Department of Health and Human Setices 

OFFICE OF 7--— . INsPBCTOR GENERAL 1 

71I- -. .. -— 

I I HE PHYSICIAN’S ROLE IN HOMF I

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..- HEALTH CARE 

$ - GIBBS BROWN 

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2 Inspector General 

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OFFICE OF INSPECI’OR GENERAL 

The mission of the Office of Inspector General (OIG), as mandated by Public Law 95-452, as 

amended, is to protect the integrity of the Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) 

programs as well as the health and welfare of beneficiaries served by those programs. This 

statutory mission is carried out through a nationwide network of audits, investigations, and 

inspections conducted by three OIG operating components: the Office of Audit Services, the 

Office of Investigations, and the Office of Evaluation and Inspections. The OIG also informs 

the Secretary of HHS of program and management problems and recommends courses to 

correct them. 

OFFICE OF AUDIT SERVICES 

The OIGS Office of Audit Services (OAS) provides all auditing services for HHS, either by 

conducting audits with its own audit resources or by overseeing audit work done by others. 

Audits examine the performance of HHS programs and/or its grantees and contractors in 

carrying out their respective responsibilities and are intended to provide independent 

assessments of HHS programs and operations in order to reduce waste, abuse, and 

mismanagement and to promote economy and efficiency throughout the Department. 

OFFICE OF INVESTIGATIONS 

The OIGS Office of Investigations (01) conducts criminal, civil, and administrative 

investigations of allegations of wrongdoing in HHS programs or to HHS beneficiaries and of 

unjust enrichment by providers. The investigative efforts of 01 lead to criminal convictions, 

administrative sanctions, or civil money penalties. The 01 also oversees State Medicaid fraud 

control units which investigate and prosecute fraud and patient abuse in the Medicaid program. 

OFFICE OF EVALUATION AND INSPECTIONS 

The OIG’SOffice of Evaluation and Inspections (OEI) conducts short-term management and 

program evaluations (called inspections) that focus on issues of concern to the Department, 

the Congress, and the public. The findings and recommendations contained in these inspection 

reports generate rapid, accurate, and up-to-date information on the efficiency, vulnerability, 

and effectiveness of departmental programs. 

This report was prepared in the New York Regional Office under the direction of the then 

Regional Inspector General Thomas F. Tully and Alan S. Meyer, Ph.D. the present Acting 

Regional Inspector General, Office of Evaluations and Inspections. Participating in this 

project were the following personnel: 

New York Region Headquarters 

Renee Dunn, P.T. (Project Leader) Jennifer Antico 

Lucille M. Cop, R.N. Barbara R. Tedesco 

Nancy Harrison Brian P. Ritchie 

Linda M. Moscoe 

To obtain a copy of this report, contact the New York Regional Office at (212) 264-1998 
Department of Health and Human Services 

OFFICE OF 

INSPECTOR GENERAL 

THE PHYSICIAN’S ROLE IN HOME 

HEALTH CARE 
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY


PURPOSE 

To describe the current role of the physician in Medicare home health care. 

BACKGROUND 

Medicare defines home health care as certain services provided under a physician’s


plan ofcarein theresidence ofa homebound patient. Care can consist of services


such as skilled nursing services, home health aide services, physical and occupational


therapy, and medical services. Typically, the care is provided by home health


agencies, home care aide organizations or hospices.


Little data exist about the current nature of physician involvement in home health


care. Services a physician may provide include: managing medical problems,


preparing and reassessing the treatment plan, and documenting medical records.


Concerns have been raised based on audits of certain home health agencies and


anecdotal information that physicians are not appropriately involved in planning and


coordinating home health services.


Medicare covers home visits by a physician the same as any other physician visit.


Until recently, it did not separately cover the services of physicians for managing the


home health care of their patients. In the December 8, 1994 Federal Register, HCFA


issued anew regulation providing separate payment for physician care plan oversight


services.


The HCFA administrator has asked the Inspector General to assist HCFA in its effort


to examine the physician role in home health care. In conducting this inspection we


sent a questionnaire to a random sample of 1000 agencies stratified by census regions.


The agencies were asked about their relationship with their patients’ physicians and


the physician role in home health care. We received 700 completed surveys.


Subsamples of 96 agencies and 85 physicians were interviewed by telephone to obtain


more in-depth answers about the present physician role, Also, we reviewed 1992


beneficiary histories for 191 beneficiaries to determine whether the physician who


signed the plan of care billed for visits to the beneficiary and, if so, how often. All of


our data collection occurred prior to the regulation providing separate payment for


physician plan care oversight services.


FINDINGS 

Physicians Are Most Involved in Refem”ng Patienfi, Approving Plans of Care, and 

Monitotig the fiogress of Complex Patients 

. Physicians are usually involved in initiating referrals to home health agencies. 

i 
.	 Most of thesample physicians hadarelationship with thepatient for whom 

they signed a plan of care. 

. Physicians review and sign the plans of care. 

. Physicians are most involved when caring for complex patients. 

Physicians are Less Involved in Coordinating Sem”ces, Viiiting Patients At Home and 

Participating in Interdkciplinary Conferences 

� Physicians feel they coordinate their patients’ home care; agencies disagree. 

.	 Physicians do not usually take part in interdisciplinary conferences or make 

home visits. 

Both Agencies and Physicians Identifi some Obstaclm and Issues Related to the 

Physician Role 

�	 Communication. Most agencies and physicians believe they communicate well 

with each other. However, physicians feel the agencies could improve 

communication by calling at scheduled times and having one nurse responsible 

for contacting the physician. Agencies say having a medical director would 

improve communication. 

�	 Plans of Care. Physicians and agencies generally agree that physicians should 

continue to sign plans of care; agencies feel it is not always necessary for 

recertification or for chronic patients. Three-quarters of the physicians consider 

their arrangement for completing and signing the plans of care satisfactory. 

�	 Burdensome Paperwork. Sixty-five percent of agencies and 51 percent of 

physician respondents find the process of reviewing and signing plans of care 

burdensome. Physicians indicate that there is too much paperwork and find it 

difficult to find the information on the plan of care that they consider 

important. 

�	 Physician Awareness and Education. Some agencies feel that physicians’ 

awareness and education in home health care is inadequate, that some 

physicians lack an understanding of the home health benefit. 

RECOMMENDATIONS 

We support the work of HCFA’S home health work group in reviewing and 

restructuring the home health benefit. As home health care continues to expand, 

there will be ongoing discussions about the physician role. The HCFA will be pressed 

ii 
to continue its leadership role to undertake appropriate activity and better define and 

tell what the physician role should be. Therefore, we recommend: 

�	 The HCFA should continue its efforts to change the plan of care to ensure it 

conveys critical information to caregivers and relieves unnecessary burden from 

physicians. 

.	 The HCFA should strengthen its efforts to educate both agencies and 

physicians about its policies regarding the physician’s role in home health care. 

Issues for Further Study 

Based on our findings and on comments received on our draft report, there are a 

number of issues about the role of physicians which require further study. 

�	 Should other professionals such as the patient care coordinator, home health 

nurse, physical therapist, occupational therapist, speech therapist or social 

worker take on more responsibility for certain aspects of home health care? If 

so, how does this impact the physician’s role? 

�	 Should the complexity of the case determine physician involvement? If so, 

should the physician be more involved in complex cases and less involved in 

chronic cases? 

�	 Should home health reimbursement be different for different levels of care? If 

so, should chronic care cases be reimbursed a lower level than those more 

complex cases? 

�	 Does payment to physicians for care plan oversight lead to greater physician 

involvement ? 

COMMENTS


Comments on the draft report were received from HCFA, ASPE and the Acting 

Assistant Secretary for Management and Budget (ASMB.) Suggestions for additional 

information and clarifications of the text have for the most part been incorporated 

into the final report. The actual comments received are included in Appendix A. 

The HCFA defers action on our recommendations at this time. Nevertheless, we 

appreciate their recognition of the importance of our recommendations and support 

their efforts towards developing a Core Standard Assessment Instrument which would 

significantly impact on the requirements for the plans of care. We look forward to 

their decisions on our recommendations after issuance of the final report. 

The HCFA, ASPE, and ASMB all commented on physician payment for care plan 

oversight. We recognize that HCFA is now reimbursing physicians for care plan 

... 111 
oversight. We plan a follow-up study to see whether this has lead to greater physician 

involvement and prudent utilization of the home health benefit as HCFAS comments 

suggest. 

The ASPE suggests that further study is needed to examine the actual behavior of 

physicians and other providers. We support further study of physicians in home health 

care that could contribute useful information. We added a new section to our report 

on issues for further study 

Both HCFA and ASPE expressed concerns about specific evaluative issues that fall 

outside the scope of this study. This report provides descriptive rather than evaluative 

information. We modified the report to make this clearer. 

The ASPE raised concerns about bias in self-reported information. This is always a 

problem in these kinds of studies. We had addressed it in our original design by 

obtaining information from many diverse sources. We obtained information from both 

home health agencies and physicians. We also obtained patient payment records to 

establish whether a relationship existed between patients and the physicians who 

signed the plans of care. We provide a methodology section for the reader to draw 

his/her own conclusions. 

The ASPE requested that we include study instruments in our reports. We usually do 

not do this, but they are available upon request. 

iv 
TABLE OF CONTENTS 

PAGE 

EXECuT~ S~Y 

moWcTmN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. I


F~INGS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ...6


� Physicians&e Most Involved in Initiating Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .


. . . . . . .m. 6


. Physicians Are Less Involved in Coordinating Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .


. . . . 8


� Agencies and Physicians Identify Some Obstacles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .


. . . . . . . 9


~COMMENDATIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. II


APPENDIX 

A Comments . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . ..$ .OO. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. OOOO. A-1


v 
INTRODUCTION 

PURPOSE 

To describe the current role of the physician in Medicare home health care. 

BACKGROUND 

Home health care allows people with limited independence to remain in their homes. 

The American Medical Association (AMA) defines it as the provision of equipment 

and services to the patient in the home for the purpose of restoring and maintaining 

his or her maximal level of comfort, function and health. Medicare defines it as 

certain services provided under a physician’s plan of care in the residence of a 

homebound patient. Patients may require home care because of acute illness, longterm health conditions, permanent disability or terminal illness. 

Home care is one of the nation’s fastest growing segments of health care. Patients are 

living longer, are being discharged from the hospital earlier and receiving more 

complex care in the home. This care can consist of a variety of services such as skilled 

nursing care, home health aide services, speech-language therapy, physical and 

occupational therapy, medical services, medical supplies and durable medical 

equipment. 

Typically, home health care is provided by home health agencies, home care aide 

organizations or hospices. The National Association for Home Care (NAHC) 

identified a total of 13,951 home care agencies in the United States as of February 

1993. Of this total, more than half are certified Medicare home health agencies or 

hospices. Approximately 6 million individuals received home care services in 1993. 

Skilled nursing and aide services were the most frequently offered services by all types 

of providers, followed by physical therapy and speech therapy. 

Physiciim-3role 

Little data exist about the current nature of physician involvement in home health 

care. Literature indicates that they are seen as the “gatekeepers” of service, 

responsible for planning and supervising most home health care. Concerns have been 

raised based on audits of certain home health agencies and anecdotal information that 

physicians are not appropriately involved in planning and coordinating home health 

services. Some say physicians simply sign the plan of care without reviewing it or 

without knowing the patient. 

Services a physician may provide include: making the medical diagnosis and managing 

medical problems; preparing a treatment plan with short and long term goals; ordering 

ancillary personal care; prescribing equipment and supplies; reassessing the treatment 

plan; documenting medical records, and providing for 24-hour physician coverage. 
The AMA formed a Home Care Advisory Panel in 1987 to consider educational 

efforts to assist physicians in better understanding their role in the delivery of medical 

care in the home. To increase such physician participation, the panel developed 

guidelines which outline how the physician should relate to the home care patient. 

They describe the role of the physician as including medical management, such as 

evaluation and assessments, and communication and coordination of the services with 

the interdisciplinary team. 

Medicare home health agency regulations require physicians to sign a plan of care 

specifying all services the patient is to receive. This certification must be updated, 

according to the regulations, every 60 days, but the doctor is not required to see the 

patient. To be certified as a Medicare provider, each agency must have a medical 

advisory board that meets periodically, and each board must have a medical director. 

The role of a physician is also discussed in the Medicare Hospice regulations which 

require hospices to have a physician medical director. As one of his/her 

responsibilities this physician must be a member of the interdisciplinary team who 

discusses the plan of care with all involved disciplines, either in person or by 

teleconference. 

Medicare Coverage 

Title XVIII of the Social Security Act, Section 1861, authorizes Medicare payments for


home health services under certain conditions. The care must be provided by certified


home health agencies, which may be either freestanding or facility-based. They can be


voluntary not-for-profit, proprietary or governmental in nature.


For Medicare to reimburse the agencies, beneficiaries must be considered homebound,


get services under a plan of care established and periodically reviewed by a physician,


and receive skilled care. For purposes of qualifying for coverage, skilled care includes:


intermittent skilled nursing services, physical therapy or speech therapy services. Only


if the patient requires one of these qualifying services may the patient then get the


services of an occupational therapist, a medical social worker or a home health aide.


If the patient no longer needs intermittent skilled nursing care, physical therapy or


speech therapy, but continues to need occupational therapy, the beneficiary remains


eligible for Medicare coverage of home health services for the duration of the need


for occupational therapy. However, a beneficiary whose sole need is for custodial care


does not qualify.


Beneficiaries pay no coinsurance or deductibles for home health care other than for


durable medical equipment. Their claims are submitted to one of nine fiscal


intermediaries known as Regional Home Health Intermediaries.


Medicare covers home visits by a physician the same as any other physician visit.


Until recently, it did not separately cover the services of physicians for managing the


home health care of their patients, such as interfacing with the home health agency by


2 
telephone, reviewing medical records or signing plans of care. These services were 

considered part of the physician’s work involved in other services, such as visits or 

procedures. In the December 8, 1994 Federal Register, HCFA issued a new 

regulation providing separate payment for physician care plan oversight services. 

HCFA Activities 

The HCFA Administrator has formed an internal task force to evaluate the home 

health benefit. With more home and community-based care, he sees the need to 

improve and redesign the home health benefit to assure that Medicare beneficiaries 

receive high quality and affordable home health care. 

This task force is expected to recommend both short-term and long-term 

improvements in all aspects of the benefit. It has discussed restructuring the benefit 

to better accommodate the differing needs of the patients with complex, post-acute 

care or long-term custodial needs, and has also discussed the role of the physician in 

home care. 

Other HCFA activities include ongoing research efforts to improve the measurement 

of quality in home health care, focusing on outcomes; revisions to the current plan of 

care form; planned improvements to the survey and certification process; and studies 

related to prospective payment in home health care. 

Q@ce of Impector General (OIG) Home Health EfforLs 

The HCFA administrator has asked the Inspector General to join in HCFA’S efforts 

to examine home health care. The OIG has developed a strategic plan in response to 

issues raised by the HCFA administrator. It focuses on management, costs and 

payments, compliance with statutes, regulations and policies, utilization, and outcomes 

of home health services. 

The OIG has conducted an audit of home health agency visits in Florida to determine 

whether payments to these agencies met Medicare reimbursement requirements. The 

preliminary results show that too often the physician’s involvement is limited to signing 

the plan of care prepared by the agencies without proper evaluation by the physician 

of the patient’s medical needs. This resulted in the agencies’ making their own 

determinations about the types and frequency of services the patients should receive 

without the guidance of the physician. 

Other Surveys 

Aetna in Florida surveyed beneficiaries who had received home health care, primarily 

in the Southeast, and the physicians who signed their plan of care. Their study 

reported aggressive marketing by some agencies to maximize visits, overutilization and 

a concern about the quality of care rendered. The physicians also indicated that many 

beneficiaries did not need skilled care. Aetna is piloting another survey which will 
send an explanation of benefits to the certifying physicians, along with a questionnaire


asking if the services the agency billed for were appropriate for that patient.


In 1990, the AMA surveyed and interviewed 1,161 family practice and internal


medicine physicians about their involvement in home care. It found that physicians


who refer approximately three patients a month to a home health agency spend


substantial amounts of time coordinating the care provided by the agency. Rural


physicians reported more involvement than their non-rural counterparts, Seventy-five


percent of the physicians interviewed regarded a home visit as important, but only half


reported making one or more home visits a year. The physicians considered the


current payment level for such visits inadequate; 45 percent indicated that they would


do more of them if reimbursements were higher. Eighty percent felt that home care


agencies should be used more frequently than they currently are.


METHODOLOGY 

We identified the universe of 4,461 home health agencies (agencies) from the certified 

agencies listed in the Online Survey Certification and Reporting System (OSCAR) that 

also, according to 1992 National Claims History, filed Medicare claims during 1992 for 

a 1 percent sample of Medicare beneficiaries. From these, we selected a stratified 

random sample of 1000 agencies. The agencies were stratified by census regions 

(Northeast, Midwest, South and West) with 250 in each region. A questionnaire was 

sent to the sample agencies asking about the agency’s relationship with its patients’ 

physicians, its satisfaction with the physician role in home health care, and how the 

physician role may be strengthened. The questions divided patient care into three 

categories defined as follows: complex - requiring intensive care, using new 

technologies (such as infusion therapy or ventilators); acule - requiring skilled care 

(such as post hospital care or the exacerbation of a chronic condition); and chronic -

requiring long term care (less intensive than acute care.) Basic descriptive information 

on home health agencies was accessed from the OSCAR file as well as from the 

agencies. 

We received 700 completed surveys within approximately one month which we 

analyzed. There was no response bias with regard to region or ownership, The 

responses from the agencies were tabulated and cross-tabulated by agency size, region, 

rural/urban location, ownership, facility type and complexity of the patients they serve. 

Few statistically significant differences were found. Where differences were found, 

they are identified in the findings. 

A subsample of 100 agencies (25 within each region) was selected for interviews by 

telephone to obtain more in-depth answers about the present physician role in home 

health care and how it can be strengthened. All together, 96 representatives of these 

agencies were interviewed. Unless otherwise noted, when agency information is 

reported, it is a result of analysis of the 700 mail surveys. The information from 

analysis of the agency subsample is noted as such. 

4

From claims filed by the 1000 sample agencies, we identified unique beneficiary 

physician combinations. These physicians are the ones who signed the plans of care. 

We picked a random sample of 200 physicians from these combinations to interview 

by telephone. We asked them about their current role in home health care, their 

current interaction with home care agencies and their views on how their role could be 

strengthened. We interviewed 85 physicians. We were unable to obtain the names of 

10 physicians from carrier or agency data and were unable to locate 18. This left us 

with a universe of 172 physicians. Of the remaining non-responding physicians, 25 

refused to be interviewed, saying they do not do interviews or were too busy and 62 

did not return our calls, even after repeated contact. This is a response rate of 49 

percent. While there are no significant differences between the physician respondents 

and non-respondents relative to region or specialty, we recognize that the low 

physician response rate is a limitation. 

From the random sample of the 200 physicians, we identified the 200 beneficiaries for 

whom they signed plans of care. Due to the way the sample was selected, we cannot 

determine whether the plans were initial or recertification. We obtained 1992 

beneficiary histories for these beneficiaries. We reviewed them to determine whether 

the physician who signed the plan of care billed for visits to the beneficiary and, if so, 

how often. Of the beneficiary histories, nine contained unusable data; thus we 

reviewed histories for 191. Some of these 191 histories appeared to have missing data. 

In those cases we contacted the appropriate carriers for additional information. 

The confidence interval for the responses to the physician survey using the lowest 

possible respondent number (79) is plus or minus 11 percentage points at the 95 

percent confidence level. The confidence intervals for the agency survey at the 95 

percent confidence level are much smaller, always within 5 percentage points. 

It should be noted that all of our data collection occurred prior to the regulation 

providing separate payment for physician care plan oversight services. We conducted 

our review in accordance with the Standards for Inspections issued by the Presidents’ 

Council on Integrity and Efficiency. 

.J 
FINDINGS


PHYSICIANS ARE MOST INVOLVED IN REFERRING PATIENTS, 

APPROVING PLANS OF CARE, AND MONITORING THE PROGRESS OF 

COMPLEX PATIENTS 

Re$ewals to home health agencti are usually initiated by physicians either alone or in 

collaboration with someone etie 

Agencies and physicians agree that physicians are involved in referrals. Virtually all 

agencies (99 percent) report that physicians participate in patient referrals, often in 

collaboration with hospital discharge planners. 

Almost all physicians say it is usually their idea, or a combination of their idea and 

someone else’s, to refer patients for home health care. Half of them say the hospital 

discharge planner or the patient’s family assists in the decision. 

The number of patients physicians refer varies. Thirty-eight percent of physicians we 

interviewed refer from one to five; 32 percent refer six to ten, and 31 percent refer 11 

to 60 patients per month. Those physicians that refer the most patients are more 

likely to be specialists in internal medicine and orthopedic surgery. 

Most of the sample physicians have a reikztionshipwith their home health pahena 

A review of 1992 beneficiary histories reveals that at least 91 percent of the physicians 

who signed the plan of care (either initial or recertification) had a relationship with 

the patient. Some of the remaining patients may have also had such visits, but this 

information was not available in the histories. For example, the patient may not have 

had Medicare Part B or may have been in a Medicare HMO. 

Of the 91 percent with a relationship, more than three-quarters had four or more 

visits in 1992. See table below. 

Visit Frequency Percent of Physicians 

10 or more visits 29 percent 

7-9 visits 21 percent 

4-6 visits 29 percent 

1-3 visits 21 percent 

6

Physicians review and sign the plans of care 

Eighteen percent ofphysicians report preparing the plans of care themselves. Ninetythree percent of the physicians who do not prepare them saythey review the plans of 

care before signing them. Usually the agency or discharge planner fills them out 

according to the physician’s orders or instructions and sends them to the physician for 

signature. Almost half of the physicians who review plans of care report sometimes 

making changes before signing them. Many of those who do not make changes 

attribute it to the fact the plans of care have been filled out exactly as ordered. 

Virtually all of the agencies (99 percent) indicate it is the patient’s personal physician 

who signs the plan of care. Seventy-seven percent of the agencies believe only a 

physician who has personally seen the patient should sign it. 

Seventy-eight percent (66) of the physicians state they usually determine the types of 

visit the patient gets. Of the remaining 19 physicians who do not make that 

determination, 17 say they let the agency nurse or other professional make it. A lesser 

number of physicians, 56 percent, say they determine the number of visits the patient 

gets. For those who do not, 89 percent allow the agency nurse or other professional 

to make that determination. 

Eighty-five percent (72) of the physicians believe a physician should see the patient 

before signing the initial plan of care. Only 28 percent (24), however, believe the 

physician needs to see the patient before recerti~ing the plan of care. Physicians 

report they are more likely to see a patient for recertification if the patient’s condition 

changes, rather than just for routine recertification. 

Some physicians, especially orthopedists and surgeons, say that their patients rarely 

have home health care long enough to require recertification and are usually 

discharged within 60 days. Both physicians and agencies say some of these patients 

have unrelated medical problems requiring home care. Some physicians and agencies 

are concerned because although the specialist has referred the patient to home care, 

there are other problems that should be managed by a different physician, usually the 

patient’s primary physician. One agency administrator says, “Specialists only want to 

address one aspect of medical management and often leave the patient without a 

central physician addressing overall medical issues.” 

Physicians are most involved when caringfor complex patients 

Both agencies and physicians have greater involvement with the complex patient. 

Seventy-nine percent of physicians say their complex patients require more physician 

involvement than their chronic patients. The agencies agree: 81 percent say they are 

in contact with the patient’s physician 5 or more times a month for complex patients. 

Communication is more frequent in these cases because it is imperative the physician 

knows the status of the case in order to prevent problems. Most frequently, the 

7

agency nurse communicates with the physician, but other professionals may 

communicate once or twice a month. 

PHYSICIANS ARE LESS INVOLVED IN COORDINATING SERVICES, 

VISITING PATIENTS AT HOME AND PARTICIPATING IN 

INTERDISCIPLINARY CONFERENCES 

Physicians feel they coordinate their patienti’ home care; agencies disagree 

Eighty-three percent of physicians believe that they serve the coordinating role. 

Several feel that they provide continuity of care, just like in the hospital. 

In contrast, a majority of agencies (61 percent) do not attribute the role of 

coordination to the physician. The Visiting Nurse Associations are more likely than 

others to say the physician does not coordinate care. More than half of all agencies 

say the nurse is usually responsible for coordinating the patient’s care. An 

administrator, when discussing the physician’s relationship with other members of the 

team, says, “I would like to see more of a partnership, more directly related to patient 

care.” 

Interviews with the agencies and the physicians suggest these differing opinions are 

due to the two groups’ different perspectives. The agencies view the coordinating role 

as actively managing the interdisciplinary team, including the physician. The 

physicians see the coordinating role as overseeing the case, being involved in the 

medical management of their patient, and determining the number and type of visits. 

Seventy-two percent of the agencies are satisfied with physician involvement in the 

medical management of the patient. An agency administrator says, “the physician is 

the key member in the delivery of care.” Agencies agree that the physician determines 

the number of visits for medical management, but say other professionals make that 

determination for each discipline. One agency administrator says, “the home care 

nurse should be responsible for coordination of all home care services.” Another 

says, “I hope you are not reducing the role of the physician because they are 

responsible for medical management always.” 

Physicians do not u.wQllytake part in interdisciplimnyconferences or make home vikifi 

Forty-three percent of agencies report that some of their patients’ personal physicians 

participate in agency patient conferences. Although these conferences are not 

frequent, they are more likely to occur when patients experience problems. 

Seventy-nine percent of physicians say they have not participated in such conferences. 

Both agencies and physicians agree that physicians participating in patient conferences, 

either in person or by telephone, would be ideal, but many say that physicians’ busy 

schedules makes it impossible and unrealistic. 

8

Fourteen percent ofphysicians report making home visits; most of them say these 

visits are infrequent and only when absolutely necessary. They add that since 

Medicare pays so little for a home visit it is not affordable for them to see patients in 

their home. They visit only when the patient cannot get to the office. Some 

physicians feel that physicians should visit patients at home more frequently. Some 

subsample agencies feel that physicians should make home visits to their patients 

occasionally. Perhaps, at times, with the home health nurse. 

BOTH AGENCIES AND PHYSICIANS IDENTIFY SOME OBSTACLES AND 

ISSUES RELATED TO THE PHYSICIAN ROLE 

Communication 

While all agree that good communication is extremely important for quality patient 

care, some obstacles are identified. Agencies say they continually work to improve 

communication with physicians. Ideas they have tried include newsletters, lunch or 

breakfast meetings to get the physician involved, simplifying requirements, setting a 

special time for phone calls, hand carrying orders to the physician, providing cellular 

phones to the visiting nurses, and having a physician from the medical advisory 

committee communicate with the patient’s personal physician, especially in problem 

cases. 

Ninety-two percent of physicians are satisfied with their communication with agencies 

and seventy-three percent of agencies are satisfied with physician communication with 

them. Agency satisfaction is somewhat lower with physician communication with other 

home health professionals, such as the primary care nurse or therapists, with only 

sixty-three percent of agencies satisfied. 

However, three-quarters of the agency subsample mention obstacles which get in the 

way of good communication between the agency and the patient’s physician. They 

include physicians being too busy to do all the paperwork and answer all the agency’s 

phone calls; physicians not getting paid for their time; the physician’s office staff 

making it difficult to reach him/her; the visiting nurse and the physician having 

difficulty finding convenient times to get together on the phone. Agencies consider it 

critical that nurses have access to physicians for medical direction and support. 

Physicians feel the agencies could improve communication by calling at scheduled 

times and leaving clearer messages, or having one nurse responsible for contacting the 

physician so that many different people do not call about the same thing. Paying the 

physician for the time he/she spends on the phone and doing paper work and reducing 

the amount of such paperwork are also suggestions made by physicians. 

Medical Directom 

Agencies say having a medical director would improve communications. Eighty-six 

percent of the agencies in the subsample think home health agencies should have a 

9 
medical director. They feel this physician would be a good liaison with the patient’s 

personal physician. Physician to physician communication is valuable, especially if 

there are problems and the medical director would be helpful in educating other 

physicians. Sixty-eight percent of agencies report currently having a medical director, 

although in some cases he/she is actually the medical director of the advisory board or 

the hospice program and not functioning as a full time medical director for the home 

health agency. Thirty-five percent of physicians feel that agencies should employ 

physicians, usually in a medical director role. 

Plans of Care 

Physicians and agencies generally agree that physicians should continue to sign initial 

plans of care; however, most subsample agencies feel that qualified staff other than 

the physician can sign the plan of care for recertification or for chronic patients 

Almost all (97 percent) agencies indicate that physicians should sign the plan of care 

for complex patients; ninety-two percent say physicians should sign for acute patients; 

and sixty-four percent for chronic patients. Sixty-three percent of physicians feel that 

they should sign all plans of care, regardless of the complexity of the patient’s 

condition. 

Three-quarters of the physicians consider their arrangements with the agencies for 

completing and signing the plans of care satisfactory, although almost half of them find 

it burdensome. Physicians frequently complained about the amount of paperwork 

required for home care. Three-quarters of the physicians believe that when they sign 

the plan of care they are liable for the home health services their patients receive. 

Some volunteer that there are agencies that try to add too many services, especially 

home health aide services. They say they stop referring patients to these agencies. 

Regardless of the condition of the patient, fifty-three percent of the subsample 

agencies feel that the physician should always sign the initial plan of care; but a 

majority (57 percent), think the physician does not need to sign the recertification. 

These agencies and some physicians say that a qualified person other than the 

physician should be allowed to sign the plan of care, such as the prima~ care nurse or 

nurse practitioner or the treating therapist. They consider it especially appropriate for 

services to chronic, stable patients, such as those only needing a catheter change once 

a month, or for the therapist, dietitian or social worker services they have evaluated. 

Most agencies and some physicians suggest support services, such as home health aide 

or personal care services, may be signed for by a nurse. One agency administrator 

voices the opinion of others when she says, “Under Medicare we are tied to the 

medical model which is expensive. We should look to use other professionals to fill 

some needs.” 

10

Burdensome Paperwork 

Sixty-five percent of agencies and51 percent ofphysician respondents find the process 

of reviewing and signing plans of care burdensome, The large agencies and the 

Visiting Nurse Associations are most likely to feel burdened. Agencies feel paperwork 

is too complex and burdensome for them. An administrator agrees and says that 

having too many orders for doctors to sign strains the agency - physician relationship. 

One suggestion is to accept telephone orders for changes in the frequency of visits so 

that the agency does not have to generate a piece of paper for such minor changes. 

Physicians indicate that there is too much paperwork and find it difficult to find the 

information on the plan of care that they consider important. They suggest paring 

down the amount of required information and highlighting the medical care. An 

agency respondent says, “The plan of care as it is today is a compilation of physician, 

nursing, therapy and social service practices, each of which is specific unto itself, but 

the physician is expected to sign for all of it.” Several respondents suggested the plan 

be simplified. 

Physician Awareness and Education 

Some agencies feel that the physicians’ awareness and education in home health care 

is inadequate. They say medical schools usually do not include home health care in 

their curriculum. Agencies also mention that some physicians lack understanding of 

the Medicare home health benefit. 

Overall Role of Physicians 

Forty-six percent of agencies feel the physician role should be stronger than it 

presently is; thirteen percent feel it should be weaker; and forty-one percent feel it 

should stay the same. Eighty-eight percent of the agencies believe if the physicians 

were paid for their home care case management role, they would get more involved; 

seventy-one percent of the physicians agree. As noted, this data were collected 

before physicians were paid for care plan oversight. 

RECOMMENDATIONS 

We support the work of HCFA’S home health work group in reviewing and 

restructuring the home health benefit. As home health care continues to expand, 

there will be ongoing discussions about the physician role. The HCFA will be pressed 

to continue its leadership role to undertake appropriate activity and better define and 

tell what the physician role should be. 
Therefore, we recommend: 

�	 The HCFA should continue its efforts to change the plan of care to ensure it 

conveys critical information to caregivers and relieves unnecessary burden from 

physicians, 

�	 The HCFA should strengthen its efforts to educate both agencies and 

physicians about its policies regarding the physician’s role in home health care. 

Issues for Further Su.dy 

Based on our findings and on comments received on our draft report, there are a 

number of issues about the role of physicians which require further study. 

Should other professionals such as the patient care coordinator, home health 

nurse, physical therapist, occupational therapist, speech therapist or social 

worker take on more responsibility for certain aspects of home health care? If 

so, how does this impact the physician’s role? 

Should the complexity of the case determine physician involvement? If so, 

should the physician be more involved in complex cases and less involved in 

chronic cases? 

Should home health reimbursement be different for different levels of care? If 

so, should chronic care cases be reimbursed a lower level than those more 

complex cases? 

Does payment to physicians for care plan oversight lead to greater physician 

involvement ? 

COMMENTS


Comments on the draft report were received from HCFA, ASPE and the Acting 

Assistant Secretary for Management and Budget (ASMB.) Suggestions for additional 

information and clarifications of the text have for the most part been incorporated 

into the final report. The actual comments received are included in Appendix A. 

The HCFA defers action on our recommendations at this time. Nevertheless, we 

appreciate their recognition of the importance of our recommendations and support 

their efforts towards developing a Core Standard Assessment Instrument which would 

significantly impact on the requirements for the plans of care. We look forward to 

their decisions on our recommendations after issuance of the final report. 

The HCFA, ASPE, and ASMB all commented on physician payment for care plan 

oversight. We recognize that HCFA is now reimbursing physicians for care plan 

plan a follow-up study to see whether this has lead to greater physician 

12 

oversight. We 
involvement and prudent utilization of the home health benefit as HCFA’S comments 

suggest. 

The ASPE suggests that further study is needed to examine the actual behavior of 

physicians and other providers. We support further study of physicians in home health 

care that could contribute useful information. We added a new section to report on 

issues for further study. 

Both HCFA and ASPE expressed concerns about specific evaluative issues that fall 

outside the scope of this study. This report provides descriptive rather than evaluative 

information. We modified the report to make this clearer. 

The ASPE raised concerns about bias in self-reported information. This is always a 

problem in these kinds of studies. We had addressed it in our original design by 

obtaining information from many diverse sources of data. We obtained information 

from both home health agencies and physicians. We also obtained patient payment 

records to establish whether a relationship existed between patients and the physicians 

who signed the plans of care. We provide a methodology section for the reader to 

draw his/her own conclusions. 

The ASPE requested that we include study instruments in our reports. We usually do 

not do this, but they are available upon request. 

— 
APPENDIX A 

COMMENTS 

A-1 
�,*,mw’,, 

%, .+ 

� Health Care g DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH& HUMAN SERVICES 5 / / Financing Administration

Memorandum 

1 

DATE twi?271995 M 

FROM	 Bruce C. Wade 

Administrator w -

SUBJECT	 Office of Inspector General Draft Reports: “The Physician’s Role in Home 

Health Care,” (OEI-02-94-O0170) and “Home Health Agencies: Alternative 

Coverage and Payment Policies,” (OEI-12-94-00180) 

TO	 June Gibbs Brown 

Inspector General 

We reviewed the subject draft reports which examine home health care provided under 

the Medicare program. Our comments are attached for your consideration. 

Thank you for the opportunity to review and comment on these reports. Please advise 

us if you would like to discuss our position on the recommendations. 

Attachment 

—, 

.._—. -
Comments of the Health Care Financin~ Administration (HCFAj 

on Office of Inspector General (OIGl Draft Reports: 

“The Phvsician’s Role in Home Health Care,” (OEI-02-94-00170~ 

and “Home Health Agencies: Alternative Coverage and Pavmen~ 

policies,” (OEI-12-94-00180\ 

OIG Recommendations on “The Phvsician’s Role in Home Health Care” 

1.	 The HCFA should continue its efforts to change the plan of care to ensure it 

conveys critical information to caregivers and relieves unnecessary burden from 

physicians. 

2.	 The IICFA should further communicate its expectations about physician 

involvement and take steps to assure that it is more clearly understood by home 

health agencies and physicians. 

HCFA Response


HCFA defers action on the above recommendations at this time. We are in the process


of examining issues related to plans of care and the physician’s role and recognize the


importance of both recommendations. However, we believe it would be premature to


make immediate changes.


Clearly one of the most important problems facing the Medicare home health benefit is


utilization. OIG is commended for its attempts to better understand the appropriate


role of the physician in monitoring utilization and appropriateness and duration of care.


HCFA has addressed the issue of physician involvement through regulations. In the


December 8, 1994 Federal Register, HCFA issued a new regulation providing separate


payment for physiciancare plan oversightservices. Reimbursing physicians for care


‘oversightservices should lead to greater physician involvement and prudent utilization of


the home health benefit.


HCFA has also established a Medicare Home Healfh C .re Work Group which is


currently drafting revised Home Health Agency Conditions of Participation. HCFA is


also developing a Core Standard Assessment Instrument. Requirements for the


assessment instrument could significantly impact the information requirements on the


plan of care. The work group expects to develop recommendations after it completes its


research. Until then our operational plans are to continue using HCFA Forms 485 and


486 (Medicare Collection of Medical Information on Home Health Services).


We note that the report recommendations do not address the two main questions listed


on page 3: “Are physicians effectively fulfilling their gatekeeper role in initiating and


monitoring th’eplan of care?” “Do physicians rubber stamp the plan of care?” While the


report recognizes that there are discrepancies in how physicians and agencies view the

Page 2 

physician’s role in coordinating care, it does not address whether physicians are an 

effective gatekeeper. Perhaps the study might more effectively address “Does greater 

physician involvement result in a more cost-effective utilization of the home health 

benefit?” 

Additionally, we would be interested in any specific suggestions OIG may be able to 

offer on the following: 

o	 After interviewing both agencies and physicians, does OIG have any 

specific suggestions of ways the plan of care can be changed’? 

o	 Does OIG have specific suggestions on how the role of physicians should 

be better communicated? 

o	 Does OIG feel that after talking to agencies and physicians, there is a 

consensus on what the physician role ought to be? 

Comments on “Home Health Agencies: Alternative Coverape and Pavment Policies” 

The report appears to assume that other agencies are more effective than Medicare in 

controlling costs. However, there are no data in the report comparing the average 

number of visits or expenditures per beneficiary. While the report identifies other plans’ 

limits on utilization, there may be other factors, such as age, health status, and income, 

that could explain differences in utilization, if they exist. 

We are in the process of developing our approach to revitalizing the coverage and 

payment policies for home health agencies. The roints of Further Analysis in this report 

raise interesting alternatives that will be considered by HCFA as it formulates its plan to 

‘revitalize the home health benefits. 
�

--

� 

.

>. .’,, . :

a+4L DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES 

“ 

Officeof the Secre[arY 2 

2 

-0 

** 

+,,,, ,d Washington, D.C. 20201 

MAY i. .W5


TO:	 June Gibbs Brown 

Inspector General 

FROM:	 Assistant Secretary for 

Planning and Evaluation 

SUBJECI”: OIG Draft Reports on Home Health Care COMMENTS 

The following are our comments on the draft inspection report, “The Physician’s Role in Home 

Health Care,” OEI-02-94-00 170. There ~e no Cements on the second report, “Home Health 

Agencies: Alternative Coverage and Payment policies,” OEI-12-94-00 180. 

GENERAL COMMENTS 

. The purpose of the report needs c~~rification, The pur-poseis stated as “to describe the 

current role ... and obtain suggestions as tO ho~v this role can be strengthened”. J’?e agree 

that this report describes the current role of physicians, based on physician and pro~’ider 

perceptions. However, since the effectiveness of the physician’s role is not evalua[cd in 

this StUdy, \VC recommend C]imindting references to strengthening the physician’s role. 

. 1’IIc study’s limitations S]IOU]d be sf~te~. The repofl describes what conclusions can be 

drawn from the study but does not define what inferences are outside the study’s scope. 

For example, since the study does not include a comparison of the perceived role to 

current reglllatory requirements, intewretations related to current ]a\v are outside the SCOp~ 

of this study. Furthermore, because the measwements of physician involvement may be 

biased due to self-report, the findings should bc interpreted with caution. Finalljr, the 10\\f 

physician response rate to the telephone interview (43%) should be noted as a limitation. 

llcfcrcuccs to g~te]<ccping should bc rr-~iscd. Since the effcctivcncss of the physician’s 

rOIC as a ~a(ckccper is not c~~aluatcd in this study, rcfcrcnccs [O this as part of the study’s 

purpose should bc climinstcd (see p.3 paragraph 4). Instead, the report’s findings should 

SUiJ~CS[ further study of this issu~ b~c2us~ they indica[~ {hat other professionals (e.g. 

l]~irsi[}g,tl~crapy, sociol \vork) dctcrnlinc the ~nloun[ and [\Pc of c;lrc, (i~i~]l r:]rc chm~cs 

b> [1~~pl}ysici~n) and [hat [hc physician do~s not rolllincly .& [Ilc pa[icn[ to rcccrtify care. 
� 

Page 2- June Gibbs Brown 

Revisions to the recommendations are needed. Since the study is based on perceptions 

versus actual behavior,’a further study fiat examines the actual behavior of physicians and 

other providers should be recommended. Additionally, the report should recommend that 

HCFA consider revising its expectations about physician involvement to reflect current 

practice. For example, the report states that physicians are most involved in complex 

medical cases. Since c~ent law allows reimbursement to physicians for care plan 

oversight in all cases, this should be considered a highly relevant finding. 

. The report should include the study instruments. It is difficult to interpret these 

findings without knowing the actual questions that were asked. We recommend you 

include the questionnaires in an appendix. 

Prepared by: HP:Susan Manfredi 690-7862/DALTCP:Ruth Irwin 260-0370 

‘ 
‘, *. 

. 

. 

z 

>, 

Jg DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES z office of the Secretary ~ 

%3+ 

.8,.10 7 Washington, D.C. 20201 

MAR 6i3s 

To:	 Inspector General 

Attn: George Grob 

From:	 Elizabeth M. James 

Acting Assistant Se et 

Subject : Draft OIG Report--Ph&ci.an’s Ro e “n Home Health Care 

(OEI-12-94-00170) --Concur with c u ent 

~~-qll-~’?~ 

We recommend that the final report acknowledges that, effective 

this calendar year, Medicare now makes separate payments to 

physicians for their work in providing home health care plan 

oversight. Because the draft report finds that lack of payment 

was one obstacle to improving physician involvement i-n the 

ongoing care of home health patients, we believe it is 

appropriate that the new payment policy be discussed in the final 

report . 

We appreciate the opportunity to review the draft report.