Health
WASHINGTON D.C. – On Monday, bipartisan legislation authored by U.S. Reps. Mike Thompson (D-CA-5) and Tom Reed (R-NY-23) to improve access to quality hospice care was signed into law by President Obama at a White House ceremony.
Thompson and Reed’s Hospice Opportunities for Supporting Patients with Integrity and Care Evaluations (HOSPICE) Act was included in the Improving Medicare Post-Acute Care Transformation (IMPACT) Act of 2014.
“This law will strengthen accountability and transparency at hospice facilities so that patients receive the highest quality care possible,” said Thompson. “By putting these accountability measures in place, we are improving hospice centers and providing patients and their families the peace of mind that they will be able to depend on the care they receive.”
The HOSPICE Act requires a three-year recertification cycle for hospice facilities as opposed to the current six to eight-year timeframe.
This enhanced time-frame is designed to improve accountability and make sure hospice centers are attentive to the changing needs of patient care.
This also will improve quality of care by helping hospice providers see where improvements are needed.
According to the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO), the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) examined hospice survey frequency in 2007 and 2013 and found that the existing intervals and resources were inadequate. The mandatory survey frequency in HOSPICE Act is consistent with the OIG recommendations.
The HOSPICE Act also allows the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to conduct a medical review of hospice programs that reach a threshold of patients under care for more than 180 days. The threshold would be established by CMS.
This provision will help make sure patients at high-volume hospice centers are receiving quality care.
Thompson represents California’s Fifth Congressional District, which includes all or part of Contra Costa, Lake, Napa, Solano and Sonoma counties.
- Details
- Written by: Editor
LAKEPORT, Calif. – Sutter Lakeside is pleased to announce its $500 donation to the Terrace Middle School “Girls On the Move” Running Club.
This donation will allow the running club to purchase running shoes for the sixth through eighth grade girls who participate in the program.
“Our school has had similar programs in the past,” said Ingrid Larsen, Terrace Middle School School counselor and the organizer for Girls On the Move. “Girls On the Run is a national program that we initially looked into, but it cost close to $10,000 to start. I pitched the general idea to our group of educators, administrators, and psychologists and they said ‘We can do this. We work with kids all day long.’”
Larsen added, “We want to teach the girls some valuable skills about self-image and nutrition instead of just the physical part of running. We came up with about six or seven lessons that we thought were important. Every lesson has a different focus and a different speaker on subjects ranging from skin care to yoga to personal safety. We want these girls to feel confident about themselves regardless of their fitness level, and we want them to be cognizant of their surroundings so that they can stay safe. We’re hoping that through these mentor speakers, we can spark some motivation.”
“What we really liked about the Girls On the Move program was how closely it aligns with our own mission to improve the health of Lake County. We particularly appreciated that this club focuses on establishing fantastic fitness habits at a young age,” said Siri Nelson, chief administrative officer for Sutter Lakeside Hospital.
The Girls On the Move Running Club meets Tuesdays and Thursdays after school. Tuesday’s practice will begin with a 10-15 minute lesson and then the girls will exercise together, while Thursday’s practice will focus on training for an end-of-season 5K race.
There is no minimum grade point average requirement to join and all sixth through eighth grade girls from Terrace Middle School are encouraged to participate.
“Terrace has had a Running Club before, and some of the kids would show up wearing shoes that just weren’t made for running. We’re so excited by this donation from Sutter Lakeside. Now we’ll be able to offer new equipment to our club,” Larsen said.
- Details
- Written by: Editor
How to resolve AdBlock issue?