Hospice & Home Health News 2026July10

CMS Proposes CY2027 Home Health Proposed Rule with 2.4% Update, Only Temporary Adjustment

On Wednesday, July 1, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) published the CY2027 Home Health Proposed Rule with a 2.4% aggregate update. An accompanying fact sheet can be found here. This year, CMS decided not to apply a permanent adjustment but will apply a -3% temporary adjustment to recoup 10% of the outstanding temporary adjustments remaining from previous calendar year rules. This is in response to comments from LeadingAge and other sector advocates in CY2026 that CMS could not accurately determine if the behavioral changes were a reaction to the original transition from the previous payment system to the patient driven groupings model. In addition to the payment update, CMS is making changes to the reporting deadlines of the home health quality reporting program, expanding reasons for revocation of all provider enrollments and retroactive revocations, and requesting information on a home health specific wage index and an advance care planning measure for home health providers. Finally, CMS discusses how home health can be used appropriately to support community-based palliative care programs and will be releasing updated subregulatory guidance along with the publication of the CY2027 Home Health Final Rule. LeadingAge will host a call on Tuesday, July 7 at 2 p.m. ET to discuss the proposals in this rule. All LeadingAge members are welcome to join and can sign up here.

CMS Proposes Medicare Provider Enrollment Changes

In their continued effort to control waste, fraud, and abuse within the Medicare program, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) included a number of proposals in the CY2027 Home Health Proposed Rule which will impact all Medicare providers including home health, hospice, and skilled nursing providers. CMS proposes to change the regulatory language around retroactive revocations, making them effective to the date of noncompliance for all revocation grounds. Previously, revocations were effective prospectively 30 days after the date that CMS or the CMS contractor mailed a notice to the effected provider. Additionally, CMS is expanding the reasons for revocation or denial of a provider’s Medicare enrollment. These revocations include suspensions/revocations and issues with managing employees or other similarly owned organizations. For example, CMS proposes to expand the ability to revoke/suspend enrollment for an owner or managing employee's misdemeanor convictions related to sexual assault or financial misconduct within the past 10 years. CMS also proposes to suspended or revoked enrollment when the provider's license has been suspended or revoked in another state or the provider has been suspended or revoked from Medicaid or another federal health care program. LeadingAge will have a detailed article for members in the coming days on all the program integrity proposals in the CY2027 Home Health Proposed Rule.