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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Outpatient care

MedPAC Report to the Congress: Medicare Payment Policy, 2021
Annual review of Medicare payment policies, with recommendations to Congress. Includes discussion on Medicare payment policies directly affecting rural providers and beneficiaries. Addresses payment adequacy for healthcare facilities and services, improving Medicare payment for post-acute care, Medicare Advantage, Medicare Part D, and the impact of healthcare provider consolidation. Contains information on the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on Medicare beneficiary healthcare access, mortality, and service use. Presents an option for Medicare's coverage of telehealth beyond the public health emergency.
Date: 03/2021
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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January 2021 MedPAC Meeting Transcript
Transcript from the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission's (MedPAC) January 2021 meeting. Features a discussion on the expansion of telehealth in Medicare. Also covers payment adequacy and updates for hospital inpatient and outpatient services and the mandated report expanding the post-acute care transfer policy to hospice, physician and other health professional services, ambulatory surgical center services, outpatient dialysis services, hospice services, skilled nursing facility services, home health agency services, inpatient rehabilitation facility services, long-term care hospital services, and CMMI's development and implementation of alternative payment models.
Date: 01/2021
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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December 2020 MedPAC Meeting Transcript
Transcript from the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission's (MedPAC) December 2020 meeting. Covers payment adequacy and updates for hospital inpatient and outpatient services and the mandated report on expanding the post-acute care transfer policy to hospice, ambulatory surgical center services, outpatient dialysis services, physician and other health professional services, hospice services, and a status report and benchmark policy option on the Medicare Advantage program. Includes rural references throughout.
Date: 12/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Association of CMS-HCC Risk Scores with Health Care Utilization among Rural and Urban Medicare Beneficiaries
Research brief exploring healthcare utilization by rural and urban Medicare beneficiaries in order to better understand CMS Hierarchical Condition Categories (HCCs) and accurately apply the CMS-HCC risk score model. Analyzes 2014 CMS-HCC risk score data for different healthcare outcomes, including inpatient and outpatient ER visits, acute inpatient stays, and hospital readmissions, comparing rural and urban populations.
Author(s): Tyler Malone, Denise Kirk, Randy Randolph, Kristin Reiter
Date: 12/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: North Carolina Rural Health Research Program
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Pharmacist-Led Chronic Care Management for Medically Underserved Rural Populations in Florida During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Describes how ambulatory care pharmacists and student pharmacists are implementing telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic to provide chronic care management to underserved, rural communities in Florida. Discusses implications for public health.
Author(s): Madison Como, Chenita White Carter, Margareth Larose-Pierre, et al.
Citation: Preventing Chronic Disease, 17:200265
Date: 07/2020
Type: Document
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Rural Healthcare Surge Readiness
Resources for rural healthcare systems preparing for and responding to a COVID-19 surge. Includes resources for emergency medical services, inpatient and hospital care, ambulatory care, and long-term care settings. Addresses a wide range of topics including healthcare operations, space, supplies, funding, and more.
Date: 07/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: COVID-19 Healthcare Resilience Working Group
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HIV Testing Trends at Visits to Physician Offices, Community Health Centers, and Emergency Departments — United States, 2009–2017
Examines HIV testing by setting for visits of males and nonpregnant females to physician offices, community health centers, and emergency departments. Includes data for metropolitan and nonmetro areas.
Author(s): Karen W. Hoover, Ya-Lin A. Huang, Mary L. Tanner, et al.
Citation: MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report), 69(25), 776-780
Date: 06/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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MedPAC Report to the Congress: Medicare Payment Policy, 2020
Annual review of Medicare payment policies, with recommendations to Congress. Includes discussion on Medicare payment policies directly affecting rural providers and beneficiaries. Addresses payment adequacy for healthcare facilities and services, improving Medicare payment for post-acute care, Medicare Advantage, Medicare Part D, and the impact of healthcare provider consolidation.
Date: 03/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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January 2020 MedPAC Meeting Transcript
Transcript from the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission's (MedPAC) January 2020 meeting. Covers payment adequacy and updates for hospital inpatient and outpatient services, physician and other health professional services, outpatient dialysis services and improving the ESRD payment system, skilled nursing facility services, home health agency services, long-term care hospital services, inpatient rehabilitation facility services, hospice services, and ambulatory surgical center services. Includes rural references throughout.
Date: 01/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey: 2017 Emergency Department Summary Tables
Provides data on ambulatory care emergency department (ED) hospital visits. Table 1 provides metropolitan/nonmetropolitan ED visit data based on hospital location, Table 2 includes metro/nonmetro ED visit data by location of patient residence, and Table 14 has metro/nonmetro injury visit data based on hospital location.
Date: 01/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Center for Health Statistics
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