The Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act of 2021
May 14, 2021 The Resident Physician Shortage Act of 2021 was reintroduced by three U.S. Reps. – Terri Sewell (D-AK), John Katko (R-NY), Tom Suozzi (D-NY), and Rodney Davis (R-IL). This bill will create an additional 14,000 residency positions funded by Medicare. Their goal is to add 2,000 residency positions each year between 2023 to 2029. The need for doctors has been exacerbated...Read More
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FY 2022 IPPS Proposed Rule
May 7, 2021 On April 27, The Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) introduced a proposal for graduate medical education (GME) as part of the FY 2022 Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS) proposed rule. These policies will bring additional residency slots, changes to accreditation for Rural Training Tracks (RTTs), and opportunities for low Per Resident Amounts (PRA’s)...Read More
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FY 2021 IPPS Proposed Rule: Displaced Resident Policies
June 3, 2020 CMS has published the FY 2021 Inpatient Prospective Payment Services (IPPS) Proposed Rule on May 29th. In the FY 2021 IPPS proposed rule, CMS addresses changes to closing hospitals and Graduate Medical Education (GME) residency programs that could take effect as soon as October 1, 2020. The proposed rule addresses growing concerns of operational and administrative...Read More
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COVID-19 Update: CMS Provides Additional Flexibility During Pandemic
May 11, 2020 On April 30, 2020, The Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released a new set of waivers aimed at relieving financial pressure on Graduate Medical Education (GME) programs to address the needs of the COVID-19 pandemic. Following is a summary of waivers directly related to GME Programs: Temporary Bed Increase Will Not Impact IME Payments For the...Read More
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Legislation to Increase GME Slots Reintroduced by New Jersey Representatives
April 20, 2020 In an April 7th letter to Congress, U.S. Representatives Josh Gottheimer (NJ-5) and Bill Pascrell, Jr. (NJ-9) have requested an increase in Graduate Medical Education (GME) slots for hospitals to be included in the next COVID-19 legislative package. “This would help alleviate the staffing burden that has plagued so many hospitals across the country, and...Read More
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COVID-19 Update: CMS Temporary Policy on Moonlighting (Interim Final Rule)
April 2, 2020 CMS recognizes that the current regulation on moonlighting residents will not adequately meet the needs of teaching hospitals during this Public Health Emergency (PHE). The current regulation limits moonlighting to services outside the resident’s approved GME programs to patients in an outpatient department or emergency department of a hospital in which the resident has...Read More
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Electives – A Common Adjustment in Medicare Audits
November 5, 2019 GME Solutions has over 20 years of experience working with Medicare auditors (i.e. Medicare Administrative Contractors, or MACs). The most common disallowances made by MACs concerning Graduate Medical Education (GME) payments result from resident elective rotations. What are Elective Rotations? Elective rotations provide an opportunity for residents to tailor...Read More
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Claiming Foreign Dental Graduates on the IRIS Report
July 24, 2019 In general, a provider cannot claim Direct Graduate Medical Education (DGME) FTEs but can claim Indirect Graduate Medical Education (IME) FTEs for training rotations associated with foreign dental graduates (those students graduating from a dental school not located in the US, Canada or Puerto Rico). If you have spent time working with the Intern & Resident...Read More
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Balanced Budget Act of 1997: Rolling Average Explained
June 18, 2019 The Balanced Budget Act of 1997, also known as the 1996 FTE Cap or Base Year FTE Cap, limited the number of residents a teaching hospital can receive for Medicare Graduate Medical Education (GME) reimbursements. This limit was not the only limit implemented with the passing of the Balanced Budget Act of 1997; hospitals were also faced with a requirement to average...Read More
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CMS Releases Proposed 2020 IPPS Rules – Impact to Graduate Medical Education
May 8, 2019 The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) published the proposed changes to the Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS) rules for fiscal year 2020 on May 3, 2019. The proposed rules addressed multiple issues, two of which impact Graduate Medical Education: Modifications to Nonprovider Settings — If finalized, the rule will allow hospitals to count...Read More
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