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Compliance News

Every regulatory action that touches home health and hospice agencies, explained in plain English, with its official source named and what to do about it. Free, always.

Action recommendedHome health

CDPH AFL 26-28: SB 164 halts new home health licenses, expands licensure rules

CDPH has issued AFL 26-28 implementing SB 164, which places a moratorium on new home health agency licenses and broadens licensure requirements for Califo…

CDPH AFL 26-28
Action recommendedHH + Hospice

DHS opens 30-day comment period on E-Verify collection revisions

USCIS is sending a revised E-Verify information collection to OMB and allowing 30 more days for public comment. Agencies enrolled in E-Verify may see chan…

FR 2026-18465
Action recommendedHospice

CMS Finalizes FY 2027 Hospice Payment Rates and Quality Reporting Requirements

CMS has issued final rule CMS-1851-F updating Medicare hospice payment rates, the wage index, and the aggregate cap amount for fiscal year 2027, along wit…

CMS Newsroom
Action recommendedHome health

CMS Proposes Rule to Boost Program Integrity and Expand Home Health Access

CMS has released a proposed rule targeting Medicare fraud, strengthening program integrity safeguards, and expanding access to home health care — changes…

CMS-1844-P
Action requiredHospice

California's first real hospice rulebook: CDPH emergency regulations now in effect

CDPH's emergency hospice regulations took effect June 22, 2026 — the first comprehensive operational licensing framework California hospices have ever had…

CDPH DPH-18-002E
Good to knowHH + Hospice

CDPH now charges for Report of Change applications

Under the FY 2025–26 fee schedule, CDPH charges fees for Report of Change applications from home health and hospice agencies — filings that were previousl…

CDPH L&C FEE SCHEDULE
Action requiredHH + Hospice

Hospice telehealth face-to-face encounters: the new restrictions are already live

Under the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2026, telehealth face-to-face recertification encounters are prohibited in specific circumstances for encounter…

CAA 2026 §6209(f) / CMS
Good to knowHospice

California's hospice license moratorium ends January 1, 2027

California has barred new hospice licenses since January 1, 2022. Under Health and Safety Code §1751.70 the moratorium runs until January 1, 2027. CDPH's…

SB 664 / AB 177 / DPH-18-002E
Good to knowHH + Hospice

Palliative care under the home health benefit: CMS opens the door

In the CY 2027 proposed rule, CMS states that skilled palliative care services can be furnished and billed under the existing Medicare home health benefit…

CMS-1844-P / CMS-1851-P
Action recommendedHH + Hospice

ACHC focus surveys: accreditation is no longer a three-year event

ACHC is conducting targeted, one-day focus surveys at selected home health and hospice agencies in states under enhanced CMS oversight — between regular r…

ACHC
Action requiredHome health

OASIS-E2 is live: what the April 1 implementation requires now

OASIS-E2 took effect for home health assessments on April 1, 2026, and CMS has since released the finalized data-collection materials. If your clinicians…

CMS OASIS-E2
Action recommendedHH + Hospice

More enrollment revocations would go retroactive — for every Medicare provider type

Tucked into the home health payment rule is a program-integrity package that applies to all Medicare providers and suppliers: more revocation grounds woul…

CMS-1844-P
Action recommendedHH + Hospice

HH QRP data correction deadline would shrink from 4.5 months to about 45 days after quarter end

Inside the CY 2027 proposed rule (CMS-1844-P) is an operational change: the quarterly HH QRP deadline for submitting and correcting OASIS data would move…

CMS-1844-P / HH QRP
Action requiredHospice

Finalized: the hospice election addendum is mandatory for every election on or after October 1, 2026

CMS has finalized the requirement (CMS-1851-F): for every hospice election on or after October 1, 2026, the hospice must give the beneficiary or represent…

CMS-1851-F
Action recommendedHH + Hospice

CMS freezes new home health and hospice Medicare enrollment nationwide

Effective May 13, 2026, CMS imposed a six-month nationwide moratorium on new Medicare enrollments for home health agencies and hospices — and on certain m…

CMS
Action recommendedHH + Hospice

CY 2027 Home Health Proposed Rule: a 2.4% raise with a 3% asterisk

CMS proposes a 2.4% aggregate payment increase for home health in CY 2027 — the first increase after years of cuts — but pairs it with a 3.0% temporary re…

CMS-1844-P
Good to knowHH + Hospice

FY 2027 Hospice Proposed Rule (finalized as CMS-1851-F): a 2.4% update — and a public score for every hospice

CMS's FY 2027 hospice proposed rule pairs a 2.4% payment update (~$785 million) with something more consequential: the Service and Spending Variation Inde…

CMS-1851-P
Action recommendedHospice

California live-discharge audits: what a Qlarant letter means and who's exposed

CMS, through its program-integrity contractor Qlarant, has been auditing California hospices with elevated live-discharge rates — with hundreds of agencie…

CMS PROGRAM INTEGRITY / QLARANT

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