CMS (HCFA) Report: Less Jeopardy, More Penalties.The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), previously known as the Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA), is a federal agency within the United States Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) that administers the Medicare program and (CMS (1) See content management system and color management system. (2) (Conversational Monitor System) Software that provides interactive communications for IBM's VM operating system. , formerly the Health Care Financing Administration Health Care Financing Administration, n.pr department in the U.S. agency of Health and Human Services responsible for the oversight of the Medicaid and Medicare benefit programs, including guidelines, payment, and coverage policies. , or HCFA HCFA abbr. Health Care Financing Administration HCFA, n.pr See Health Care Financing Administration. ) exceeded its survey expectations in 2000, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. information from the agency's quarterly report on its Nursing Home Initiative that covered the period ending December 31, 2000. As reported in the Ober/Kaler Health Law Alert, CMS aimed to survey 889 nursing homes in fiscal year (FY) 2000, and by September, it had conducted 900. In addition, state survey agencies exceeded by 1.8% the federal government's requirement that they conduct at least 10% of nursing home surveys during off-hours. The number of homes identified as Special Focus Facilities (SFF (Small Form Factor) Refers to a device that is smaller than others in its field. For example, a miniature display on a cellphone is an SFF device because displays can be extremely large on monitors and TVs by comparison. See form factor. )--those with a history of unsatisfactory compliance--that had immediate jeopardy to residents' safety and health decreased from 27 to 2% during the SFF program. In fact, six homes were removed from the SFF list after the beginning of calendar year 2000. The overall number of homes cited with G-level and higher deficiencies during the second quarter of calendar year 2000-25.2%-was lower than at any other time in 1998, 1999 and 2000. The citation rate for improper use of restraints in calendar year 2000 decreased from 11.5% in 1999 to 10.5%. However, the agency sanctioned 2,181 civil money penalties (CMPs) during FY2000, more than double the 1,050 CMPs issued in FY1999, and per-instance CMPs increased 15-fold. Moreover, the abuse citation rate in the second quarter of calendar year 2000--exceeding 20%--was more than twice the rate of the same period in 1999. |
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