Answer to Question 1
Any two of the following: (1) Low Utilization Payment Adjustment occurs when a patient receives four or fewer visits in a 60-day episode. (2) Partial Episode Payment (PEP) occurs when a patient is transferred to another agency for care; PEPs also occur if the agency providing care discharges the patient prior to the end of the 60-day episode and then home care is resumed by the same agency before the end of the episode. (3) Outliers occur when the provision of care to a patient results in unusually high costs to the home care agency.
Answer to Question 2
The first installment is made when a Request for Anticipated Payment is submitted to Medicare, and the second installment is made when the final claim is filed.