On May 3, 2019, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) published a comprehensive proposed rule (“Proposed Rule”) to revise the Medicare payment structure for inpatient prospective payment systems (“IPPS”) hospitals. According to the preamble of the Proposed Rule, the purpose of the Proposed Rule is to bump up Medicare’s reimbursements to rural hospitals, some of which receive the lowest rates in the country.

Unfortunately for urban hospitals, any proposed changes in the Medicare reimbursement system must be budget-neutral; therefore, any increase in rural hospital reimbursement must be matched with an equal and offsetting decrease in urban hospital reimbursement.[1] As reported in the Kaiser Health News on June 3, 2019, the Kaiser Family Foundation likens this to a Robin Hood-like effect – robbing from the rich to give to the poor. Like in Sherwood Forest, there are winners and losers in the world of Medicare reimbursement.
Continue Reading CMS Proposes Changes to Medicare Wage Index that Would Increase Reimbursement Rates to Rural Hospitals at the Expense of Urban Hospitals