The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently released the Inpatient Rehabilitation Facility (IRF PPS), for fiscal year (FY) 2022. The payment rule took effect October 1, 2021. Read Full Post

The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated an already-existing shortage of healthcare workers, and as a result, many health systems are struggling to keep up with COVID-19 patient surges as well as patients experiencing behavioral health illnesses brought on by the pandemic. Read Full Post

Lack of behavioral health access and education in non-urban communities, especially ones largely populated by farmers, has become a growing issue across the nation. This concern is expected to increase if health systems do not respond appropriately.

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Today, more than 50% of the global population is living in cities, and by 2050 this rate is expected to increase to nearly 70%.1 As more individuals migrate to urban communities, the risk of developing a mental or behavioral health illness rises. This sense of over-population leads to crowded emergency rooms and mental health treatment centers – impeding an individual’s ability to receive high-quality services. Read Full Post

Now more than ever, it is important for providers to be flexible in their ability to respond to current and future patient needs as the medically complex patient population continues to increase. But flexibility isn’t just important in an immediate crisis— it’s something healthcare leaders should be thinking about amid a rapidly changing healthcare landscape. Read Full Post

As health systems work to effectively treat the 47.6 million individuals experiencing mental illness each year1, they must first identify one of the key factors contributing to this growing issue – location. Rural communities continue to experience unique challenges that often create… Read Full Post

Drastic spikes in behavioral health issues are impacting communities across the nation as individuals continue to navigate stressors brought on by the pandemic. Recent research highlights that one in five U.S. adults, or 47.6 million people, experience mental illness each year.1 These spikes are an extension of an ongoing crisis in behavioral health globally and are not expected to decrease once COVID-19 subsides. Read Full Post

Before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, patients receiving care at Kindred’s inpatient rehabilitation facilities (IRFs), behavioral health hospitals and long-term acute care hospitals (LTACHs) have continued to receive the highest quality care tailored to their unique needs. These patients have also been able to transition to the next most appropriate care setting within the same hospital. Read Full Post

As issues surrounding the access and quality of behavioral health treatment continue to be addressed, so will the need of efficiently and effectively compiling and storing vital patient data. By doing so, hospitals and treatment centers can help ensure a patient’s mental health, among other factors, are properly monitored, in turn allowing a facility to provide tailored treatment plans for optimal outcomes and reduced readmission risk. Read Full Post

The need for high quality behavioral health services has increased over the past year as research suggests that roughly 20% of the U.S. population may have behavioral health disorders, yet nearly 60% have unmet needs.1 This staggering statistic has created a community-wide impact – especially as the rapidly-growing aging population is not being adequately treated. Read Full Post