Dive Brief:
- Federal investigators say that a law allowing critical access hospitals to bill Medicare for rehab services at higher rates than nursing homes and other facilities is costing the government billions of dollars.
- In a report released on Monday, the inspector general of the US Department of Health and Human Services said that critical access hospitals have come to view the use of swing beds as a lucrative practice, and that the number of swing bed patients is therefore on the rise.
- The report also says that the extra money gained by the use of swing beds is being used to support fixed costs and offset losses from other lines of business.
Dive Insight:
Alan Morgan, CEO of the National Rural Health Association, admits that Medicare could save money by modifying the system. He also says that dozens of rural hospitals have already closed over the last five years, and another reduction in reimbursement would force many others to close their doors. "Medicare could save money in many ways," he told ArkansasOnline. "That's not the question. The question is what is right for our rural patients and their access to high-quality services designed to care for the frail, elderly patients in their home communities."