Beyond Hospice: Home Health Agencies Plagued by UPICs and SMRCs
On August 9, 2024, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia upheld a lower court’s decision to dismiss a proposed class action accusing HHS of causing a shortage of home health aides willing to assist Medicare...more
In spring 2024, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) finalized the Medicaid access rule, which includes a provision that requires that 80% of Medicaid payments for most Medicaid-funded home health aide,...more
California lawmakers continuously grapple with the “Iron Triangle” of healthcare—a principle positing that cost, quality, and access are interdependent, with any improvement in one area likely necessitating compromises in the...more
One-fifth of the U.S. workforce is comprised of family caregivers, whose unpaid contributions include nearly 24 hours of care per week, on average, and amount to nearly $600 billion. As populations age across the globe and in...more
This week the 3rd Department released three new cases. Learn more below. Dexter Morgan v. Kinray, Inc., et al. (4/25/24) - In this case, the 3rd Dept. upheld a decision disallowing an occupational repetitive use claim. The...more
In May 2023, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) proposed a series of rule changes intended to help promote the availability of home and community-based services (“HCBS”) for Medicaid beneficiaries. Chief...more
On January 12, 2024, Governor Phil Murphy signed the Domestic Workers’ Bill of Rights (S723) into law, representing a landmark victory for labor rights groups across the state. The new law, effective July 2024, extends labor...more
The US Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) finalized important changes to the Medicare enrollment regulations applicable to hospices and home health agencies (HHAs), including increasing the level of screening that...more
In recent years, the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division has increased enforcement activities in the home healthcare industry. On Tuesday, DOL announced recovery of over $500,000 from an Alabama agency found to have...more
A major change in Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) wage and hour jurisprudence has taken place, with BakerHostetler at the helm. In Clark, et al. v. A&L Home Care & Training Center, the Southern District of Ohio conditionally...more
The EEOC has filed suit in federal court against a home care provider, alleging it unlawfully discriminated against employees when it changed their work assignments to accommodate client preferences. The suit alleges the...more
One of the many new provisions enacted as part of the 2023-2024 New York State Budget was an increase in the minimum wage for home care workers. Initially, it is important to note that the $1 hourly increase in the minimum...more
The U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”), through its Wage and Hour Division (“WHD”), has been intensifying its pursuit of Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) violations by residential care facilities, nursing facilities, home...more
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced on April 27, 2023, that it will publicly release all ownership information of home health and hospice agencies. This move is aimed at increasing transparency and...more
Governor Hochul signed the New York State Budget for fiscal year 2023-2024 into law on May 3, 2023, bringing with it sweeping changes to the way home health care agencies and home care staffing agencies in the state will...more
On April 27, 2023, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking entitled Ensuring Access to Medicaid Services (Proposed Rule) which would, among other things, establish...more
The New York Office of the Attorney General (OAG) recently announced two agreements with White Glove Community Care, Inc. (White Glove). One agreement reached with OAG’s Labor Bureau involved unpaid wages to White Glove’s...more
Issues related to whether individuals are independent contractors or employees receive significant attention by employers and governmental entities because of the critical impact of misclassification. The U.S. Department of...more
On August 2, 2022, the New York State Department of Health (the “Department”) issued revised guidance regarding daily health screenings and related policies for home care staff. Specifically, the new guidance reduces the...more
In this episode, we continue our discussion of home health enforcement trends, focusing on other audits currently troubling agencies. These include audits from Unified Program Integrity Contractors (UPIC), Supplemental...more
Eleventh-Hour Trump Administration FLSA Classification Rule Revived- Just when residential healthcare employers thought it was safe to get back into the classification waters, a late-stage Trump administration rule,...more
As previously addressed on this blog, Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont recently signed into law the state’s fiscal year 2023 budget (HB5506) (Act). Among other things, the Act prohibits homemaker-companion or home health...more
Welcome to a special edition of our Healthcare Snapshot – this time with a Florida focus. We’re taking a deeper dive and examining how the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) is focusing on whether home healthcare employees are...more
In a stunningly broad ruling that should send shivers down the spine of every home healthcare agency that uses an independent contractor workforce, a Florida federal court ruled on April 12 that a home healthcare worker who...more
On April 9, 2022, New York passed a $20 billion, multi-year healthcare investment in the FY 2023 State Budget. According to Governor Kathy Hochul, the budget includes “historic investments that will rebuild the health care...more