NAPH Submits Comments on Proposed Hospital IPPS Rule - June 22, 2010

On June 16, NAPH submitted a letter to Marilyn Tavenner, Acting Administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), commenting on the proposed changes to the Hospital Inpatient Prospective Payment Systems (IPPS) for Acute Care Hospitals and Proposed Fiscal Year (FY) 2011 Rates. Specifically, the letter discourages CMS from finalizing its proposed 2.9 percent documentation and coding adjustment to the FY 2011 standardized amount, especially given the economic climate and hospitals’ need to commit resources to the implementation of the recently-enacted health reform law. In addition, the letter urges CMS to consider the interaction of its proposed expansion of the Reporting Hospital Quality Data for Annual Payment Update program with the electronic health records incentive program and other quality changes mandated by the health reform law, and how these initiatives may be more closely aligned.