Why do new regulations from CMS governing physician delegation of services differ between Skilled Nursing Facilities (SNFs) and Nursing Facilities (NFs)?
A1. The requirements addressing physician delegation of services are not new. The distinction made between the delegation of physician visits and tasks between SNFs and NFs is mandated by Congress in the law. The original authority for 42 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) § 483.40 was the sentence in section 1819(b)(6)(A) of the Social Security Act requiring that every SNF resident’s medical care be under the supervision of a physician (the same sentence appeared in section 1919(b)(6)(A) of the Social Security Act for NFs). The requirements contained in 42 CFR, § 483.40, include a prescribed visit schedule and the requirement for the physician to perform the initial visit personally. Section 483.40 of the CFR originally applied these same standards uniformly in both SNFs and NFs. However, in section 4801(d) of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990 (OBRA ’90), Congress subsequently amended the Medicaid provisions of the law (section 1919(b)(6)(A) of the Social Security Act) to a
A1. The requirements addressing physician delegation of services are not new. The distinction made between the delegation of physician visits and tasks between SNFs and NFs is mandated by Congress in the law. The original authority for 42 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) § 483.40 was the sentence in section 1819(b)(6)(A) of the Social Security Act requiring that every SNF resident’s medical care be under the supervision of a physician (the same sentence appeared in section 1919(b)(6)(A) of the Social Security Act for NFs). The requirements contained in 42 CFR, § 483.40, include a prescribed visit schedule and the requirement for the physician to perform the initial visit personally. Section 483.40 of the CFR originally applied these same standards uniformly in both SNFs and NFs. However, in section 4801(d) of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990 (OBRA ’90), Congress subsequently amended the Medicaid provisions of the law (section 1919(b)(6)(A) of the Social Security Act) to a
Related Questions
- You mentioned that there was a resource that describes the various skilled nursing services provided under the Medicare home health benefit. Where can we access this?
- Why do new regulations from CMS governing physician delegation of services differ between Skilled Nursing Facilities (SNFs) and Nursing Facilities (NFs)?
- Where can I locate the complete CMS Part B guidelines/regulations that explain teaching physician services?
