CMS proposes payment rate updates for hospital outpatient, ASC services
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts
Key takeaways:
- CMS proposed an Outpatient Prospective Payment System payment rate of 2.8%.
- CMS proposed to extend the productivity-adjusted hospital market basket update to ASC payment system rates for an additional 2 years.
In its Calendar Year 2024 Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System and ASC Payment System Proposed Rule, CMS proposed updating payment rates for hospitals that meet applicable quality reporting requirements.
According to the proposed rule, the Outpatient Prospective Payment System payment rates would be 2.8%, based on the projected hospital market basket percentage increase of 3% and reduced by 0.2% for the productivity adjustment.
In addition, CMS proposed to extend the 5-year interim period of the application of the productivity-adjusted hospital market basket update to ASC payment system rates an additional 2 years. This extension will allow CMS to gather additional claims data to more accurately analyze whether the application of the hospital market basket update to the ASC payment system had an effect on the migration of services from the hospital setting to the ASC setting, according to CMS. CMS proposed a productivity-adjusted hospital market basket update factor of 2.8% to the ASC rates for calendar year 2024, which applies to ASCs meeting relevant quality reporting requirements.
The rule also includes proposed policies that align with several key goals of the administration, including promoting health equity; expanding access to behavioral health care; improving transparency in the health system; promoting safe, effective and patient-centered care; and addressing medical product shortages. CMS noted the proposed rule seeks comment on potential payment adjustments to hospitals for the additional costs of establishing and maintaining a buffer stock of essential medicines to curtail shortages of these medicines in the future.
The proposed rule will have a 60-day comment period, ending on Sept. 11, and the final rule will be issued in early November.
Read more about
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts