>>>> The Home Health Independence Demonstration
>> The Home Health Independence Demonstration is a new project being
conducted in COLORADO, MASSACHUSETTS and MISSOURI by the Centers for
Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) under a mandate created by Section 702
of the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement and Modernization Act of
2003 (MMA).
It allows severely disabled Medicare beneficiaries who receive Medicare
home health benefits in those states to leave their homes as frequently as
they wish without risking the loss of those benefits.
To qualify for the demonstration project, Medicare beneficiaries must be
enrolled in Medicare Part B and must meet all current home health
eligibility requirements (other than those related to absences from the
home.)
(You can find information about those criteria and about the
services covered by the Medicare home health benefit at:
http://www.cms.hhs.gov/quality/hhqi/HHBenefits.pdf)
In addition, to be eligible for the demonstration, beneficiaries:
>> must have a permanent, severe disability that is not expected to
improve;
>> must have a permanent need for skilled nursing care beyond medication
management;
>> must need help with at least three of five activities of daily living
(ADLS):
(eating,toileting, transferring, bathing, dressing);
>> must require daily care from an attendant or caregiver to monitor or
treat their
medical condition OR to provide ADL assistance;
>> they must require human or technological assistance to leave the
home; and
>> they must NOT be working outside the home.
The demonstration began operations October 4, 2004 and will run until
October 3, 2006.
The services that beneficiaries can receive under the demonstration are
those currently provided under the Medicare home health benefit. The
DIFFERENCE is that beneficiaries who are enrolled in the demonstration may
leave home more often and for longer periods than would have been allowed
under "regular" Medicare rules for home health eligibility.
To find out more about the Home Health Independence Demonstration, you can
� visit the demonstration web site at
http://www.cms.gov/researchers/demos/homehealthindependence.asp
� send email to:
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
� telephone: 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227)
(This message is being posted by Abt Associates Inc., a firm in Cambridge,
MA that has been selected as a support contractor by CMS to help implement
the demonstration.)
Home Health Independence Demonstration
