—The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced Patrick Newbold has been appointed chief information officer (CIO), as reported by Federal News Network. After the addition of Newbold, the U.S.
BALTIMORE, Maryland—The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released its 2025 premiums, deductibles and coinsurance amounts for the Medicare Part A and Part B programs, as well as its 2025 Medicare Part D income-related monthly adjustment amounts.
CMS’ 2025 updates to Medicare Parts A, B and D amounts are listed below.
BOSTON—A new study led by the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health revealed Medicare Advantage (MA) plans receive billions of federal dollars for enrolling veterans who receive no Medicare services.
Editor’s Note: This story was written and released prior to any election result announcements.
By Stephanie Armour
On the campaign trail, both former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris are eager to portray themselves as guardians of Medicare. Each presidential candidate has accused the other of backing spending cuts and other policies that would damage the health insurance program for older Americans.
BALTIMORE—The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a final rule on its calendar year (CY) 2025 home health prospective payment system, which updates Medicare payment policies and rates for home health agencies.
WASHINGTON—LeadingAge, an organization aiming to support nonprofit aging services providers, released a statement from Katie Smith Sloan, the company’s president and CEO, in response to the U.S. Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations’ report on Medicare Advantage’s denial of post-acute care. The report, “Refusal of Recovery: How Medicare Advantage Insurers Have Denied Patients Access to Post-Acute Care,” was released Thursday, Oct. 17.
The statement made by Sloan is below.
WASHINGTON—House Representatives Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-IA), Paul Tonko (D-NY) and Randy Feenstra (R-IA) are asking colleagues in the House to join a sign-on letter to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) that aims to reestablish the Medicare 75/25 blended rate for durable medical equipment (
WASHINGTON—Katie Smith Sloan, president and CEO of LeadingAge, an association of nonprofit providers of aging services, responded to a letter sent by 34 members of congress to President Joe Biden’s Administration regarding the Medicare Advantage (MA) plan “flex cards.
Below is Sloan's response:
WASHINGTON—The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a blanket waiver that allows physical therapists and speech language pathologists to perform initial and comprehensive assessments in instances where therapy is ordered for home health agencies (HHAs) impacted by Hurricane Helene.
Additionally, CMS modified some hospice requirements that involve updating comprehensive assessments of patients.
Below are the modifications:
WASHINGTON—An indictment was unsealed in Brooklyn, New York, charging eight defendants for their alleged roles in a scheme to defraud Medicaid of approximately $68 million through the operation of two social adult day cares and a home health care financial intermediary. Through these operations, the scheme involved paying kickbacks and bribes for services that were not provided.
BALTIMORE, Maryland—The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced additional resources and flexibilities are available in response to Hurricane Milton in Florida. CMS is working with the state of Florida and federal partners to put these flexibilities in place in an effort to ensure those affected by this natural disaster have access to the care they need.
WASHINGTON—Vice President Kamala Harris announced a proposed Medicare at Home benefit designed to help families with caregiving needs and strengthen Medicare. Under the plan, Medicare would cover homecare for the nations’ seniors and those with disabilities who are enrolled in Medicare, as well as vision and hearing benefits aimed at helping seniors live independently for longer.
BALTIMORE, Maryland—The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released a report on its study of the acute hospital care at home (AHCAH) initiative, which allows certain Medicare-certified hospitals to treat patients with inpatient-level care at home. While the initiative was launched during the COVID-19 public health emergency, the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 (CAA) extended the waivers and flexibilities associated with the AHCAH initiative until Dec. 31, 2024.
BALTIMORE—The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has released the first draft of its hospice outcomes and patient evaluation (HOPE) tool, a new assessment tool for hospices. The HOPE tool was developed to replace the hospice item set (HIS) as part of the hospice quality reporting program (HQRP).
ALEXANDRIA, Virginia—The National Home Infusion Association (NHIA), a trade association representing infusion companies and providers, commented on a proposed rule on Medicare home health (HH) programs from the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).
WASHINGTON—The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a final rule in response to reports of alleged catheter fraud.
BALTIMORE, Maryland—The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced additional resources and flexibilities available in Florida and Georgia in response to Hurricane Helene. CMS is working closely with the states of Florida and Georgia to put these flexibilities in place, ensuring those affected by this natural disaster have access to the care they need.
