The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) discussed recommendations for home health payment in 2025. The commissioners finalized a recommendation for a 7% payment reduction for home health services that will be finalized in January for publication in the March report to Congress. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and Congress are not obligated to act on the commission’s recommendations.

MedPAC commissioners also reviewed information on the current home health market including a 1.1% decline in the number of providers and an increase in providers owned by private equity and recent acquisitions of agencies by major Medicare Advantage (MA) plans. Several commissioners were concerned about these ownership trends and frustration in being unable to analyze the impact of MA payments on payment adequacy. The MedPAC shared they are conducting research to better understand MA’s impact on home health and other settings.