Medicare Seeks To Cut Number Of Seniors Denied Nursing Home Coverage After Hospital Stays
Medicare News Tuesday, August 14th, 2012Kaiserhealthnews.org: 8/10/12
Concerned that a growing number of seniors have been unexpectedly forced to pay thousands of dollars for nursing home care after a stay in a hospital, Medicare has launched a pilot project to test whether relaxing its hospital payment rules could help beneficiaries.
The issue revolves around what should be an easy question: Is the Medicare beneficiary an inpatient? Although many seniors stay in the hospital for several days and are in a regular hospital room while being treated, they may be classified as observation patients, which is considered outpatient service. Read more
