nanaCONNECT Module Demos [Watch On-Demand]
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services recently finalized a rule that phases out fax machines and paper-based claims documentation in favor of standardized electronic transactions. The projected savings are nearly $800 million annually. But the number is not the point.
The point is what this rule represents: CMS has officially lost patience with analog healthcare.
This particular rule addresses administrative claims workflows, not direct patient communication. However, it would be a mistake to read it as a narrow, compliance-only issue.
For home health and hospice agencies, the message is broader than fax machines. It is about where healthcare communication is heading, and whether your organization is building toward that future or catching up to it.
The Administrative Pressure Is Real, But It's Not the Whole Story
The CMS rule targets the documentation burden that exists between providers and payers: medical records, clinical notes, lab results, and imaging that has historically moved by fax and mail. Covered entities have until May 2028 to comply, which sounds like a comfortable runway. But agencies that wait will find themselves scrambling at the deadline, retrofitting processes that should have been rebuilt from the ground up.
More importantly, the administrative side of communication is only one dimension of what modernization requires in care at home. The other dimension, and arguably the harder one, is patient and family communication.
The Patient Communication Gap Is Already There
EMRs are essential. They are the system of record, and no serious agency operates without one. But EMRs were designed to capture and document information, not to facilitate ongoing, real-time communication between your staff, your patients, and their families.
That gap has existed for years. Fax machines did not fill it. Portals that require patient logins do not fill it. Phone tag does not fill it.
What does address it is something more straightforward: direct, accessible, two-way communication that reaches patients and families through channels they already use, without requiring them to download an app, remember a password, or navigate a system designed for clinical users.
For most patients and families managing care at home, that means text.
Why Text Works in Care at Home
Text-based communication is not a workaround. For home health and hospice agencies, it is one of the most effective tools available for keeping patients engaged, families informed, and care teams connected across the full episode of care.
When implemented thoughtfully, it supports appointment confirmations, care notifications, satisfaction surveys, bereavement outreach, and ongoing engagement without placing additional burden on staff or introducing compliance risk.
The key is a platform built specifically for healthcare: one that keeps sensitive clinical information inside the EMR where it belongs, while enabling the communication that actually drives patient experience outcomes.
Where nanaCONNECT Fits
nanaCONNECT is Maxwell TEC's patient communication platform, designed specifically for home health and hospice agencies. It works alongside your existing EMR, providing the communication layer that clinical systems were never built to deliver.
Through modules including NOTIFY, ENGAGE, REACH, and BEREAVE, nanaCONNECT enables agencies to communicate with patients and families across the entire care lifecycle: from intake and coordination through active care, transitions, and bereavement—all through simple, accessible text-based communication that requires nothing from the patient except a cell phone.
nanaCONNECT was also designed to operate without transmitting ePHI via SMS, so agencies gain the benefits of modern communication without introducing compliance exposure.
What This Moment Requires
CMS did not just retire a piece of office equipment. They established a clear expectation: healthcare organizations need to modernize how information moves, and the window for treating this as optional is closing.
For home health and hospice agencies, that expectation extends beyond claims workflows. It runs through every touchpoint in the patient and family experience, every notification, every check-in, every moment where communication either happens or does not.
Agencies that use this moment to take a serious look at their communication infrastructure broadly—not just the administrative layer—will be in a stronger position as regulatory expectations continue to evolve. And they will deliver better care along the way.
