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The Home Care Association of Florida
FEATURE
the highest rated HHAs will look to get a bump
of 5-8% on top of their base reimbursement;
whereas the lowest rated HHAs are going to
have their base reimbursement reduced 5-8%.
The measures will include both clinical and
financial outcomes. So again, holding patient
quality outcomes constant, which HHAs are
going to look to fare the best under the VBPM?
Well, the HHAs that will fare the best under the
VBPM will be those agencies best positioned
for this change: the cost-effective HHA.
Note: I think it very likely that FL will be one of the
five to eight states selected for this demonstration.
How cost-effective do you
believe your agency is today?
Do you have the financial fundamentals in
place to ensure that you are moving your
agency to be the most cost-effective that it
can be? This is not a change that happens
overnight and there is a cost associated with
this change. Too many agencies just look at
this type of activity from a cost perspective:
how much is this going to cost me? Agencies
with this perspective will have a difficult time
with these changes as too much of their focus
is on the short-term. These types of activities,
although a cost is associated with them,
need to be looked upon from a value-added
perspective; which is more of a long-term
perspective (which is generally the perspective
that is best to follow). The concept of “costs
vs. benefit” is one of the pillars upon which
the “value added” approach is built. You do
not make money in the market without making
an investment in that market. Well, in this
instance, your agency is your market, and long-
term survival and growth should be the goal.
With all the changes and uncertainty that exist
and will continue to exist for several more
years, many more HHAs will be closing their
doors; and I believe at an increasing rate as
time goes by. While that sounds ominous, there
is a silver lining: growth will be a by-product
of survival. As agencies around you close, the
patients that they care for will still need to be
seen by someone; the referral sources that they
have will still have a need to refer their home
health eligible patients to an HHA; and the staff
that they employed will still need to work for
someone. So therefore, in the long-run, survival
means growth! Your job as an owner/manager
of an HHA is to ensure survival; and one of the
best steps you can take to attain this goal is to
position your agency as a cost-effective provider
of care in your market.
HCAF
John Reisinger, CPA is Principal of Innovative Financial
Solutions for Home Health, helping underperforming
agencies achieve profit margins that meet and/or
exceed those as reported by MedPac and CMS. Thank
you to John for being one of home care’s strongest
advocates. For more information and to thank him for his
support, visit ifsforhomehealth.com.
