Legislation would repeal a rule requiring that Medicare recipients at Critical Access Hospitals be discharged or transferred in fewer than 96 hours or risk losing funding for that patient

The rule has not yet been enforced, but hospitals have warned that if it is, doctors will be hesitant to admit patients who might need care for longer than 96 hours 

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar has cosponsored a bipartisan bill to help ensure care for Medicare recipients at rural hospitals in Minnesota and across the country. The Critical Access Hospital Relief Act, introduced by Senators Jon Tester (D-MT) and Pat Roberts (R-KS), would repeal a rule requiring that patients on Medicare at Critical Access Hospitals be discharged or transferred in fewer than 96 hours or risk losing funding for that patient. The rule has not yet been enforced, but hospitals have warned that if it is, doctors will be hesitant to admit patients who might need care for longer than 96 hours.

“Seniors across Minnesota rely on critical access hospitals to receive important medical services,” Klobuchar said. “This commonsense, bipartisan bill will help ensure our seniors in rural communities aren’t shut out of care and can access the care they need.”

Under current law, as a “condition of payment” physicians at Critical Access Hospitals must certify at admission that a Medicare patient is expected to be discharged or transferred within 96 hours. If the beneficiary stays longer than 96 hours, the physician must explain the changed circumstances. If the requirement is not met, the hospital loses its payment for that patient. Historically, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has not enforced the rule, but the agency has said that it plans to begin enforcing the rule.

Klobuchar has long supported the role Critical Access Hospitals play in rural communities. Last year, along with Senator Al Franken and Representatives Collin Peterson, Betty McCollum, Rick Nolan, and Tim Walz, she urged the Medicare program to reject recommendations that would remove the “necessary provider” designation for Critical Access Hospitals that fail to meet the distance requirements.

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