February 2019
brought to you by the Home Health Quality Improvement National Campaign (HHQI)
FEATURED RESOURCES
HHQI's online resource library has literally hundreds of free resources that home health agencies can use for staff and patient education. The volume of resources can be overwhelming, and we want to make it easy for you to find our most popular tools. So each month, we'll highlight favorite resources from HHQI team members or campaign participants.  
Top 5 Resources for Improving Cardiovascular Health
Due in part to Valentine's Day, we see a lot of heart-related imagery during the month of February. However, several cardiovascular health-related observances also contribute to the theme:  American Heart Month ,  National Wear Red Day®  (Feb 1), and  National Cardiac Rehabilitation Week  (Feb 10-16).

Cardiovascular health improvement is a major focus of the HHQI National Campaign, so we have hundreds of free resources that can help you promote these annual observances among your patients and staff. Below are some HHQI participant favorites.
  • Home Health Cardiovascular Data Registry (HHCDR) — CMS-certified home health agencies that participate in the HHCDR receive free monthly data reports that help identify specific opportunities for improving the cardiovascular health of their patient population. Learn more.

  • Cardiovascular Health Best Practice Intervention Packages (BPIPs) — Our evidence-based BPIPs provide information, tools, and resources your leadership and staff can use to make a measurable impact on the ABCS of cardiovascular health: Aspirin as Appropriate, Blood Pressure Control, Cholesterol Management, and Smoking Cessation. Browse BPIPs.

  • Online Courses with Free Continuing Education Credits — HHQI University's Cardiovascular Health course catalog currently includes 17 self-paced, online courses with a total of 24 hours of free CE credit for nurses (ANCC). Some courses also include continuing competency units for physical therapists (FSBPT). Browse the catalog.

  • Educational Videos & Webinars — HHQI's YouTube channel includes many educational videos and webinars related to cardiovascular health improvement organized into topic-specific playlists. Be sure to browse the 'Clinician Videos' and 'Patient Videos' playlists for practical tips on implementing HHQI's educational resources. Watch now.

  • HHQI's Cardio Milestones — Currently, more than 2,400 home health agencies are participating in the Cardio Milestones program, which provides a roadmap to achieving measurable improvement in the cardiovascular health of your patient population. Learn more.
What's your favorite HHQI resource? We love to hear how our resources have helped agencies, and you could help someone else in the HHQI community. We can give you credit or keep your recommendation anonymous. Please email us !
CAMPAIGN EVENTS
Treating Tobacco Use & Dependence:
Current Practice Guidelines
American Heart Month Webinar | February 21, 2019 | 2-3 p.m. ET

Do you care for patients who want to finally quit tobacco in 2019? Your support and encouragement can make a world of difference.

During HHQI’s 2019 American Heart Month webinar, you’ll hear how tobacco use impacts cardiovascular health immediately and over time. We’ll also discuss current evidence-based practices and efficacy rates for behavioral and pharmacotherapy interventions. And you’ll discover coaching techniques and tobacco cessation tools that you can begin using with your patients right away.

After attending, you'll be able to:
  • Explain the effects of tobacco use on a person's health.
  • List three (3) evidence-based behavioral approaches for treating tobacco use and dependence.
  • Describe the relative efficacy of FDA-approved medications for smoking cessation.
Meet Our Featured Expert
Karen S. Hudmon, DrPh, MS, RPh
Professor of Public Health Pharmacy
Purdue University, College of Pharmacy
Clinical Professor
University of California San Francisco, School of Pharmacy
Earn Free Continuing Education
This continuing education activity has been submitted to Alabama State Nurses Association for approval to award 1.25 contact hours. Alabama State Nurses Association is an accredited approver of continuing nursing education by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation (ANCC).
 
To receive continuing education (CE) credit, participants must watch the webinar and enroll in the corresponding course in HHQI University's Cardiovascular Health catalog to complete related coursework.
Visit the HHQI website to register and for the latest CE status and webinar materials as soon as they are available.
Want to be among the first to know details about upcoming webinars? You don't have to wait for Inside Edition. Subscribe to our mailing lists to receive details as soon as they are available.
CAMPAIGN NEWS
Congratulations to the HHQI Agency of the Month!
This month, HHQI recognizes Door County Memorial Home Health , an Ascension at Home agency in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, for their dedication to improving home health quality.

Home health agencies that are active in the HHQI National Campaign and closest to the national, risk-adjusted ACH 20th percentile and/or the national, risk-adjusted Oral Medication Improvement 80th percentile (or better) are eligible for random selection as HHQI Agency of the Month. 

Be in the spotlight. Nominate your agency today! If you are selected, your organization will be prominently featured here in HHQI Inside Edition and on the HHQI website. Your achievement will also be shared via HHQI's social media channels.
QIN-QIO CORNER
National Learning & Action Network (LAN) Event | February 13 | 3-4:30 p.m. ET
Patient-Centered Treatment Options for Type 2 Diabetes
Selecting the right treatment options for type 2 diabetes has never been more promising, or as complicated as it is today. With all of the current classes of diabetes medications, how does a clinician-patient team decide on the most appropriate medications along the course of a person’s disease process, many of whom also have cardiovascular disease, heart failure, or chronic kidney disease?

During this National LAN event on February 13 (3-4:30 p.m. ET) , you'll learn the latest type 2 diabetes consensus recommendations and decision-trees to help seniors and their care teams decide how to maximize care quality while mitigating risk and treatment burden. This call will feature an author of  Management of Hyperglycemia in Type 2 Diabetes, 2018. A Consensus Report by the American Diabetes Association (ADA) and the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD).
INDUSTRY NEWS & EVENTS
CMS Releases FAQs Related to Home Health Agency CoPs
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has provided a list of FAQs for the Home Health Agency (HHA) Conditions of Participation (CoPs) that became effective on January 13, 2018. Each question includes a response to further clarify the Medicare requirements.
American Heart Month 2019: Let’s Talk About Cholesterol
Did you know that nearly 1 in 3 adults in the United States has high blood cholesterol, a major risk factor for heart disease and stroke? 1 High blood cholesterol can be hard to detect, as it often shows no signs or symptoms.

This year, the Division for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention (DHDSP) will focus on the impact that high blood cholesterol can have on the heart. Join DHDSP throughout February and beyond by starting important conversations about your heart health. Talk with your loved ones and health care team about how you can prevent and manage high blood cholesterol. Read more.
Celebrate Sepsis Survivor Week, February 10-16
The Sepsis Alliance will launch Sepsis Survivor Week February 10-16 to honor the 1.4 million Americans who survive sepsis each year and bring awareness to the challenges many of them face each day.
 
Up to 60% of sepsis survivors are left not only with physical challenges, but mental and emotional challenges too. To learn more about these challenges, please visit the Life After Sepsis resource page . In the coming weeks, the page will be updated with new resources.
Sepsis is the third leading cause of death in the United States. Most cases originate in the community, and as many as 80% of sepsis deaths may have been prevented with rapid diagnosis and treatment .

During this webinar from HHQI featuring experts from the Sepsis Alliance, you'll follow the patient journey throughout the continuum of care, from recognition and treatment to discharge and aftercare. Free continuing education credits are available for nurses who complete the corresponding course in HHQI University.
CMS Lifts Moratoria on Home Health After 5 Years
The long-standing moratoria on new Medicare home health agencies is no longer in effect anywhere in the U.S. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) allowed the temporary ban to expire on January 30, 2019.
CMS Announces New Model to Lower Drug Prices in Medicare Part D and Transformative Updates to Existing Model for Medicare Advantage
On January 18, 2019, CMS’s Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, which tests innovative payment and service delivery models to lower costs and improve the quality of care, announced a new payment model and transformative updates to an existing model. The models are designed to enable Medicare Advantage and Part D plans, which are private plans that provide Medicare beneficiaries with medical and prescription drug coverage, to better serve patients and help them achieve good health. Read more.
Now Available: Training Materials & Webinar Recording
Updates to Public Reporting in Fiscal Year 2019: Hospice Comprehensive Assessment Measure and Data Correction Deadlines
On December 13, 2018, CMS hosted the two-part training webinar. The first part focused on the Hospice and Palliative Care Composite Process Measure - Comprehensive Assessment at Admission (NQF #3235). The second part focused on the 4.5-Month Data Correction Deadline for the Public Reporting policy update that was finalized in the FY 2019 Hospice Wage Index and Payment Rate Update and Hospice Quality Reporting Requirements final rule (83 FR 38622, see pages 38638-38640).

To download the Updates to Public Reporting in Fiscal Year 2019: Hospice Comprehensive Assessment Measure and Data Correction Deadlines training materials, refer to the Downloads section of the  Hospice Quality Reporting Training website . A recording of the webinar is also available.
CMS Taking Comments until March 1, 2019
CMS Outlines Further Expansion of Medicare Advantage Benefits for In-Home Services, the Chronically Ill
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is proposing to further expand Medicare Advantage (MA) flexibilities for certain in-home services and supports for chronically ill Americans starting in 2020. The move is in line with CMS’ larger goals of broadening the scope of the MA program, which has quickly grown in popularity over the past several years.

Specifically, the newly proposed changes will help older adults and chronically ill individuals pick plans that are more closely catered to their health needs, according to CMS. Federal policymakers previously announced they were providing new supplemental benefits and flexibilities for the 2019 plan year last April. Read more.

To submit comments or questions on these proposed changes, go to www.regulations.gov , enter the docket number "CMS-2018-0154" in the search field, and follow the instructions for submitting a comment.
Register Now for Free Upcoming Industry Events
February 7
2:00 p.m. ET
Host: Home Health Care News
February 12
12:00 p.m. ET
Host: TMF Health Quality Institute
February 12
1:00 p.m. ET
Host: TMF Health Quality Institute
February 12
1:00 p.m. ET
Host: Sepsis Alliance
February 12
1:30 p.m. ET
Host: Medicare Learning Network
February 13
1:00 p.m. ET
Host: VNAA / ElevatingHOME
February 13
3:00 p.m. ET
National Learning & Action Network (LAN) Event: Patient-Centered Treatment Options for Type 2 Diabetes *
Host: QIO Program
February 14
1:30 p.m. ET
Host: Medicare Learning Network
February 19
12:00 p.m. ET
Host: VNAA / ElevatingHOME
February 20
1:00 p.m. ET
Host: VNAA / ElevatingHOME
February 21
1:00 p.m. ET
Host: VNAA / ElevatingHOME
February 26
12:00 p.m. ET
Host: VNAA / ElevatingHOME
February 27
2:00 p.m. ET
Host: Family Caregiver Alliance
February 28
1:00 p.m. ET
Host: VNAA / ElevatingHOME
February 28
1:00 p.m. ET
Host: American Society on Aging
March 5
12:00 p.m. ET
Host: VNAA / ElevatingHOME
March 5-6
Baltimore, MD
In-person or Live Webcast 2-day Event: Home Health Quality Reporting Program Provider Training
Host: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
March 12
1:30 p.m. ET
Host: Medicare Learning Network
On-demand
Host: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
On-demand
Host: American College of Cardiology
On-demand
Host: Smith & Nephew
On-demand
Clinical Impact of OASIS-D presented by HEALTHCAREfirst
Host: ElevatingHOME
On-demand
Host: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
* Continuing education credit(s) included, available or pending.

Reference to any specific organization or its products or services is for information and convenience and does not constitute endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by Quality Insights, the Home Health Quality Improvement National Campaign, or the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
STAY CONNECTED:
This material was prepared by Quality Insights, the Medicare Quality Innovation Network-Quality Improvement Organization supporting the Home Health Quality Improvement National Campaign, under contract with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The views presented do not necessarily reflect CMS policy. 
Pub. No. 11SOW-WV-HH-MMD-013019