Hsueh-Fen Chen, PhD

This study attempts to identify the sources of the significant 2.5-fold variation found in home health expenditures, a possible indicator of inefficiency and waste.

The authors of “CMS HCC Risk Scores and Home Health Patient Experience Measures” respond to a letter to the editor.

Risk adjustment for patient experience measures needs to be modified by including the CMS Hierarchical Condition Categories (HCC) risk scores of home health beneficiaries.

Revisions of the Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program should consider including community characteristics in risk adjustment models and adding mechanisms that recognize improvement given the uniqueness of the Mississippi Delta region.

Home health beneficiaries with diabetes using paid supplementary caregivers had 68% higher hazards of readmission due to urinary tract infection than those with unpaid supplementary caregivers.

Home healthcare transition from hospitals for diabetic Medicare home healthcare beneficiaries can be improved by identifying risk factors for 30-day readmissions due to ambulatory care—sensitive conditions.

An integrated, clinician-focused telehealth monitoring system significantly reduced hospitalizations in Medicare home healthcare patients.