WASHINGTON, April 19 (UPI) -- Medicare has launched a new pilot project to cover "adult day care" medical services, the agency said Wednesday.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced the implementation of the Medical Adult Day Care Services Demonstration, which encourages Home Health Agencies to partner with Medical Adult Day Care Facilities to provide medical services to Medicare beneficiaries as a substitute for a portion of services otherwise provided in the home.
"This demonstration will allow Medicare to assess whether providing medical adult day care services as part of the home health benefit will improve patient outcomes and increase patient satisfaction," said CMS Administrator Mark McClellan.
There are approximately 2,100 licensed medical adult day care facilities throughout the country providing adult day care services that include healthcare, as well as social interaction and caregiver respite services, to meet the daytime needs of individuals with functional or cognitive impairments.
Currently, Medicare beneficiaries who attend medical adult day care facilities pay out of pocket for those services or are reimbursed through a third-party payer other than Medicare.
The five selected project locations are:
-- Aurora Visiting Nurse Association, Milwaukee, Wis.
-- Doctor's Care Home Health, McAllen, Texas
-- Landmark Home Health Care Services, Allison Park, Pa.
-- Metropolitan Jewish Health System, Brooklyn, N.Y.
-- Neighborly Care Network, St. Petersburg, Fla.
The participating home health agencies will be paid 95 percent of the home health prospective payment rate for the pilot project, and beneficiaries will not have any associated out-of-pocket costs for these additional services while enrolled in the demonstration.
