Happy Monday, Home Health Care News readers. Get caught up on all things home care with our must-read news, and keep reading to see our top stories from last week.
On Friday, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) released its annual 2017 fiscal year Health Care Fraud and Abuse Control Program report for 2017, revealing that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Department of Justice (DOJ) recovered $2.6 billion from health care fraud last year. Click here to find the full report.
Netsmart, the nation’s largest provider of behavioral health electronic health records (EHRs) announced it was acquiring the home care and hospice solutions of Change Healthcare, formerly known as McKesson Homecare and McKesson Hospice. The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2018, subject to customary closing conditions. Netsmart has more than 600,000 user in more than 25,000 organizations.
While Amazon (Nasdaq: AMZN) has been relatively mum about its recently announced health care venture with JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Berkshire Hathaway, JPMOrgan CEO Jamie Dimon did reveal some of the ambitions of the plan in his annual letter to shareholders. He noted that the companies would start with technology solutions for employees and their families, but long-term goals include aligning incentives across doctors, insurers and patients. Dimon also pointed out the extreme waste in the health care system, alluding to needed improvements in telemedicine and wellness programs. He even went so far as to say the joint venture could “possibly help inform public policy for the country.”
Most read
Last week, we broke the news that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) officially added non-skilled in-home supports as a supplemental benefit in Medicare Advantage plans for 2019. Investors and providers in both the home health and home care space were particularly excited about the new opportunities the supplemental benefit could bring in the years ahead.
We also covered an exciting way that UnityPoint at Home, a hospital-based home health care provider with UnityPoint Health system, is helping extend care to patients after they are discharged through care coordination and an interdisciplinary team.
Written by Amy Baxter
Companies featured in this article:
