CMS Proposed Rule for Inpatient & long-term care Hospitals

April 11, 2023

On April 10, 2023, CMS released a proposed rule that will impact inpatient and long-term care hospitals (LTCH).   The proposed rule recognizes homelessness as a Social Determinant of Health (SDOH), looks to increase equity & safety, and reduce preventable harm.  For FY 2024, acute care hospitals who meet the requirements could see an increase in payments of 2.8% ($3.3B).  LTCHs will also see an increase in the payment rate by 2.9%, however this will be an overall “decrease by 0.9% ($24M), primarily due to a projected decrease in high-cost outlier payments in FY 2024 compared to FY 2023.” (CMS Press release https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/press-releases/cms-proposes-policies-improve-patient-safety-and-promote-health-equity?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=name_ocr_cms_updates_auditing_for_compliance&utm_term=2023-04-11)

In addition to incentivizing hospitals who continue to perform well on previously established measures, CMS is looking to measure COVID-19 vaccination status for patients/residents in LTCHs,  cancer screenings, SDOH, and homelessness.  Read more about the proposed rule in CMS’ Fact sheet: https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/fact-sheets/fy-2024-hospital-inpatient-prospective-payment-system-ipps-and-long-term-care-hospital-prospective