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Feds To Waive Penalties For Some Who Signed Up Late For Medicare

Each year, thousands of Americans miss their deadline to enroll in Medicare, and federal officials and consumer advocates worry that many of them mistakenly think they don’t need to sign up because they have purchased insurance on the health law’s marketplaces. That decision can leave them facing a lifetime of enrollment penalties. Now Medicare has temporarily changed its rules to …

picture of sign that says "Danger Fraud Alert"

HHS OIG Hotline Scam – need to share & warn our partners asap

A telephone scam in which crooks alter caller ID to make it seem as if the call is coming from the HHS OIG Hotline 1-800-HHS-TIPS (1-800-447-8477) to get beneficiaries and members of the public to verify or share personal info which is used to victimize them via financial and other crimes – draining their bank accounts. OIG wants the public …

CMS Issues Proposed Rule to Increase Patients’ Health Insurance Choices for 2018

CMS News FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 15, 2017 Contact: CMS Media Relations (202) 690-6145 | CMS Media Inquiries The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) today issued a proposed rule for 2018, which proposes new reforms that are critical to stabilizing the individual and small group health insurance markets to help protect patients. This proposed rule would make changes …

What to do if you’re wrongfully billed for Medicare costs

Know your rights as a Qualified Medicare Beneficiary. By Stacy Canan and Tim Engelhardt – JAN 18, 2017 If you’re among the 7 million Americans enrolled in the Qualified Medicare Beneficiary (QMB) Program , doctors, suppliers, and other providers aren’t allowed to bill you for Medicare costs when you receive covered medical services, equipment, and supplies. Your Medicare premiums, as …

Nearly 12 million people with Medicare have saved over $26 billion on prescription drugs since 2010

Over 40 million Medicare beneficiaries utilized free preventive services in 2016 The Department of Health and Human Services released today new information that shows that millions of seniors and people with disabilities with Medicare continue to save on prescription drugs and see improved benefits in 2016 as a result of the Affordable Care Act. More than 11.8 million Medicare beneficiaries …

Medicaid and CHIP Eligibility, Enrollment, Renewal, and Cost Sharing Policies as of January 2017: Findings from a 50-State Survey

Jan 12, 2017 | Tricia Brooks, Karina Wagnerman, Samantha Artiga, Elizabeth Cornachione, and Petry Ubri Executive Summary Report Tables Endnotes This 15th annual 50-state survey provides data on Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) eligibility, enrollment, renewal and cost sharing policies as of January 2017, and identifies changes in these policies in the past year. (See Appendix Tables 1-21 …

Transforming Health Care Delivery through the CMS Innovation Center: Better Care, Healthier People, and Smarter Spending

January 5, 2017 By Dr. Patrick Conway, Acting Principal Deputy Administrator We have made great progress in recent years on reforming our system into one that delivers better quality of care for patients and pays for care in a smarter way, including investing more in prevention and primary care. Before 2010, there had been only modest efforts to improve care …

CMS launches new online tool to make Quality Payment Program easier for clinicians

Today, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released a tool to share automatically electronic data for the Medicare Quality Payment Program. This new release is the first in a series that will be part of CMS’s ongoing efforts to spur the creation of innovative, customizable tools to reduce burden for clinicians, while also supporting high-quality care for patients. …

2017 Medicare Parts A & B Premiums and Deductibles Announced

CMS NEWS FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE November 10, 2016 Contact: CMS Media Relations (202) 690-6145 | CMS Media Inquiries 2017 Medicare Parts A & B Premiums and Deductibles Announced Today, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced the 2017 premiums for the Medicare inpatient hospital (Part A) and physician and outpatient hospital services (Part B) programs. Medicare Part B …