Bulletin Board
Bulletin Board
Hospitals Sue Over Medicare DSH Payments
More than 100 hospitals have sued the Department of Health and Human Services, arguing that the manner in which the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services calculates their Medicare disproportionate share payments shortchanges hospitals that care for especially large numbers of low-income patients – the very hospitals Medicare DSH payments were created to help. According to the hospitals, CMS’s Medicare DSH payment methodology undercounts the number of low-income patients hospitals serve, thereby reducing the Medicare DSH payments yielded under the Medicare DSH payment calculation formula adopted in 2023. Learn more [...]
No More Hospital Jello?
The days of enjoying a heaping bowl of jello while stuck in a hospital bed may soon become a thing of the past. In a new directive to hospitals, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has told hospitals that they need to do a better job of meeting their patients’ nutrition needs and “…to align food service with the 2025–2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which prioritize whole, nutrient-dense foods and adequate protein while limiting ultra-processed foods and added sugars.” The CMS memo to hospitals offers the following guidelines: Limiting [...]
Medicare Increases Emphasis on Behavioral Health
Medicare policy is evolving to encourage providers to take a more active role in addressing the behavioral health needs of their patients. In traditional Medicare, new payment codes encourage practitioners to spend more time identifying and helping patients with their behavioral health challenges. Meanwhile, CMS and its Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation have introduced several new care and payment models that place a greater emphasis on beneficiaries’ behavioral health needs. Among them: The LEAD (Long-Term Enhanced ACO Design) Model, which seeks to include more behavioral health providers and encourages [...]
Hospitals Had a Rough January
Hospitals’ financial performance in January of 2026 suffered in comparison to that in January of 2025, according to a recent report. The report found that: Discharges fell two percent. Emergency department visits were off five percent. Average length of stay declined three percent. Expenses rose five percent. Labor costs increased five percent. Bad debt and charity care rose eight percent. Learn more about how the new year brought financial challenges to hospitals from the Healthcare Dive article Hospitals’ financial performance off to a shaky start in 2026: report.
Federal Health Policy Update for March 26
The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government for March 20-26. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Congress Republican leadership is exploring a reconciliation bill as a potential vehicle to fund Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and pass the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act (SAVE) voting rights act. If pursued, this approach could increase the likelihood of additional health care cuts, including expanding site-neutral payment policies in both Medicare and Medicaid. It is not clear whether there will be sufficient [...]