HealthLeaders Media March 31, 2020
The sweeping “Hospitals Without Walls” initiative take effect immediately and allows hospitals to bill Medicare for services in unconventional settings.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
CMS says the temporary waivers will allow health systems to use community-based healthcare venues and provide greater flexibility to respond to the pandemic.
A recent analysis found that health systems across the country could boost ICU hospital bed capacity by 21% if ASCs were used.
CMS is also suspending Stark Law barriers that it hopes will encourage hospitals to hire local physicians and other clinicians to address pandemic surges.
The Trump Administration has suspended regulatory barriers and will now allow hospitals to clear precious bed capacity by triaging non-COVID-19 patients in thousands of...