Today CMS issued a final rule that sets new requirements for discharge planning. CMS wants patients to have a more active role in the process, as well as continue to promote communication and coordination between providers.
From CMS: “The final rule revises the discharge planning requirements that hospitals, inpatient rehabilitation facilities, and home health agencies must meet to participate in Medicare and Medicaid programs. It requires the discharge planning process to focus on a patient’s goals and treatment preferences. Additionally, hospitals are mandated to ensure each patient’s right to access their medical records in an electronic format.
The rule also implements requirements from the Improving Medicare Post-Acute Care Transformation Act of 2014 (IMPACT Act) that includes how facilities will account for and document a patient’s goals of care and treatment preferences.). Additionally, if a patient is being discharged to a PAC provider, the rule requires the facility’s care team to assist patients, their families, or the patient’s representative in selecting a PAC provider by sharing key performance data. This data must be relevant and applicable to the patient’s goals of care and treatment preferences. CMS expects providers to document all efforts regarding these requirements in the patient’s medical record.”
Click here to read the full press release, and click here to read the final rule.