You're receiving this email because of your relationship with the Office of Inspector General, Division of Health Care. Thank you for your continued commitment to serving the citizens of our Commonwealth!
Cabinet for Health & Family Services
Office of Inspector General
Division of Health Care
|
|
Home Health Agency Newsletter
March 2019
|
|
Juniper VPN Network Client Upgrade
An upgrade is required to the Juniper VPN Network Client software (Network Connect Client) currently used by the QIES community to log into CMSNet for required submission and reporting. The upgrade for Home Health providers will occur on 05/30/2019. This will effect employees who use CMSNet for OASIS.
Upgrade Details
Users must have Administrator rights on their workstations or have an IT staff member with Administrator rights available to complete the upgrade. The upgrade will be initiated automatically when users launch the Juniper VPN Client beginning on 05/30/2019. Upon connection, the automated process will begin and users will be prompted to start the installation of the new Pulse Secure Desktop Client on their workstations.
For questions or assistance, please contact the CMSNet Help Desk at 888-238-2122.
|
|
CMS is Updating the Quality Improvement and
Evaluation System (QIES)
Starting in March, the Quality Improvement and Evaluation System (QIES), Certification and Survey Provider Enhanced Reports (CASPER) and Automated Survey Processing Environment (ASPEN) will undergo a series of modernizing enhancements. Once updated, the system will be called the Internet Quality Improvement and Evaluation System (iQIES). The iQIES system will not change how providers currently submit data to CMS.
The new enhancements in iQIES are based on user research and testing and feature a human-centered design and agile development practices. CMS is phasing in the iQIES system beginning with Long Term Care Hospitals (LTCH). Several updates to the QIES- Assessment Submission and Processing (ASAP) system are also planned. The Cloud-based solutions will also make it easier for users to receive support and use the system.
iQIES Details:
- Users will no longer need a virtual private network (VPN) or CMSNet to access the system. iQIES is Internet-facing and maintains the latest system architecture and security standards.
- System enhancements support flexible and user-friendly data reports for providers, allowing them to use real-time data for care planning as well as quality monitoring and improvement.
- Users can access important information for work anywhere, at any time, on mobile devices, laptops, and tablets.
CMS will be sharing more information about iQIES such as onboarding, stakeholder engagement opportunities, training, and general updates soon! Keep a check on the
OASIS Data Sets website
.
If you have questions, please contact our service desk at:
help@qtso.com
or by phone: 800-339-9313.
|
|
Questions?
Why was the OASIS revised again? What is SPADEs? What is new in the OASIS-D?
Click to read
further details.
OASIS-D Q+A is Available
A question and answer (Q+A) document containing responses to questions posed by providers during the following trainings on the OASIS-D is now available in the Downloads section at the bottom of the
Home Health Quality Reporting Training
webpage.
- The Introduction to the OASIS-D Webinar that occurred on August 28, 2018;
- The Section GG: Functional Abilities and Goals Webinar that took place on September 5, 2018; and
- The November 2018 Home Health Quality Reporting Program Provider Training that occurred on November 6 and 7, 2018, in Baltimore, MD.
Please note: This is an update to the Q+A document posted on December 4, 2018, and includes responses to questions that required additional research.
Understanding OASIS Function Coding Fact Sheet is now available
This Fact Sheet is also now available under the Downloads section a
t the bottom of
the
Home Health Quality Reporting Training
webpage and clarifies that the response codes for the OASIS M1800 series function items, and the Section GG function items are not intended to be duplicative, or ‘match’. There are differences between items that have the same or similar names, so coding may be different. Examples are provided to illustrate this. Each OASIS item should be considered individually and coded based on guidance specific to that item.
|
|
Kentucky Annual Utilization Surveys
The Kentucky Annual Utilization Surveys were due on March 15, 2019. All licensed Home Health Agenices are required to report. To be in compliance with your license, an extension needs to be requested and data submitted. The reporting of this data is required by 902 KAR 20:008 and 900 KAR 5:020.
Any request for an extension of the deadline must go through Elizabeth Tutt, Survey Administrator and Healthcare Data Analyst. You may contact her by
email
or by calling (502) 564-7940 x3156.
CLICK HERE
for the website for the survey completion. The facility license number is the login and facilities should create their own password the first time they log in each year.
|
|
Home Health Patient-Driven Groupings Model Call
The
audio recording
and
transcript
are available from the February 12 call on the Home Health Patient-Driven Groupings Model (PDGM) that will be implemented on January 1, 2020. CMS will use the PDGM to reimburse home health agencies.
|
|
Interested in Serving on an IDR Panel?
Kentucky requires one member of the IDR panel to be "a person currently engaged in the provision of Home Health Agency services who has no affiliation with the provider disputing a deficiency." Typically, a Home Health Agency Director is on each IDR panel. There is no payment or travel reimbursement for a Director serving on a panel. Directors will be rotated. If a
Home Health Agency Director
is interested in serving on a panel, a confidentiality statement must be signed prior to the participation in the first IDR panel.
Chrystal Daugherty, IDR/IIDR Coordinator
Office of Inspector General
116 Commerce Ave.
London, KY 40744
Fax: (606) 330-2054
|
|
Home Health Agency Questions and Answers
Home Health Agency (HHA) Providers can access the Home Health and OASIS Q&As and other reference manuals on the
HHA Providers Reference site
.
These Questions and their responses have been developed over many years of experience training OASIS coordinators and are currently used as part of the Home Health Agency Surveyor Training program. They can and should be used by home health agency providers in training new staff on the basics of OASIS and also as a refresher for existing staff.
|
|
OASIS Answers, Inc.
is a team of experienced nursing and therapy professionals who concentrate their skills, experience and passion to meet the needs of clients at the state association, federal government, quality improvement organization, private industry, and individual provider levels.
Click here
for the latest information on their webinars.
|
|
|
|
OASIS CONTACT INFORMATION
|
Chrystal Daugherty
Assessment/Coding Questions
Rhonda Littleton-Roe
Transmission or Technical Questions
Michelle Ryan
HHA Licensing or Regulation Questions
|
|
OASIS Data Specifications
|
|
KARES
To enroll in KARES voluntarily, please click the icon above and follow the self-directed enrollment process.
For additional information about the program, please contact the help desk at (502)564-2159 or
via email
.
|
|
Click here
to visit the website or
click here
for guidance on how to verify and update home health demographic data.
|
Reporting Complaints
Email addresses have been established for use by patients and the general public to report possible violations of regulatory requirements.
Click Here
for the email addresses and additional contact information based on the facility's location.
|
|
Which Branch
is Serving You?
To provide the highest level of service, the Division of Health Care operates through four regional offices. Knowing the appropriate Branch to contact with questions and concerns will ensure you receive maximum service in minimum time. Review links below for detailed information.
|
|
CMS Survey and Certification memoranda, guidance, clarifications and instructions to State Survey Agencies and CMS Regional Offices.
|
|
Medicare Learning Network
Let the Medicare Learning Network (MLN) be your home for Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) education, information, and resources.
Visit the
Medicare Learning Network
for free educational materials for health care professionals on CMS programs, policies, and initiatives.
|
|
ISTW: Integrated Surveyor Training Website
This CMS website provides training information to include the preceptor manual, the State Operations Manual and other documents. As always, the survey and certification process is a collaborative effort between CMS and providers. This website will allow providers the opportunity to take the same courses as surveyors.
|
|
|
|
Want to Know the Top 10 Citations for Home Health Agencies?
|
Sign Up for This Newsletter
If you have received a copy of this newsletter from a friend or co-worker, you can click on the Sign Up button to enter your information and join our mailing list.
|
Employment Opportunities
To search and apply for positions within the Office of Inspector General, please visit the Kentucky Personnel Cabinet's web page by clicking the sign above.
|
|
DHC Leadership Team:
Inspector General
V
acant
Deputy Inspector General
Director
Assistant Director
Assistant Director
Pharmacy Consultant
|
|
Commonwealth of Kentucky | Office of Inspector General | 275 East Main St., Frankfort, KY 40621
|
|
The Office of Inspector General is the regulatory and licensing agency for all health care, day care and long-term care facilities and child adoption/child-placing agencies in the commonwealth.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
