CMS: Effects of Sequestration on Surveys; Tavenner Confirmed as Administrator

​To accommodate the reduced budget created by the amended Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act (popularly known as “sequestration”) with as little impact on public protections as possible, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is making certain adjustments to its survey and certification operations, states an April 5, 2013, letter from CMS to its state survey agency directors. Due to sequestration, the overall fiscal year (FY) 2013 survey and certification budget was reduced by 5% from the FY 2012 level, amounting to approximately $19 million. Of the total reduction, CMS expects that on a national basis, state allocations will only be reduced by 2.5% to 3.0% from the FY 2012 budget level. The remaining reduction will be taken from CMS central office functions, contractual services, and one-time budget items. The changes to the survey and certification operations primarily affect the content and frequency of the various state survey processes. In one change that may be of particular interest to risk managers, CMS is requiring surveyors to request approval before conducting all follow-up on-site revisit surveys related to issues of noncompliance.