Key Takeaways on CMS’ 2022 Final Rule
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently released the Inpatient Rehabilitation Facility Prospective Payment System (IRF PPS) for fiscal year (FY) 2022. The payment rule will take effect for cost report periods beginning on or after October 1, 2021 for all rehabilitation units and freestanding hospitals.
This year’s final rule by CMS was in line with expectations, focusing on payment rate updates and changes to quality and pay-for-performance programs.
The key takeaways from the CMS final rule include:1,
- CMS projects overall IRF FY 2022 payments to increase 1.5% ($139 million) over FY 2021 payments.
- Overall update factor reflects a 1.9% increase to the IRF Perspective Payment System (PPS) rates based on the IRF-specific market basket estimate of 2.6% minus a 0.7% productivity adjustment, as well as an adjustment to the outlier threshold, which will result in 0.4% reduction in outlier payments.
- New Quality Measure: Public reporting of the COVID-19 Vaccination Coverage among Health Care Personnel measure will be publicly available with the September 2022 Care Compare refresh – reflecting data collected for Q4 2021 (October 1, 2021 through December 31, 2021). According to CMS, “this measure is designed to help assess whether IRFs are taking steps to limit the spread of COVID-19” and to “reduce the risk of transmission within their facilities.”
- CMS finalized an exclusion from fee schedule adjustments based on information from the Medicare Durable Medical Equipment, Prosthetics, Orthotics, and Supplies (DMEPOS) Competitive Bidding Program (CBP) for wheelchair accessories (including seating systems) and seat and back cushions furnished in connection with group 3 or higher complex rehabilitative power wheelchairs.
References:
- Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. (2021, July 29). Fact sheet: Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 Inpatient Rehabilitation Facility (IRF) Prospective Payment System (PPS) Final Rule (CMS-1748-F)CMS. https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/fact-sheets/fiscal-year-fy-2022-inpatient-rehabilitation-facility-irf-prospective-payment-system-pps-final-rule
