Here’s a rundown of the first section of the new Home Health Conditions of Participation.  Check back for additional information.  We’ll be adding more later.  Let us know if you have anything to add.

Patient Rights and Responsibilities

The Condition of Participation concerning patient rights and responsibilities will require that:

1. The agency must provide information about rights and responsibilities verbally and in writing in a manner the patient can understand. There must be documentation that the agency has complied in the chart.
2. There must be a complaint log that documents the existence and resolution of complaints about care furnished made by the patient or their representative and family.
3. The agency must let the patient know in advance of the disciplines that will furnish care, the plan of care, the anticipated outcomes of care and changes in the care to be furnished.
4. The agency must advise the patient of agency policies regarding disclosure of patient records.
5. The agency must advise the patient of any financial liability.
6. The agency must advise the patient of the home health hotline number and explain its purpose, hours of operation.
7. The names and telephone numbers of specified state and federally funded entities. (See Below)
8. The right to access auxiliary aids and language services and how to access these services.

Specified numbers

1. Agency on Aging
2. Center for Independent Living
3. Protection and Advocacy Agency
4. Agency and disability resource center
5. Quality Improvement Organization

These new and revised rights are in addition to other patient rights that are currently being used so you will have to edit your current forms before January 1.  We expect that most forms will patient rights 2 taken from the regulations and edited slightly for clarity.

We suggest that when the forms are replaced that old forms be removed from the office and archived on your computers so they are not accidentally used in 2018.

Complaints

Another thing you can do immediately is prepare your complaint binder for 2018.  Remember that the complaints that you must record and address are those having to do with patient care and mistreatment, neglect, or verbal, mental, sexual and physical abuse including injuries of unknown source, and/or misappropriation of patient property by anyone furnishing services on behalf of the agency.

Anyone employed by the agency in any capacity who identifies, notices or recognizes anything suggestive of mistreatment, neglect, or verbal, mental, sexual and physical abuse including injuries of unknown source, MUST report the findings to the agency immediately and other appropriate authorities in accordance with state law.  Notice that it states the employee who identifies mistreatment must report it.  Be supportive of your staff but keep in mind that the person who suspects any neglect or abuse must report it.

Communication

Every agency who is Medicare Certified has completed a Section 504 packet for submission to the Office of Civil Rights.  The penalty for not doing so is having payment withheld so it’s a The Office of Civil Rights investigates claims of discrimination and assures that healthcare providers and others understand and attest to their non-discrimination policies.

Now the section on limited English proficiency has become a standard in the Conditions of Participation.

If your agency is very old, you may not be aware of what is in the packet but you can obtain sample policies and explanations on the Office of Civil Rights webpage.  If you scroll down to the third section  of the linked page, you can find the tools that The Office of Civil Rights has for Medicare Certified Healthcare Providers.

The available resources that you must plug in such as translators, etc. will vary according to your location.  Now is the time to task somebody with identifying these resources if you haven’t already.

So, here are three new requirements that your agency can address in a week.  Instead of being overwhelmed by all the changes, complete a few to the best of your ability and move on to the next.  Keep checking back for more advice on how to get in a position to be compliant by January and send to us any ideas that you have on how to best comply with the new Conditions of Participation.