According to a new payment rule issued on Monday, July 31, 2017 by CMS, SNFs will see their federal payments rise $370 million, or roughly one percent.

The new rule also finalizes updates to the SNF Quality Reporting Program, including replacing current pressure ulcer measures with an updated version and introducing four new functional status measures. The new measures include a change in self-care score, discharge-self score, change in mobility score, and discharge mobility score. These functional measures will take effect in FY2020.

CMS also finalized that by 2018, the following measures data will be publicly reported:

· Potentially preventable 30-day post discharge readmission measure

· Medicare spending per beneficiary

· Discharge to community

· Percent of residents or patients with pressure ulcers that are new or worsened.

· Application of percent of residents’ experiences one or more falls with major injury.

To read the full final rule, click here.